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<br />Western States Water Council <br />Water Resources Committee Minutes <br /> <br />Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico <br />October 28, 2004 <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Lester Snow stated that water conservation, reuse, development and ground water are all part <br />of a broader water supply strategy~ With regard to the topics selected, he asked, "Why the categories <br />listed?" <br /> <br />Dave responded that the states did discuss integrated management, but decided to focus on <br />certain categories. <br /> <br />Roger Patterson stated, "We need some type of ongoing dialogue, and a shared understanding <br />with USDA and other federal agencies." We also need to work to have our priorities included in the <br />new farm bill. With respect to the application of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), Nebraska <br />is working on a $150M deal. "A lot of federal money is going into this. We do need more of a <br />cultural shift, so our state conservationists don't have to push the envelope. This should be an area of <br />emphasis over next couple of years." <br /> <br />Dave asked, "Do we need a new subcommittee?" <br /> <br />Tony noted there is an existing Water Use Efficiency/Conservation subcommittee. <br /> <br />Dave suggested we expand the subcommittee and have it define our tasks for the April <br />workshop. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Sue Lowry added the Western Coalition of Conservation Districts has invited the Council to <br />cosponsor a conference on watershed management. <br /> <br />Eileen Grevey Hillson thought a half-day workshop with NRCS, the Western Coalition, and <br />others in Boise in the Spring could be followed with a larger workshop with a larger water development <br />theme. <br /> <br />Norm suggested, "We can talk about meshing state water programs with federal conservation <br />programs. We could make this fit well with a field trip in Idaho. How do we change negative <br />unintended consequences of federal programs?" <br /> <br />Shaun McGrath added the September water supply conference in Salt Lake was successful <br />because of the high level of participation by federal policymakers. He suggested the Council could ask <br />the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) and NRCS to put in $10,000 for a workshop designed to establish <br />policy and implement specific action items. <br /> <br />Dave asked if there was agreement on a half-day initial effort, to be followed-up with a larger <br />conference. <br /> <br />Roger observed, "We still need to have the key people there." <br /> <br />Jack added, "We want to keep them engaged, since September." <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />6 <br />