The Secretary of the Interior - Washington - CO River Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and the Coordinated Operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead

Home Browse Search

Interim Guidelines for the Operation of Lake Powell and Lake Mead District of Southern California, Coachella Valley Water District, Imperial Irrigation District, San Diego County Water Authority, the La Jolla, Pala, Pauma, Rincon and San Pasqual Bands of Mission Indians, the San Luis Rey River Indian Water Authority, the City of Escondido and Vista Irrigation District, dated October 10, 2003. This understanding has also been expressly stated in the proposed Delivery Agreements for IID and MWD (Section V of this ROD). The EPA submitted a comment letter noting it had no objections to the proposed project and some of the details of the Final EIS pertinent to their views. Further, EPA encouraged Reclamation to "play an active role in facilitating comprehensive water management among all water sectors in the Basin." Reclamation intends to continue to pursue its mission in the 17 western states, and in particular on the Colorado River, to assist in meeting the increasing water demands of the West while protecting the environment and the public's investment in these structures. Reclamation places great emphasis on fulfilling its water delivery obligations, water conservation, water recycling and reuse, and developing partnerships with our customers, states, and Native American Tribes, and in finding ways to bring together the variety of interests to address the competing needs for our limited water resources. The Colorado River Board of California submitted comments on behalf of its member agencies on the updated draft Guidelines. The majority of the comments were editorial and to the extent the individual comments improved the clarity of the Guidelines they were incorporated into the Guidelines found in Section XI of this ROD. A comment letter dated November 12, 2007, was received from a single member of the public and noted his concern that the terms of the Biological Opinion (BO) should be met and that impacts due to climate change on "listed fish and birds" are addressed. FWS issued the BO on the Preferred Alternative described in this ROD on December 12, 2007. Reclamation has agreed to implement Conservation measures to benefit the listed species addressed in the BO and comply with the terms and conditions of the incidental take statement in the BO. Acknowledging the potential for impacts due to climate change and increased hydrologic variability, the Secretary proposes that the Guidelines be interim in duration and extend through 2026, providing the opportunity to gain valuable operating experience for the management of Lake Powell and Lake Mead, particularly for low reservoir conditions, and improve the basis for making additional future operational decisions, whether during the Interim Period (Section 8 of the Guidelines) or thereafter. In addition, the Preferred Alternative has been crafted to include operational elements that would respond if potential impacts of climate change and increased hydrologic variability are realized. In particular, the Preferred Alternative includes a coordinated operation element that allows for the adjustment of Lake Powell's release to respond to low reservoir storage conditions in Lake Powell or Lake Mead as described in Section 2.7 and Section 2.3 in the Final EIS. In addition, the Preferred Alternative will enhance conservation opportunities in the Lower Basin and the retention of water in Lake Mead through adoption of the ICS mechanism. Finally, the Preferred Alternative includes a shortage strategy at Lake Mead that would result in December 2007 ROD -Colorado River Interim Guidelines for 14 Lower Basin Shortages and Coordinated Operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead