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Page 10 ~ Implementation Program (Program), the Virgin River Recovery Program (VRRP) and the San Juan Basin Recovery Implementation Program (SJRIP) provide funding for nonnative removal from mainstem habitats. The Program has funded mark-recapture efforts for flannelmouth .and ~ bluehead sucker and development of flow recommendations for tributaries to the Green River such as the Duchesne and Price rivers. The VRRP provides protection for flannelmouth sucker throughout the Virgin River system; however, this extensive protection is unusual and partially a result of the ranges of the endangered species targeted by this program. Instream flow acquisition and the idea of experimental flows to benefit endangered fishes is usually a provision of recovery ~ programs; however, emphasis on provision of minimum flows in mainchannel and larger tributary environments for the benefit of endangered fish could lead to greater use of tributary waters in the future to make up for reductions in mainstem diversions, thus potentially jeopardizing persistence of the three species. Additional endangered species recovery programs throughout the range of the three species are implementing activities that will likely indirectly , benefit the three species; please reference the state plans of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming for this information. Benefits of the three species project Conservation of the three species will likely require habitat protection, water acquisition, and management of nonnative fish communities. Together, these conservation actions will also ~ benefit the general public as a whole as conservation is directed towards maintenance of functionally healthy riparian ecosystems and prevention of listing under the Endangered Species Act. Fischer et al. (2000) cite multiple beneficial ecosystem functions resulting from healthy, functional riparian areas, including improved water quality, erosion control, and reduced flood peaks (O'Laughlin and Belt 1995), all of which have been shown to provide substantial benefits ~ to human populations. Additionally, keeping regulatory authority in the hands of state, county, and local governments through the prevention of federal listing will ensure that conservation efforts can proceed more fluidly without economic hardship or conflict that may accompany regulatory protection of species. Voluntary cooperation between stakeholders and managers is thought to be more likely to occur in this atmosphere than in the more restrictive scenario ~ engendered by listing. Certainty of Implementation: Staffing, Authority, and Funding Pursuant to the federal Policy for Evaluation of Conservation Efforts (PECE) guidelines, the ~ Division acknowledges the need to demonstrate a degree of certainty that this Plan will be implemented and will be effective in preventing the need for listing the three species. Staffing Personnel from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources' (Division) Native Aquatics Program will implement aspects of this Plan. Within the Division, three full time employees are tasked ~ with various types of administrative three species tasks such as procuring funding, planning conservation activities in coordination with regional offices, completing conservation documents and proposals with input from regional offices, and performing other administrative duties necessary to implement the Plan. Regional and Division field offices are located in St. George, Moab, Ogden, Price, and Vernal. These offices include at least one and as many as three full ~ r