AG Opinion

• Year: 2009
• Instream Flow Rules - Doc Type: Post Rulemaking Documents

2. Amount, timing and frequency of shortage(s) or impacts to the affected
ISF of NLL water right(s); and
3. Potential impact to the natural environment of the affected stream
reach(es) or lake from the proposed injury.
Benefits of the mitigation to the natural environment:
The nature and extent of the benefits the mitigation will provide to the
existing natural environment of the affected stream or lake:
2. The scientific justification for accepting the mitigation; and
3. liVhether the mitigation will enable the Board to continue to preserve or
improve the natural environment of the subject stream or lake to a
reasonable degree.
~i; Evaluation of proposed alternatives. The Board shall evaluate: (1) all grater supply
alternatives consdered by the proponent in the context of this proposal; (2) all
alternatives evaluated by the proponent to fully protect the potentially affected ISF or NLL
water right. but rejected as infeasible; and (3) all alternatives evaluated by the proponent
and designed to mitigate the injury to or interference with the affected ISF or NLL water
right. In its evaluation. the Board shall consider the following factors:
i. hailabili_y of on-site mitigation alternatives:
ii. Technical feasibility of each alternative:
iii. En~~ironmental benefits and consequences of each alternative:
iv. Economic benefits and consequences of each alternative:
v. Reasonableness of alternatives:
vi. Administrability of proposed alternatives by the Board and the Division Engineer:
and
vi. For mitigation alternatives, whether the mitigation was or will be put in place to
satisfy a requirement or need unrelated to the Injury with Mitigation proposal.
(k) The Board will consider mitigation on a different reach of stream or another stream ("off-
site mitigation°') as a last resort and will only consider mitigation in an area other than the
affected stream reach if no reasonable alternative exists for mitigation on the affected
stream reach. The Board only will consider off-site mitigation on stream(s) located in the
same drainage as the affected stream. Factors that the Board may consider in looking at
such a proposal include, but are not limited to, the degree and frequency of impact to the
affected stream; the environmental benefits provided to the off-site stream by the
mitigation: whether the proposal could. in effect: constitute a modification of the ISF water
right on the affected stream; or whether the proposal could result in the Division of Water
Resources being unable to administer the affected ISF water right(s) in accordance with
the priority system or with Colorado water law.