8020

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 8020
• Author: Horak, G. C.
• Title: Proceedings of the Symposium on Mitigating Developmental Impacts on Fish and Wildlife.
• USFW Year: 1979.
• USFW - Doc Type: March 1979.
• Copyright Material: NO

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the entire planning process. Indicators such as expenditures of funds could
be used to track implementation.
A large number of fish and wildlife measures have been agreed-to on com-
pleted projects, but Congress or other interested parties have no way of
determining the degree to which thp measures have been effectively implemented.
Since many of the fish and wildlife concerns currently expressed, were not of
vital interest during the development of past resource projects, many existing
fish and wildlife measures. are inadequate for fish and wildlife protection. In
view of this situation, modification of the measures implemented or in the
implementation of additional measures must be considered to protect the existing
fish and wildlife resource. For completed projects, the sponsoring agencies
should be required to provide the same accounting on fish and wildlife measures
that is provided for other project purposes such as irrigation and hydroelectric
power. For example, the Bureau of Reclamation annually publishes detailed sta-
tistical data on regional and project data on acreage, yield, production, and
gross value of crops grown; land utilization; water distribution; and status of
Reclamation land, but only publishes a summary section .on environmental enhancement.
Research has shown that monitoring fish and wildlife measures on operating

projects can significantly improve their degree of implementation. For instance,
one study revealed that the monitoring of stream gage records can lead to improved
instream fiows (6). If a dam operator is aware of surveillance, fiow.releases
are more apt to occur which fulfill the sponsor agency's commitment. Where gage
records are reviewed on a regular periodic basis, such as for projects in Montana.
and in Wyoming, there are no significant violations. Review of hydrologic records
on Oregon's Baker Project (Powder River) prompted the dam operator to release
the required fiow following an extended term of substantial violations. There-
fore,. if information on the degree of impl ementation of minimum flows, pools,
'fluctuations, or other such measures was required annually, their respective
implementation rates will probably improve dramatically. Furthermore, if the

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