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d . V r •' ,17- • and proposed fossil fuel power plants, as wall as emerging demands by local Indians. for a greater share of the water, and there is a serious possibility that the point will be reached, perhaps by the turn of the century, r,~hen there is not- enough water to satisfy all demands (Holburt, n.d.). As I Iook into the future, therefore, I see the gres,~ures on the aquatic habitat mount3.ng, as-ways are sought to squeeze every last drop of water out of the Colorado. Will it be possible to maintain game fish populations and recreational fishing in the lower Colorado River area? I think that it will always be possible to maintain some form of fishing in this area, but the quality and quantity of fishing that can be provided will depend as l) the amount and nature of further habitat alteration, 2) if and to what extent modified habitat can. be madC productive once again, and 3) whether bi.©lagists can fiord new combinations of fishes and forage organisms that will survive in the changing river envirornts. Were the r+swaiaing un3mpou~ed sections of river to be dredged and c iced to their fullest, it would probably mean. the virtual elimination of the productive backwater marshes and oxbow lakes. Warmwater gam fish populations would the be largely-confimed to lakes Iiavasu and Mohave. To realize the greatest yield of water for irrigation, agriculturists will probably seek to lino canals and drains with concrete. This has already occurred to extent i.n the Imperial Valley. In the meantime they are seeking more affective cans of biological weed control than TiZc~icz »rosacmrbic~. State agencies have-diligently attempted to ke+sp T. z%ZZi from being introduced into. the Palo Verde Valley because it was feared that T. ziZZi would becs~e establish+~d in the river itself and becoffie a more serious competitor with g fishes than T. moSS~ica. Nevertheless, T. aiZZi was found to have-become establishes in the river .itself in 1978, probably as a result of deliberate or accidental ii-troductions bat private citizens. Faced with all these existing-and potential probles~s, fishery managers will be hard pressed to manage familiar game species let. alone attempt to reintroduce or manage the native species. Yet future efforts will apparently be directed along both lines. The U. S. Endangered Species Act of 1973 has provided~an impetus for renewed intera~st in and concern far the protection and restorat9on of native species threatened with extinction. Through a Recovery Team s~nsored by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service,. State-and federal agencies are nox - actively evaluating the possibility of reintroducing the Colorado squawfish to the lower river. Studies also have recently begun on the bonytail chub` and humpback sucker. Eecause the Endangered Species Act places a high priority on habi-tat protection, programs to restore and manatge endangered species--may also aid in the maintenance of gene fish populations, Inaany event, fishery biologists and engineers will be challenged as never before to produce innovative solutions tor-complex resource management problems in this distur--bed and continually changing desert habitat.