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<br />The contract will run for 10 years, from 2003 through 2012. Reclamation haS <br />agreed to absorb the capital costs of the water provided pursuant to this <br />agreement - $735,000 per year plus interest - (see letter to the Recovery <br />Program dated December 20,2002). Pursuant to John Shields' letter of April <br />24, 2003, the Recovery Program will acknowledge that contribution by <br />Reclamation (which is in addition to the other commitments that Reclamation <br />has made) in its annual reports. The Recovery Program subsequently agreed to <br />pay the annual O&M costs associated with providing this water, currently <br />about $62,000 annually. <br /> <br />· Due to continued dry conditions in 2003, a drought-management target flow of <br />250 cfs for the IS-Mile Reach was initially established by the Service, <br />beginning July 23. As the summer progressed, stream flows held up better <br />than expected and on August 6 the target was increased to 450 cfs. A total of <br />27,579 afofwater was available for late-summer augmentation in 2003. This <br />total included: 20,825 affrom Ruedi, 2,966 affrom Wolford, and 3,788 af <br />from Williams Fork reservoirs. As of August 27,2003, an HUP surplus was <br />declared and water was made available for fish releases out of Green Mountain <br />Reservoir to support target flows in the IS-Mile Reach. <br /> <br />· Manual operation of the Grand Valley Water Management (GVWM) canal <br />checks enabled Grand Valley Project water managers to reduce direct river <br />diversions and conserve up to 1,400 afper day during the 2002 irrigation <br />season. Reclamation technicians have now completed individual check <br />automation, and by the end of the 2003 irrigation season all the checks will be <br />connected to a SCADA system that will allow them to operate automatically or <br />manually by remote control. In average water years, the improved efficiency is <br />expected to provide about 28,000 af of additional water for endangered fish. <br />Construction on the Highline Lake pump station is expected to be completed <br />by early summer of 2004. This will complete the last component of GVWM, <br />which will allow optimum use of Grand Valley Project water. <br /> <br />· The Flaming Gorge EIS Interdisciplinary Team is preparing a draft EIS, which <br />it expects to publish in October 2003. The comment period will end December <br />2003. The target date for publication of the final EIS is July2004, and for the <br />Record of Decision, August 2004. <br /> <br />· A Notice of Availability for a draft Management Plan for Endangered Fishes <br />in the Yampa RiverBasin (Plan) was published in the FederalRegister on July <br />30,2003. The Plan also incorporates an environmental assessment (EA), for <br />which public comments are sought. Comments will be accepted through <br />August 31, after which the Plan and EA will be finalized. The final Plan and <br />EA are expected by the end of September, with a draft PBO by the end of <br />October and final PBO by the end of November. A Cooperative Agreement to <br />implement the Plan should be signed before the end of the calendar year. <br /> <br />5 <br />