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<br />Grand Valley News (contmued from page 1) <br /> <br />What's Happening with <br />Remediation? <br /> <br />For the last several years, we have been <br />looking at ways to reduce potential <br />selenium impacts to endangered fish and <br />other aquatic life in the Grand Valley. The <br />focus has been on measures that would <br />have the least impact (lowest cost with <br />minimal impacts on affected stakeholders) <br />while solving or reducing the selenium <br />problems. Many different measures <br />ranging from agricultural land retirement to <br />water treatment to diversion and dilution <br />were studied for the Orchard Mesa Wildlife <br />Area (OMWA), our first targeted area. In <br />December 2000, the first remediation took <br />place at the OMW A. It was a very simple <br />project, involving the excavation of a <br />'llushing" channel that would carry "clean" <br />(Le., low selenium) water from the Colorado <br />River into an old slough to dilute high <br />selenium concentrations to safer levels for <br />the aquatic life. Additional flushing <br />channels were recently excavated to <br />reduce selenium concentrations in other <br />parts of the wildlife area. Monitoring will <br />continue over the next several years, and, if <br />needed. additional "adaptive management" <br />measures may be implemented. <br /> <br />We are presently planning improvements at <br />3 additional Colorado River backwater/ <br />bottomland sites. These improvements are <br /> <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br />~ . <br />i:UoOi. <br />"". <br /> <br />Adobe Creek backwater near Frwta <br /> <br />being studied in cooperation with the <br />landowners. Any proposed improvements will <br />require their concurrence. <br /> <br />These sites are: <br />. Colorado River Wildlife Area Backwater <br />- north side of the river between 30 and <br />31 Roads, <br />. Mouth of Adobe Creek - north side of <br />the river at about 18 Y2 Road, and <br />. Panorama - south side of the river near <br />the Panorama subdivision on the <br />Redlands. <br /> <br />Reducing selenium concentrations at these <br />sites will improve habitat quality for aquatic <br />life. Eventually. 20 or more additional sites in <br />the Grand Valley may be studied and <br />improved under this program. <br /> <br />Lower Gunnison News <br /> <br />Finding Solutions (continued from page 1) <br /> <br />Some of the most promising measures <br />surfacing thus far, are: <br />. membrane lining andlor piping irrigation <br />canals and laterals (ditches), <br />. applying PAM in canals and laterals, <br />. installing on-farm irrigation <br />improvements. <br />. lining farm and residential ponds, <br />. growing harvestable trees or other <br />vegetation that reduce groundwater <br />volumes, and <br />. providing educational activities aimed <br />at reducing water use. <br /> <br />The articles on the following pages describe <br />current demonstration projects involving piping <br />laterals in the Montrose Arroyo drainage and <br />applying PAM to canals and laterals. <br />Additionally, efforts are underway to initiate a <br />new series of demonstration projects for some <br />of the other promising measures. If you would <br />like additional information concerning these <br />studies. or if you have other ideas that might <br />help reduce selenium in the area. please <br />contact Mike Baker at (970) 248-0637. <br /> <br />Page 2 <br />