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Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program n August, 1994 Setting and scope The mainstem Colorado River and all its major tributaries including the Green River drainage, the Yampa River drainage, the White River drainage, the Gunnison River drainage, the Dolores River drainage and the San Juan River drainage include virtually every Federal action in Western Colorado. The Animas-La Plata Project is a major water development project proposed by the Bureau of Reclamation in Southwest Colorado. Full project development would cause an average annual water depletion of 195,400 acre-feet from the San Juan River and its tributaries (Animas and La Plata rivers). Major impacts of this project would be on bald eagle, native fishes, wetlands and riparian corridors. Irrigation drainage data collected from the Uncompahgre, Gunnison, Colorado (through the Grand Valley) and Green Rivers show these areas are the principle selenium' loading areas to the entire Colorado river basin. The Mancos soils have naturally occurring selenium which is leached into the river systems through irrigation practices. The trust of the future will be to reduce this selenium load. Impacts from selenium toxicity include: reduced productivity, deformities and direct acute impacts to both fish and birds. The area is home to four endangered fish species, several candidate species, and many migratory birds utilize the • Colorado drainage for migration and nesting. Hot spots from historic mining include the areas near Eagle on the Eagle River (a tributary to the Upper Colorado River) the Uncompahgre River from the San Juan mountains south of Ouray and the San Miguel River a tributary to the Dolores. These areas are all providing loads of many trace metals including zinc, cadmium, copper, and other trace metals associated with past gold mining activities. Impacts include reduced productivity, deformities and direct acute impacts to both fish and birds. Issues/problems being Established in 1988 to resolve conflicts between water development and addressed endangered fish recovery, the recovery program is a diverse partnership involving the Fish and wildlife Service, other Federal, State, and environmental organizations, and private water development groups. Participants U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Bureau of Reclamation Western Area Power Administration States of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming National Audubon Society Environmental Defense Fund Colorado Wildlife Federation Wyoming', Wildlife Federation is Colorado Water Congress Utah Water Users Association Wyoming', Water Development Association Colorado River Energy Distributors Association