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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I impacts on the endangered fishes in the Upper Basin, These opinions have concluded that the impacts of water projects and their anticipated flow depletions are jeopardizing the continued existence of the endangered fishes, The protection of endangered fish species of the Upper Colorado River Basin under section 7 of the Endangered Fish Species Act threatened to embroil all interested parties in a confrontation between resource protection and resource development. The parties recognized that such a confrontation was unlikely to result in progress toward recovery of the listed species and could lend a large measure of uncertainty to future water development in the Upper Basin. In response, the Service took the lead in organizing a Coordinating Committee to evaluate alternatives and develop a program for recovering the fishes while allowing water development to proceed in the Upper Colorado River Basin. After 3 years of data analysis and negotiations, the Committee finalized the Recovery Program, and in January 1988, the Governors of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming; the Secretary of Interior; and the Administrator of the Western Area Power Administration executed a Cooperative Agreement for its implementation. An Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact covering the construction and operation of the fish passageway around the Redlands Diversion Dam and an interim water agreement to provide water from Blue Mesa Reservoir to operate the passageway and provide flows in the lower Gunnison River was submitted to all interested parties July 7, 1995. GOAL The goal of the Recovery Program is to recover and delist the endangered fishes in the Upper Basin by restoring and establishing self-sustaining populations and protecting sufficient habitat to support them. Fifteen years (or by the year 2003) was established as the initial time- frame for completion of the Recovery Program. Hist - 2