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<br />001692 <br /> <br />Revised Supplemental Draft Environmental Assessment-Chapter 3-Affected <br />Environment and Environmental Consequences <br /> <br />Conventional Fish Ladder: As with the No Action alternative, construction of a <br />fish ladder around the dam would provide no recreation benefit. <br /> <br />Downstream Rock Fish Passage: This alternative would also provide no <br />recreational benefit. However, this alternative would not prohibit recreation <br />enhancements from occurring in the future after construction of the fish passage. This <br />alternative would address boating safety issues with warning signs posted upstream of the <br />dam and 'a log boom type barrier installed upstream of the fish passage exit to prevent <br />boaters from attempting to float through the fish passage. The fish passage channel <br />would not be safe for boat passage and boaters would need to portage around the dam. <br />Future recreational enhancements funded with non-Recovery Program funds could <br />improve the remaining portion downstream of the dam as long as it did not interfere with <br />the operation and structural integrity of the fish passage. This would also require <br />approval from the dam owners, underlying fee title land owners, and the Recovery <br />Program. A possible boater put-in site is located about three miles upstream at Colorado <br />River State Park-Island Acres. No other public access is located upstream between the <br />Price-Stubb Diversion Dam and the Grand Valley Project Diversion Dam. Unauthorized <br />access to the river from Interstate 70 and the Cameo Bridge may occur. <br /> <br />Downstream Rock Fish Passage with Whitewater Recreation Features: This <br />alternative would provide a 550 foot rock-ramp as a basis for recreation enhancement. <br />Whitewater features would be constructed on the rock-ramp with non-Recovery Program <br />funding. This would enable the whitewater features to be constructed at a lower cost to <br />recreational interests because the site would already be dewatered for fish passage <br />construction, provides cost savings on volume of material purchased, and the potential to <br />share contract administration and construction mobilization costs. Recreational boating <br />would increase when compared to the Conventional Fish Ladder and Downstream Rock <br />Fish Passage alternatives. The amount of recreation use would be limited because the <br />only upstream public access available would be from Colorado River State Parks-Island <br />Acres. Some trespass along Interstate 70 and at the Cameo Bridge to access the river <br />above the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam would also occur. In addition, some kayak boaters <br />would likely trespass on CDOT property once they floated over the whitewater features <br />to re-enter above the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam to rerun the white water features. <br /> <br />Local recreational interests (i.e. WATER) envision a world-class whitewater park using <br />the whitewater features to host major events. It is unlikely that this scale of recreation <br />could be feasible without public access granted from CDOT, which owns a majority of <br />the property downstream of the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam. Additional discussion is <br />provided in the Cumulative Impacts section ofthis chapter. <br /> <br />Dam Removal: As stated in a January 1991 letter from Gary M. Lacy, P.E., <br />removing the dam could create a naturally appearing, navigable segment of the river. <br />This would open a spectacular canyon segment of the Colorado River to <br />recreationaL.. boating." A possible put-in site is about 3 miles upstream at Colorado <br />River State Park-Island Acres, from which boaters could float down the river to a variety <br />of take-out points. Popular day use take-outs include Palisade; Colorado River State <br /> <br />33 <br />