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

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recovery, billions of dollars of water development and subsequent
economic growth could be impacted. The ability of the Recovery Program
to serve as a reasonable and prudent alternative for water development
was reduced in 1996. One reason for this was the lack of action to
address nonnative fish problems and implement solutions. Stocking
procedures that contribute significantly towards the recovery of the
fish will, in part, allow the Recovery Program to serve as a reasonable
and prudent alternative for water development. Stocking procedures
that do not adequately address the nonnative fish issues will not serve
as a reasonable and prudent alternative.
2. Aquaculture Industry: Most fish stocked into private ponds come
from privately owned aquaculture facilities. Aquaculture facilities
produce fish for stocking as well as for consumption. Some facilities
serve as a middle man, acquiring fish from other locations for stocking
into private ponds. Species commonly so]d by these facilities include
rainbow trout, channel catfish, largemouth bass, bluegill,
mosquitofish, and triploid grass carp. Ponds stocked with warmwater
fish usually do not require annual stockings; some rainbow trout waters
require stocking each year. Markets for triploid grass carp are
increasing throughout the West, due to its' ability to control
vegetation. Warmwater fish stocking in the last five years occurred in
four percent of the ponds along the Colorado River representing 20
percent of the surface acres.
3. Private Ponds: Mitchell (1995) identified 308 ponds representing
878 surface acres along the Gunnison and Colorado rivers; a few ponds
also exist along the White and Yampa rivers. For comparative purposes,
Harvey Gap Reservoir is 196 surface acres and Taylor Draw Reservoir on
the White River is 615 surface acres. On the Colorado River, 73
percent of the ponds are privately owned and 44 percent of the ponds on
the Gunnison River are privately owned (Mitchell 1995). Nine percent
of warmwater anglers surveyed in western Colorado reported that they
fished in private ponds (Colorado Division of Wildlife 1996). Only one
pond owner that reported along the Gunnison River indicated that his
pond was used for fishing, and that was for rainbow trout. For ponds
on the Colorado River, fishing was reported in ponds representing about
105 surface acres. Twenty-three surface acres contained only
largemouth bass, bluegill, and/or black crappie. Many of the others
contained channel catfish, in addition to largemouth bass, bluegill,
and/or black crappie. At least one pond reported that it contained
grass carp. The survey did not include the Yampa or White Rivers.
Mapping the floodplain revealed little difference (only a few inches in
elevation) between the 50- and 100-year floodplains (Colorado Water
Conservation Board 1995; Appendix D). The boundaries of these two
floodplains generally overlap. Mitchell (1995) surveyed pond owners,
in part, to determine what ponds contained fish. Of the 246 ponds
~j Mitchell surveyed between Palisade and Loma, Colorado, 55 were above
the 100-year floodplain, none were located between the 50-100 year
floodplains, 55 were between the 10-50 year floodplain, and 136 were
below the 10-year floodplain. For the Gunnison River between Delta and
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