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D~ ,. jogging, watching wildlife, viewing beautiful scenery, archeological and cultural interpretive opportunities, and well designed facilities for persons who are dis- abled. Most reservoirs meet local and regional recreational needs, but several, including lakes Mead and Powell on the Colorado River, have become international des- tination areas. The action doesn't stop at the dam. Excellent trout fishedes have been created in the cool, clear waters released from the dams. River runners enjoy rafting opportunities pro- vided by an assured, scheduled release of water. In recent years, the lower reaches of the dver have become a center for powerboat recreation. Often such activities are on streams and dvers that would normally run low each summer, or at best not have sufficient water to provide a quality habi- tat or recreational exped- ence. Wildlife values are improved, either as a direct benefit or through extensive mitigation plans, to replace values lost to construction of the dams. Tens of thousands of acres of big game range have been purchased to miti- gate environmental impacts of Reclamation projects. They have been placed in public ownership and management and are excellent lands for both wildlife viewing and hunt- ing and fishing. There are 54 reservoirs in the Upper Colorado Region with 32 of them in the Colorado River drainage. Their combined water surface totals 267,295 acres available for recreation and 2,750 miles of shoreline. Annually, more than 8.9 million visi- tors use the reservoirs and other project features in the upper basin. The three major reser- voirs and the flowing river sections of the Lower Colorado Region provide 293,354 acres of water sur- face and 1,917 miles of shoreline for recreational pursuits.' Visitors total about 19 million people annually. Reclamation's three most popular recreation destinations are all on the Colorado River: first is Lake Mead National Recreation Area (Hoover. Dam) with 7.1 million visi-, tor days in 1990; second is Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (Glen Canyon Dam) with 6.1 million visitor days; and third is the Lake Havasu area (Parker-Davis Dams) with 1.8 million visitor days. A visitor day is based on a combination of people and hours totaling 12, such as one person for 12 hours, 2 people for 6 hours, and so forth. The steady increase in visitation to Reclamation's facilities on the Colorado River is consistent with the growth in visits over the years to all such facili- ties. In 1966, there wen~ ' 28.8 million visitor days to all Reclamation sites. In 1990, the total was 53.5 million. By applying an average value of $14.22 per visitor day, the value of recreation in 1990 at Reclamation's facilities on the Colorado River system was approxi- mately $354 million. The value is based upon cur- rent measures used in National Economic Development benefit eval- uation procedures. Also, the Colorado River por- tion in 1990 was slightly less than half of all the benefits for the entire Bureau of Reclamation. ;_.1 CRWUA 3' Reclamation's long-time policy has been to transfer management of recreation, facilities to other federal and non-federal agencies. Endangered Species The Bureimof Reclamation is responsible . for ensuring that agency aelions do not adversely impact endangered species or their habitats and are not likely to jeopardize their continued existenc.e'. Furthermore, Reclamation is responsible for promot- ing the recovery and con- servation of such endan' gered species and their' habitats. The construction and operation of main- . stem and tributary dams on the Colorado River sys- tem have been identified as having major effects on the decline of native fish- es. Species involved include the humpback chub, Colorado squawfish, razorback sucker and the bony tail chub. Significantly, many of the dams that created the impacts resulting in the' decline of the species were constructed 20 to 50 years prior to the passage ofthe . . En.dangered Species Act. However, they'are not exempted from the requirements of the act. Reclamation, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the seven basin states, water and power users, and envi- ronmental groups are working together to devel- op programs to protect and preserve the fish while still allowing necessary water development to move forward. Throughout the entire river basin, numerous activities are under way involving both aquatic and terrestrial endangered species. A partial listing of these includes: bald eagles, peregrine falcons, desert pupfish and the desert tortoise. In the Upper Colorado Region, a recovery imple- mentation program has been developed for the upper basin Colorado River and its tributaries, including the Green River. A similar plan is now being developed for the San Juan River. These plans will allow for the operation of the dams in compliance with the Endangered Species Act. In the Lower Colorado Region, the river and its main .tributaries have been developed, modi- fied and depleted much more extensively than in the upper basin. Recovery actions here have followed a different approach than that used for the Upper Colorado Region. Many remaining populations offish are in a reservoir environment as opposed to that of the river below dams. Recovery actions have generally involved multi- state, federal and univer- sity groups on a case-by-' case basis. While not all the answers are yet knbwn,.' Reclamation is commit- tedto honoring the spirit. and intent of the Endangered Species Act while also providing for the necessary delivery of water and generation of power to meet contracted obligations. " . . iSr":", ",""~ .1 '~,.:-...." j ,v/-/:Qu...... /- iP ~./' : '~, '\.."~o,,,., t ( ..- ~.~ rnEptJf\l~' "d Jj ;'\~:-;::-:-;--_~;:,:I