WSP08608

• File Number: 8273.600
• Description: Colorado River Basin Salinity Control - Federal Agencies - USDA
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Water Division: 5
• Date: 2/18/1992
• Title: Monitoring and Evaluation - Wildlife Report - Fiscal Year 1991
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

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A.

IJlTRODUCTI:OH:

Wildlife upland and wetland habitat is being monitored
at selected sites in the KcElmo Creek Salinity Control Unit.
These sites (as outlined in the KcElmo Creek ErS) include 15
contracts (farm units) selected each year from the first
three years of the Salinity Program for a total of 45 sites.
Habitat changes are presently being tracked for all salinity
contracts to measure habitat quality and quantity (for
existing, planned and applied conditions).

B. OBJBCTI:VES:

The McElmo Creek Salinity control Unit, a once xeric
basin with irrigated agriculture introduced 75 years ago,
contains extensive wetlands associated with over-irrigation,
seepage (canal, lateral and ditch) losses, and accumulation
(perching) in geological depressions. As irrigation systems
and management practices become more efficient water supply
to these wetlands will be diminished. Losses of upland
habitat will occur in order to facilitate these new systems.
(such as incidental field squaring, ditch removal, etc.).
Evaluations will be made to measure the impacts of salinity
project implementation to wetland and upland wildlife
" habitat and to also.assess the effectiveness of voluntary
':-".,': actions by landowners to replace or mitigate for any habitat
losses attributed to irrigation system improvement. These
evaluations will be conducted to document existing, planned
(projected) and applied conditions for every contract.

C. METHODOLOGY:

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Habitat quality will be determined by using the u.s.
Fish and wildlife service Habitat Evaluation Procedures
(HEP). Habitat data gathered from individual salinity
contracts and randomly selected monitoring sites will be
used to calculate Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) values for
selected wildlife species. The HSI is a numerical index
rating which measures habitat quality for wildlife species
on a scale of zero (0) to one (1). The value attained
reflects the potential of a habitat type to support a
specific wildlife species. (HSI models basically look at the
life requisites, food, water and cover, of a species and
their seasonable availability to that species.). An HSI
value of 1.0 implies an area has the greatest potential to
support the selected wildlife species, while a value of .1
denotes significantly lower potential (one-tenth of
potential to support that species) for that species to exist
in the area.

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