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. s (j 0 18 ~-1 8 6. The Fish and Wildlife Service's Region 6 is now conducting formal Section 7 consultation on the proposed Long Hollow Reservoir project, and the Service's Region 2 will conduct the consultation on the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project at such time as formal consultation is requested for that project by the federal action agency. The Service has not indicated that it will not conform to its rules and regulations for conducting Section 7 consultations on the two projects. 7. New or increased irrigation uses in Colorado associated with the storage of water within an enlarged Red Mesa Reservoir and the proposed Long Hollow Reservoir will reduce the amount of water available for stock use and for irrigation and fish and wildlife uses in New Mexico, including at the Jackson Lake Wildlife Refuge, and may impact ground water recharge to shallow domestic wells in New Mexico. This might be considered in any environmental analysis that may be required for the project, but does not affect Colorado's right to develop the water apportioned to the State of Colorado by the La Plata River Compact. La Plata River COIIlDact Administration 8. The La Plata River Compact is an equitable apportionment of the waters of the La Plata River drainage. The State of Colorado is not free to deprive New Mexico users of the water owed New Mexico by compact. 9. New Mexico has raised concerns for many years regarding the State of Colorado's performance in making deliveries of water at the Interstate Station under the La Plata River Compact. 10. Causes of difficulties in meeting the La Plata River Compact Article 11.2 daily Interstate Station delivery requirement may include natural and man-made factors, including diverting the flow of the La Plata River at Hesperus or elsewhere, changes in location of irrigation water uses and associated return flows, diversions on tributaries to the La Plata River, development of ground water, and construction of stock ponds and reservoirs throughout the La Plata River drainage. 11. Based on the water supply studies provided to the State of New Mexico for the proposed Long Hollow Reservoir project, New Mexico does not believe that the operation of the project, in conjunction with other operations in Colorado, as modeled fully addresses New Mexico's concerns regarding performance in making deliveries of water at the Interstate Station under the La Plata River Compact regardless of the labeling or proposed operation of any "compact reserve pool". New Mexico is concerned that t+he water supply modeling studies appear to indicate that Colorado's water users anticipate operating diversions and_the reservoir conjunctively in a manner that weuld-might hasten and worsen the dry river condition above the confluence of the La Plata River and Cherry Creek which is already influenced by man-made factors; and consequently, weuld- might make Interstate Station deliveries though the summer months more difficult to achieve when reservoir storage reserved or otherwise made available by Colorado for compact deliveries is exhausted. Regardless,New Mexico believes that Colorado has acknowledged that Colorado's obligation to comply with Article 11.2 of the Compact does not cease when such Long Hollow Reservoir storage is exhausted. 12. Mr. Delph Carpenter, Colorado's negotiator and signatory representative to the La Plata River Compact, stated in his report to the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives, 67th Congress, 1st Session, at hearing on June 4, 1921, "Under the compact the Colorado ditches may construct reservoirs and deliver stored waters in exchange for flow of the river. There is no restriction or limitation upon the character or source of the waters to be delivered to New Mexico. Water from any source satisfies the 4