Explanation and Need for the PRRIP

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What the Program Does The States of Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming and the U. S. Department of the Interior are entering into a comprehensive basin-wide Program to address habitat needs of the endangered species in the Central and Lower Platte River basin. This cooperative basin-wide approach is an equitable and effective means to resolve conflicts and provide greater certainty that the Platte River will continue as a reliable water source for both wildlife and the many people who reside and use water in the basin. The proposed Program will allow water use and development activities in each of the three states to continue, in compliance with the ESA and in accardance with state water law and entitlements under interstate compacts and decrees. The Program will set a goal to reduce basin- wide shortages by an average of 130,000 to 150,000 acre feet per year in lieu of the FWS requirement to replace 417,000 acre feet of shortages to the FWS "target flows." This water, along with land obtained for habitat, will constitute the mitigation needed to offset the impact of existing water projects on the Platte River species and habitat during the 13-year first increment of the Program. ESA compliance for future water related activities is afforded under the respective state plans to mitigate the effects of new water development. An overview of the Program is attached. For Colorado, the Program will provide regulatory compliance under the ESA for both existing and prospective new water uses within the South Platte River basin. This compliance is needed in order for water providers to meet the water supply needs of the urban, agricultural, and industrial sectors of this rapidly changing and growing part of the state. The Program will: Provide an alternative to the requirement that historic and future water related activities in Colorado replace individual depletions on a one-for-one basis in amount and in timing at the Colorado-Nebraska state line. Provide streamlined ESA Section 7 compliance procedures and regulatory predictability for existing and future water related activities in Colorado. Project owners and operators who choose to rely on the Program will know their requirements prior to ESA consultation. Avoid the potential for prohibited "take" of listed species under ESA Section 9 for water- related activities covered by the Program. Avoid reinitiation of consultation over water-related projects affecting Platte basin flows that have been permitted since the 1997 signing of the Cooperative Agreement. The vast majority of these consultations contain interim requirements that are linked to the implementation of the Program. If a Program cannot be implemented and funded, these consultations will be subject to reinitiation, with uncertain outcomes as to ESA compliance requirements, individual mitigation of project impacts, and potential litigation. Satisfy Colorado's water-related mitigation requirements through the Tamarack Plan, which utilizes managed groundwater recharge from existing and future wells and ditches located in the lower reaches of the South Platte River in Colorado to re-time river flows from periods in -2-