Rio Grande - Platoro Reservoir Restoration_Application & Scope of Work

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Water Supply Reserve Account - Grant Application Form Fonn Revised May 2007 Activities irhich depend on proper functioning of Platoro include fishing, recreational boating, hunting, tivildlife viciring, birdtinatching, outdoorphotography, nature research, and related pursuits. This project helps to provide sustainable and more predictable crater supply for all of these recreational uses. p. The water activity assists in the administration of compact-entitled waters or addresses problems related to compact entitled waters and compact compliance and the degree to which the activity promotes maximum utilization of state waters. The Colorado Division of'Water Resources uses Platoro Reservoir to store and release Rio Grande Compact crater. The State pays no fee to the District for storage, nor does it pay for any evaporation on the stored 1rater. This grant ensures the sustainability of CWCD's general plan for operation ofPlatoi°o Dam -- to control flows to 2,500 cfs on the Conejos River at the Mogote gage and 1, 600 cfs on the Conejos River at the Los Sauces gage. By repairing, restoring and enhancing Platoro Reservoir's storage and release capabilities, this Project ensures Colorado's continuing ability to meet its Rio Grande Compact obligations. Optimal ntih ation of State craters is implied by the Rio Grande Basin Roundtable's priority of maintaining sustainable crater supplies and by ensuring that ire have the operational flexibility to adapt to changing conditions. q. The water activity assists in the recovery of threatened and endangered wildlife species or Colorado state species of concern. The Rio Grande Habitat Consenmition Plan (HCP) identifies a stretch of the Conejos River Moir Antonito as a "focus area "for riparian habitat conservation. Riparian commnrnities along the Rio Grande, Conejos River, and smaller tributaries in other areas of the Valley provide habitat foi° bird species that are listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) or irhich are otherwise protected the southirestern irillow flycatcher, the bald eagle, and the yelloir-billed cuckoo. Most of the documented habitat for the flycatcher and cuckoo occurs in dense tird/onj, patches along the Rio Grande and the Conejos. The BLNI's McIntire-Simpson property along the Conejos River is also knoirn to supportflycatcher and cuckoo breeding habitat, cis ine11 as bald eagle irinter habitat. According to NRCS, some private lands within Conejos County along the floodplains of the Rio Grande, Conejos, and Rio San Antonio rivers are priority areas containing wetlands and or° riparian areas commonly referred to as the Bosque (Spanish for "the iroods'). Lands inithin these areas may be tiret meadoirs (irrigated or non-irrigated), sloughs, oxbonns, marshes, seasonal iratetnnays, 1villotirs, eottomnoods, and other ivoody vegetation. On the Conejos River, enrollment is liinited to lands belonn S, 500 feet in elevation, starting approximately 4 miles above Mogote. In 2005 the Division hosted experts fr°om the US. Fish and Wildlife Service ((ISFWS) to conduct a half-day seminar on mater management, the environment and the sonthia,est inilloi-j, flycatcher. They emphasized the importance of maintaining inaximn n flotirs in resel-wir crater management to maintain a healthy riparian environment. Although the District is committed to prudent use of its available crater resources, it has 17