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<br />002528 <br /> <br />The question that immediately comes to mind is: Why should <br /> <br /> <br />water conservation interests support a program to improve the <br /> <br /> <br />condition of endangered species? In late 1984, the Colorado <br /> <br /> <br />Water Congress Special Project faced the question of proposing a <br /> <br /> <br />solution to the problem. After considerable thought, it was <br /> <br /> <br />concluded that the only way to really solve the problem was to <br /> <br />recover and delist the species, as called for in the Endangered <br /> <br />Species Act. In February, 1985, the first draft of the Colorado <br /> <br /> <br />Water Congress proposal entitled "Preliminary Conceptual <br /> <br /> <br />Approach to Recovery of Endangered Fish Species in the Upper <br /> <br /> <br />Colorado River Basin" was completed. The proposal was carefully <br /> <br /> <br />reviewed by the Colorado Water Congress Special Project <br /> <br /> <br />committees, and endorsed as a yiable approach. This proposal <br />.-< <br /> <br />was released to the Coordinating Committee in May, 1985. It did <br /> <br />. ' <br />not contain all of the details presently contained in the draft <br /> <br /> <br />recovery implementation program. These details were intensely <br /> <br /> <br />negotiated among water users, the States, Federal agencies, and <br /> <br />environmental interests between August, 1985 and June, 1986. <br /> <br />PRINCIPLES <br /> <br />For water users, the proposal offers a radical departure from <br /> <br />the proposal of July, 1983, wherein the U.S. Fish and Wildlife <br /> <br /> <br />Service initially proposed to provide water for endangered <br /> <br /> <br />fishes simply by stopping water development at certain levels in <br /> <br /> <br />the Upper Colorado River Basin. The present proposal provides <br /> <br /> <br />opportunities for establishing instream flows for endangered <br /> <br />species, while at the same time respecting State water rights <br /> <br /> <br />systems and interstate compacts. The implementation and <br /> <br /> <br />management of instream flows to support recovery is based on <br /> <br />four fundamental principles: <br /> <br />1. Provision and maintenance of instream flows at <br /> <br /> <br />certain times, locations, and in certain quantities <br /> <br /> <br />is necessary to protect and recover endangered fish <br /> <br />species and habitat in the Upper Colorado River Basin. <br /> <br />4 <br />