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! * 06 harvest -- many of the target areas are wilderness • Also, large fires, insect kills, and blowdowns will add to increased yield. • In many cases, regrowth of forest and other species will diminish water yield with time. • There is much speculation and concern that our activities to improve riparian conditions will come at the expense of water far downstream users. Generally this is not true for wetland obligate riparian species. • Past activities may substantially limit new activities/opportunities due to their other cumulative effects including water yield effects. • The duration of water yield effects is highly variable. Effects persist for a few years in some cases, but commonly the effect is greatest in the first years and diminishes in a few decades. 7. A recent suit in the Platte River Basin (Colorado/Wyoming) has demanded the Forest Service increase harvest to meet downstream water demands for endangered species. What is this about and what do we need to do to better inform the public? • This case was brought against the Medicine Bow - Routt National Forest in Colorado and Wyoming. -- Irrigators believe that they should not be required to reduce their diversions as required by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service until the Forest Service maximizes its efforts to produce increased water yields. -- Even if implemented as requested, it is highly unlikely that the increases would provide any substantial help in the most critical dry years. • Efforts need to be improved to assess the potential water yield increases and the real limitations and effectively disclose them in the Forest Planning process. 8. In selected small watershed where water augmentation is possible, are there prerequisites? • Yes, an effective program relies on healthy upland watershed conditions and a healthy riparian and channel complex. -- Watersheds free from gullies and other disturbance are able to better store and meter