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<br />OJ1535 <br /> <br />Chapter 1 - Introduction <br /> <br />Since 1987, Federal and State agencies, water users and environmental interests have been <br />cooperating in the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program (Recovery <br />Program). The goal of the Recovery Program is to establish self-sustaining populations of four <br />endangered fish species in the Upper Colorado River basin while allowing for continued use and <br />future development of Colorado River water supplies, The Recovery Program has developed a <br />basin-wide action plan that includes restoring fish passage. <br /> <br />Access to upstream habitat of these migratory fish species has been blocked by three irrigation <br />diversion dams on the Colorado River: <br /> <br />1) the GVIC Diversion Dam, about 3 miles downstream of the Price-Stubb Dam <br />2) the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam (discussed in this Draft EA) <br />3) the Grand Valley Project Diversion Dam, about 5.3 miles upstream of the Price-Stubb Dam <br /> <br />In March 1998, a notch was completed in the Grand Valley Irrigation Company (GVIC) <br />Diversion Dam and a fish passageway was constructed below it. The passageway consists of <br />rocks placed in the Colorado River channel to form a series of riffles and pools. This Draft EA <br />references information from the Final EA for passage at the GVIC dam (U.S. Bureau of <br />Reclamation, 1997), The GVIC EA discussed the need for fish passages to help restore <br />populations of the razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) and the Colorado pikeminnow <br />(Ptychocheilus lucius, formerly called the Colorado squawfish). <br /> <br />The Recovery Program's target date for fish passage at the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam is <br />September 2000, and passage at the Grand Valley Project Diversion Dam is planned for the <br />following year. Providing passage at these dams would give the fish access to approximately 50 <br />miles of critical habitat upstream. <br /> <br />Need: Action is needed to restore fish passage at the Price-Stubb Diversion Dam to meet the <br />agreed upon schedule of the basin-wide Recovery Program and make sufficient progress toward <br />recovering the endangered fish. <br /> <br />Purpose: Purposes of the Price-Stubb Fish Passage project are to further the goals and progress <br />of the Recovery Program: <br /> <br />. Actions taken should be cost effective, timely, and complement related actions to help restore <br />native fish populations and protect existing and planned rights and uses affected by the <br />project. Related Recovery Program actions include stocking endangered fish, controlling <br />nonnative fish species, acquiring and restoring floodplain habitat, and protecting in stream <br />flows. <br /> <br />. Potentially affected uses of Colorado River water include: providing municipal, domestic, <br />and irrigation water to residents of the Grand Valley; proposed development of hydroelectric <br /> <br />2 <br />