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o inJJ:1 R '/ United States Department of Interior Bureau of Reclamation Western Colorado Area Office FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ORCHARD MESA WILDLIFE AREA SELENIUM REMEDIATION PROJECT In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and based on the following, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) has determined that the proposed selenium remediation project on the Orchard Mesa Wildlife Area (OMW A) would not result in a significant impact on the human environment. In 1996, Reclamation and the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fishes Recovery Program purchased about 153 acres of Colorado River bottomland as a mitigation site for the salinity control project in the Grand Valley and to protect endangered fish habitat. This property is now known as the Orchard Mesa Wildlife Area (OMW A) and Reclamation has actively managed the site as a wildlife area. In the OMW A, Reclamation has planted cottonwood and other riparian plant species, applied salt cedar control, and provided flood irrigation to improve wildlife habitat. Water quality testing identified high concentrations of selenium in two backwater areas. Selenium concentrations were recorded as high as 30 parts per billion (ppb). well above the Colorado water quality standard of 5 ppb. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) expressed concerns that selenium concentrations may be bio-accumulating in endangered fishes and aquatic birds. High selenium levels have been documented to cause deformities and birth defects in fish and aquatic birds. The purpose and need of the remediation project is to reduce high selenium concentrations in two backwater areas on the OMW A to protect fish and aquatic birds. An interagency interdisciplinary (ID) team was established in October 1998 to develop a selenium remediation plan for the OMW A. The ID Team consisted of members from Reclamation, the Service and the U.S. Geological Survey. Public involvement was solicited at a public workshop in November 1998 and in two separate National Irrigation Water Quality Program (NIWQP) newsletters requesting public comments. Comment consensus was that any action taken should not do any harm to the OMW A. The comments were generally taken to be an encouragement to do the minimum necessary to remove the hazard and make sure that no new hazards were created, and minimize expenditures on something the river will eventually reclaim. A draft Environmental Assessment (EA) was prepared in September 2000. Comments from the public and from agencies and organizations were used to prepare a final EA in November 2000. Comments received are responded to in the final EA. Coordination on the project included consultation with the Service under the Endangered Species Act.