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<br />33 <br /> <br />and contribute to further habitat alteration, the Project would contribute to <br />an increase in nonnative fish populations, Endangered fishes would experience <br />increased competition and predation as a result. <br /> <br />Summarv <br /> <br />The Service has concluded that the depletion of water caused by the Project <br />will impact the primary constituent elements necessary for the survival and <br />recovery of endangered fishes in the Upper Basin. Without actions taken to <br />offset impacts. further flow reductions are likely to jeopardize the continued <br />existence of the endangered fishes and adversely modify or destroy their <br />critical habitat, The Colorado River is an essential component of the habitat <br />of the endangered fishes in the Colorado River Basin and is important in <br />ensuring survival of these species in the event populations are lost in other <br />subbasins as a result of catastrophic events such as oil spills. <br /> <br />REASQNABLE AND PRUDENT ALTERNATIVE <br /> <br />Regulations (50 CFR 402.02) implementing section 7 of the Act define <br />reasonable and prudent alternatives as alternative actions. identified during <br />formal consultation. that: (1) can be implemented in a manner consistent with <br />the intended purpose of the action: (2) can be implemented consistent with the <br />scope of the action agency's legal authority and jurisdiction; (3) are <br />economically and technologically feasible: and (4) would, the Service <br />believes. avoid the likelihood of jeopardizing the continued existence of <br />listed species or resulting in the destruction or adverse modification of <br />critical habitat. <br /> <br />Backqround <br /> <br />On January 21-22. 1988. the Secretary of the Interior; the Governors of <br />Wyoming, Colorado. and Utah: and the Administrator of the Western Area Power <br />Administration were cosigners of a Cooperative Agreement to implement the <br />"Recovery Implementation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper <br />Colorado River Basin" (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1987), An objective of <br />the Recovery Program was to recover the listed species while providing for new <br />water development in the Upper Basin. <br /> <br />In order to further define and clarify processes outlined in sections <br />4.1.5, 4.1.6, and 5.3.4 of the Recovery Program. a Section 7 Agreement and a <br />Recovery Implementation Program Recovery Action Plan was developed (U.S. Fish <br />and Wildlife Service 1993). The Agreement establishes a framework for <br />conducting all future section 7 consultations on depletion impacts related to <br />