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Platte River Project, and two units of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program). These facilities <br />provide water to about 440,000 acres of farmland in the North Platte Basin, produce <br />hydroelectric power, and also provide other benefits such as flood control, recreation, fish and <br />wildlife habitat, and municipal and industrial water supplies. There is no Reclamation on-stream <br />storage in the South Platte River, but Reclamation does operate the Colorado-Big Thompson <br />Project in the South Platte Basin. Using water diverted from Colorado's West Slope, this <br />project supplies supplemental irrigation water to 720,000 acres of farmland, provides municipal <br />water to 423,000 people in the Basin, produces hydroelectric power, and provides other benefits <br />such as recreation, and fish and wildlife habitat. <br />The evaluation and report preparation is beina performed in two stages. The first stage will <br />evaluate the operation of existing Reclamation projects located on the North Platte River for the <br />potential to affect threatened and endangered species. The second stage will evaluate - the <br />operation of Reclamation's South Platte River Colorado-Big Thompson Project for the potential <br />to affect threatened and endangered species. Activities associated with this evaluation are <br />scheduled.through fiscal year 1998. A report detailing the effects of operations of North Platte <br />River projects, as well as reasonable and prudent alternatives if required is scheduled for 1995. <br />A similar report for the South Platte river project is scheduleri for completion in 1998. <br />The purpose of the evaluation is to determine if the operations of Reclamation facilities in the <br />Platte River Basin are in compliance with the requirements of Section 7. If the evaluation shows <br />that operations of one or both projects are adversely affecting listed species or their habitats, <br />formal Section 7 consultation with the Service will be initiated. If this occurs, and the <br />consultation results in a finding by the Service that project operations jeopardize the species or <br />adversely affect critical habitat, reasonable and prudent alternatives would be specified by the <br />Service. Any reasonable and prudent alternatives will most likely be consistent with the goals <br />and objectives of the Program, and could conclude both water and land management activities <br />to improve habitat in the Big Bend area. <br />27