9490

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9490
• Author: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
• Title: Final Environmental Assessment for Procedures for Stocking of Nonnative Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River Basin.
• USFW Year: 1996.
• USFW - Doc Type: Grand Junction.
• Copyright Material: NO

percent) and largemouth bass (25 percent; Colorado Division of Wildlife
1996). In ponds that would be reclaimed through Recovery Program
efforts, 75 percent supported restocking with largemouth bass,
bluegill, and black crappie, 52 percent supported restocking with only
trout. Sixty-three percent of the anglers reported that they were
satisfied with local fishing opportunities. When asked which type of
warmwater fishing opportunity they would like to see, the greatest
percentage (44 percent) stated they would like more large reservoirs.
2. Utah: Anglers in Utah fished 2.7 million days in 1991
(U.S. Department of the Interior 1993) and increased to 5.6 million
days in 1996. Of this, approximately 30 percent of the days were spent
warmwater fishing. Currently, Utah's only plan for stocking warmwater
species in the Upper Basin is possibly smallmouth bass in Strawberry
Reservoir in the Duchesne River drainage.
3. Wyoming: In 1994, Wyoming issued 115,148 resident fishing
licenses. Anglers currently fish an estimated 4.2 days annually.
Comparisons between in 1988 and 1994 indicated that anglers places less
importance on catching fish and more on the aesthetic features of this
activity (Wenzel and Hubert 1995). The desire to have more warmwater
fishing also declined from 1988 to 1994. However, recent fishing
pressure surveys indicate a continued increase in reservoir and
warmwater demand. Most anglers preferred fishing for trout (especially
wild trout).
~, C. Recovery of Endangered Fishes
~ In a survey conducted by Colorado State University (1995), 75 percent
of the respondents and 72 percent of the anglers felt that stocking of
nonnative fish should only be done if it does not harm endangered
fishes. Only 34 percent of the respondents supported the practice of
stocking nonnative fishes in the Upper Colorado River Basin, although
54 percent supported stocking mosquitofish and grass carp for insect
and vegetation control, respectively. Warmwater anglers in Delta,
Garfield, Mesa, and Montrose counties, Colorado opposed (55 percent)
recovery efforts for the endangered fish that included removing
warmwater sport fish from ponds next to the river; 32 percent of the
warmwater anglers supported this proposed practice (Colorado Division
of Wildlife 1996).
,~ D. Economy
1. Water Development: The Recovery Program for the endangered fishes
in the Upper Basin was established as a way to recover the fish while
allowing water development to proceed. By implementing recovery
actions such as floodplain restoration, broodstock development, and
controlling nonnative fishes, the recovery program serves as a
reasonable and prudent alternative for section 7 compliance with the
Endangered Species Act. This simplifies the regulatory requirements
for water development projects both large and small. Without the
Recovery Program continuing to make sufficient progress towards
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