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<br />of the Interior Bruce Babbitt and both former Reclamation Commissioner Dan Beard and current <br /> <br />Commissioner Eluid Martinez. <br /> <br />Secretary Babbitt told the Outdoor Writers of America Association in 1994 that <br /> <br />freshwater fisheries are inextricably linked with the emerging concept of ecosystem management. <br /> <br />They are indicators of the quality and condition of the water, which increasingly is a function of <br /> <br />the way the entire watershed is managed. That same year, Commissioner Beard said that public <br /> <br />opinion more highly valued the long-term ecologic and cultural values of rivers and watersheds <br /> <br />than at any point over the past 50 years. He committed Reclamation to a course still followed. <br /> <br />IJPPER COLORADO REGION: <br /> <br />Flaming Gorge Dam: Reclamation is operating the dam within the limits of a biological opinion <br /> <br />issued in 1992 under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. Over a five-year period, <br /> <br />Reclamation tested and evaluated various flow patterns for spring, summer, fall, and winter needs <br /> <br />of the endangered fish in the Green River. The dam has been modified with a temperature control <br /> <br />device to allow some management of downstream river temperatures. In 1993, changes were <br /> <br />made in the historical release patterns from the dam to more closely match the natural <br /> <br />hydrograph. Changes in 1993 resulted in some lowland flooding as part of an effort to provide <br /> <br />spring and early summer wetlands to serve as razorback sucker rearing and feeding grounds. <br /> <br />These operational changes have removed much of the peaking power capability for the dam's <br /> <br />powerplant. In 1995, biologists collected 28 four- to five-month old razorback suckers, more <br /> <br />than found in any previous study. While old adult razorbacks exist in the Green River, the 1994 <br /> <br />discovery of young fish was very significant. <br /> <br />Provo River: Reclamation has been working since 1986 to provide critical habitat for the June <br /> <br />sucker a native fish found in Utah Lake and the Provo River. Reclamation secured water for <br />, <br />