RGBRT Minutes of 2-13-07 ex Rio 030907

Home Browse Search

For more information locally, contact Steve V andiver at the RGWCD: 589 - 6301 Glenn W — Conejos County C ommission er — stopped people from building in raptor area — lots of devel opers think they have their own rules - but they need to find out that they have to go by the County’s rules Ray - even for people involved, ESA is complex and confusing — perhaps a hand book wou ld be a useful tool - public and land use people need to und erstand it - one developer said that they called the USFWS and did not get an answer so they must be ok! Not the case! Doug — needs to be specific in the C ounty R eg ulations and Master P lans Ron — Information for land use offices / planners regarding what de veloper must do will be addressed in the HCP. Mike G — The fact the SLV was not being designated Critical Habitat was the result of great effort in the community! T he cooperative efforts were even n oted in the Federal Register! Thanks to RGWCD for takin g this on! Presentation on Environmental Needs Assessment and report from SLV Wetlands Focus Area Committee Rio de la Vista (Environmental Representative on the Roundtable ) and Doug Shriver presented a paper from the SLV Wetlands Focus Area Committee reg arding the Environmental Needs Assessment aspect of the Rio Grande Basin. See attached. Essentially, the Wetlands Committee, which includes the land, water and wildlife management agencies, the various conservation groups working in the SLV, and interest ed citizens, seek to be a resource to the Roundtable members as they develop projects. The group does not see the environment as a separate component, but rather as integral to all efforts and projects. The long - term sustainability of the SLV’s water is equally vital to wetlands, wildlife and all environmental values as it is to agricult ure, the SLV’s economy and many values for the community as a whole . The Wetlands Committee would like to see the role of wetlands and their economic contribution, thro ugh water storage, water purification, flood mitigation and wildlife habitat, to be better quantified and considered in decision - making . The Wetlands Committee will be pursuing this possibility as there are models for determining economic valuation of eco logical services and this may be a valid pursuit for the SLV. Presentation on the Rio Grande Initiative Rio de la Vista presented the concept of the Rio Grande Initiative (RGI) — a collaborative effort with many partners, spearheaded by the Rio Grande He adwaters Land Trust with Ducks Unlimited, the Nature Conservancy, CDOW, the Rio Grande Headwaters Page 5 of 8 RGBRT Minutes February 13, 2007