7951

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 7951
• Author: Boudreaux, J.
• Title: Techniques For Computing Endangered Species Mitigation For Water Development Projects In The Upper Colorado River Basin.
• USFW Year: 1981.
• USFW - Doc Type: \
• Copyright Material: NO

'• ,~~~~TECNNIQUES FOR COMPUTING ENDANGERED SPECIES MITIGATION FOR WATER DEVELOPMENT
PROJECTS IN THE UPPER COLORADO RIVER BASIN emu,... TG,~ ~,'l/~,;~
by John Boudreaux, Hydrologist ~`l`~ ~'•~' ~'~ ~ l'1G~,y
Denver Regional Office ~~~'
PART I. Introduction
The purpose of this paper is to list the precise mechanism for computing
a water development project's fair share of the cost of a comprehensive
management plan for recovering and delisting endangered fish species in
the Upper Colorado River BasirJ. The division point between the Upper
and Lower Basins is arbitrarily taken to be Lake Powell on the mainstem
Colorado•River. Obviously, the recovery of the fishes will not be
limited to the Upper Basin, but since Lake Powell does prevent a mixing
of Upper and Lower Basin fish, it is logical that two separate manage-
ment plans could be developed, each pertaining to an appropriate part of
the overall basin.
(Y
There will be some common, shared benefits from the two management
plans, of course. For example, if water rights are bought in the Upper
Basin to use for fish instream flow needs, this obviously helps to
satisfy instream flow needs in the Lower Basin. Another possibility is
that a hatchery would be constructed to raise endangered fishes to be
stocked in both the Upper and [_ower Basins.
Similarities aside, the recovery of the fishes would he more easily
achieved with separate management plans, so this paper deals only with a
plan for the Upper Basin. The Upper Basin can itself be separated into
. two sub-basins, namely the main stem Colorado River and the Green River.