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<br />GREEN RIVER STUDY PLAN <br /> <br />8 <br /> <br />February 2,2007 <br /> <br />In order to implement RPM #1, Reclamation established a Technical Working Group <br />(TWG; recommended by Muth et al. [2000]) in coordination with the Recovery Program. The <br />TWG consists of biologists and hydrologists from Reclamation, Western, and the Service who <br />help refine release plans for each year and provide advice on modifying releases during changing <br />hydrologic conditions. Yearly release patterns from Flaming Gorge Dam to meet the <br />recommended flows and temperatures for each hydrologic condition are adjusted on the basis of <br />information about hydrology, the status of endangered fish life stages and populations, and <br />habitat conditions. The Recovery Program can request flows to fulfill research needs and the <br />TWG considers those requests along with the specific flow recommendations for the annual <br />hydrologic condition. The TWG provides comments and input on the proposed flows relative to <br />all resource concerns, and Reclamation determines how to incorporate the additional information <br />into the Annual Flaming Gorge Dam Operational Plan. <br /> <br />The BO further requires Reclamation, Western, and the Service to work through the <br />Recovery Program technical committees to develop a Study Plan to evaluate the flow and <br />temperature recommendations. This document is that Study Plan and it focuses on previously <br />identified anticipated effects or uncertainties related to floodplain inundation, nonnative fish <br />impacts, effects of temperature, and geomorphic processes. Whereas the intent of the Study Plan <br />is to guide future evaluation of the flow and temperature recommendations, it also draws heavily <br />on the direction provided in Section 7 consultation documents, including the BA and BO, <br />Recovery Program guidance documents, and ongoing studies. <br /> <br />FEIS and ROD on Operation of Flaming Gorge Dam <br /> <br />The FEIS was completed by Reclamation in 2005 (U.S. Department of the Interior 2005), <br />and a ROD was signed in February 2006 (U.S. Department of the Interior 2006). The FEIS <br />addresses the potential effects of modifying the operation of Flaming Gorge Dam to assist in the <br />recovery of the four endangered fish species and prevent the destruction or adverse modification <br />of their critical habitat downstream from the dam. <br /> <br />The FEIS describes how Reclamation will implement the proposed action by modifying <br />the operation of Flaming Gorge Dam, to the extent possible, to achieve the flow and temperature <br />recommendations ofMuth et al. (2000). Reclamation's goal is to implement the proposed action <br />and, at the same time, maintain and continue all authorized purposes of the Colorado River <br />Storage Project, including those related to the development of water resources in accordance <br />with the Colorado River Compact. <br /> <br />The FEIS summarized the uncertainties associated with implementation of the flow and <br />temperature recommendations, and acknowledged that these uncertainties would be monitored <br />and addressed through an adaptive-management process. That adaptive-management process <br />would consist of an integrated method for addressing uncertainty in natural resource <br />management that not only reduces but benefits from uncertainty. Following are uncertainties <br />summarized from the FEIS. <br />