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<br />to) <br />o <br />j..... <br /><0 <br /> <br />Environmental Protection Agency <br />Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program <br />Accomplishments for fiscal year 1996 <br /> <br />During fiscal year 1996, EPA assistance to the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control.Program was <br />primarily focused on the following activities: <br /> <br />. assistance in preparing the 1996 Colorado River salinity standards triennial review (1996 <br />Review); . <br /> <br />. completion of approvals of state adoptions of the 1993 Review; <br /> <br />. coordination with the USDA and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to address <br />wetland replacement concerns related to on-farm salinity activities; <br /> <br />. participation in the Aneth area ground water study; and <br /> <br />. coordination with the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) On salt brine injection activities <br />at the Paradox Well. <br /> <br />To date, all the basin states except Arizona and Nevada have requested that EP A approve their <br />formal adoptions of the 1993 Review. California's adoption of the 1993 Reviewwas approved by <br />EPA Region 9 on October 16, 1995. <br /> <br />EP A Region 8 approved the water quality standards for salinity adopted by Utah, Colorado and <br />Wyoming. EP A Region 6 approved the New Mexico water quality standards which include the <br />salinity standards in August 1995. EP A's review process included a biological evaluation under the. <br />Endangered Species Act and informal consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service. (FWS). The <br />FWS concurred with EP A's determination that the numeric criteria for salinity or the plan of <br />implementation would not likely affect threatened or endangered aquatic species. <br /> <br />The EP A participated in the development of the 1996 Review of the Water Quality Standards for <br />Salinity by providing input into the impacts of wet and dry hydrologic sequences on the <br />attainability of the standards. The EP A is satisfied that the document fully discloses the potential <br />impacts to the river from salinity. <br /> <br />EP A continues to address recommendations of the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Advisory <br />Council for coordination On wetland habitat replacement concerns with the USDA on-farm salinity <br />program. EP A believes that past field reviews have helped achieve a more consistent <br />understanding of the concerns related to the USDA wetland replacement program. EP A provided <br />extensive comments to the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) that support <br />the creation of a wildlife habitat chapter in the new NRCS Salinity Control Handbook. Continued <br />involvement in these issues has been hampered by delays in NRCS completion of the new Salinity <br />Control Handbook and passage of the new farm bill. <br /> <br />5 <br />