Cottonwood Ranch: History, Settlement, AIP and Habitat

• File Number: 8461.300
• Description: Platte River Land Issues
• State: CO
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Author: Various
• Title: Cottonwood Ranch: History, Settlement, Liscensing, and Habitat
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Project Overview

TABLE OF CONTENTS, CONT'D.
G. How Responsibilities Are Divided Between the Two Licensees ...... . 38
H. The Effects of Settling this Proceeding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
l. Effects of Settlement on Documents in the Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
2. Effects of Settlement on Litigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
IV. EXP LANATION OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
A. Water Commitments Addressing FWS Target Flow Recommendations . 42
l. Flow Management Throughout the Water Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
a. Contributions to the EA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
b. Managing the EA . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
c. Operating Rules . . . . . .: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
(1) Operational Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $8
(2) Transportation Losses and Diversions of
Environmental Flows into Project Facilities ... . 66
d. Administrative Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
e. Water Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
2. Pulse Flow Enhancement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
a. Pulse Flow Shaping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
b. June Releases to Enhance Pulse Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
B. Additional Water Commitments in Proposed License Articles ....... . 78
l. Delivering Flows to the Rainwater Basin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
2. "Spike Flow" Attenuation Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
3. Water Conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
4. Future Water Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
5. North Platte State Hatchery Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
6. Rock Weir Fishery/Prevention of Aquatic Flushing . . . . . . . . . . 85
C. Water-Related Issues Not Needing FERC License Conditions ...... . 85
1. Water Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
2. Limit on Changes in Lake McConaughy Level During Walleye
Spawning ........................................ . 86
3. Changes to Pass Sediment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
4. Limits on Releases During Sandhill Crane Staging . . . . . . . . . . . 88
5. Bypass Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
6. Irrigation Canal Use Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
7. Supply Canal Routing Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
D. HabitatLands .......................................... . 90
1. Program Habitat Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
a. Cottonwood Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
b. Possible Additional Program Habitat Lands . . . . . . . . . . 92
2. Other Habitat Lands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
a. Habitat Lands Between North Platte and J-2 ........ . 95
b. Habitat Lands Between North Platte and Keystone,
Nebraska ................................... 100
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