WSW Issue #1691 October 13 2006 Bureau of Reclamation/Water Recycling and Reuse

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Page 2 of 3 Richard Atwater, Chair, National Legislative Committee, WateReuse Association; and Tom Ray, an engineering consultant for the City of Waco, Texas. ENVIRONMENT/WATER RESOURCES ESA/Platte River Recovery Program On September 28, Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne signed off on a proposed $317M basin -wide Platte River Recovery Implementation Program designed to provide habitat for four threatened and endangered species. In signing the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) Kempthorne said, "The Platte River Basin has seen more than two decades of conflict over water use and endangered species. This recovery program is an outstanding collaborative effort among interest groups to cooperatively address the needs of endangered species and ensure that current uses of basin water can continue." The ROD authorizes Interior to sign the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program Cooperative Agreement, and participate in funding and implementing the program through the Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), subject to required congressional authorization and appropriations. It also appoints the Platte River Recovery Program Governance Committee to act as the recovery implementation team. The preferred alternative described in the FEIS and approved in the ROD would improve habitat for the target species in the Central Platte Habitat Area (along the Platte River from Lexington to Chapman, Nebraska). It involves efforts to reduce use to help meet FWS "recommended target flows in the central Platte River by about 130,000 to 150,000 acre -feet on an average annual basis, primarily by retiming river flows to improve habitat conditions in the spring, summer, and early fall." This will be achieved by leasing or acquiring land in the Central Platte Habitat Area from willing sellers and restoring habitat, focusing primarily on restoration of wet meadow areas and areas of wide unvegetated river channel. It will also test the assumption that managing flow in the Central Platte River also improves habitat for the pallid sturgeon in the Lower Platte River. "The initiative is based on significant scientific research and analysis, including a review and endorsement by the National Academy of Sciences," Kempthorne explained. "By pooling resources and coordinating the restoration effort, the program provides a cost - effective way to meet each water user's obligations under the Endangered Species Act. It removes the uncertainty for water users about what will be required to comply with the ESA for the whooping crane, interior least tern, piping plover, and pallid sturgeon." trt The Platte River Recovery Implementation P gr m was formulated by the Platte River Governance Committee, made up of federal and state representa o s, water users and environmental groups. The Governors of Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming must also sign the agreement, which will also require enactment of federal authorizing and funding legislation. The federal government would provide half the funding, with the other half contributed by the three states through cash and in -kind contributions of water and lands. The estimated total cost over the first 13 -year period is $317M. An Executive Director will be hired to guide day -to -day operations and supervise staff and contracts. The Governance Committee will contract with a financial management agency to hold and disburse the funds contributed by the program's partners and a land interest holding agency to hold title to Program lands. The FEIS process began in 1997. The Record of Decision is posted along with other Platte River Recovery implementation Program documents at http / /www.plafteriver.org. For more information contact Mark Andersen (406) 247 -7610 or Frank Quimby (202) 208 -7291. (Press Release, Office of the Secretary, 9 -28 -2006) MARK YOUR CALENDARS The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will hold its third in a series of public meetings on its Managing for Excellence (MFE) Project at the Doubletree Hotel Sacramento, 2001 Point West Way, Sacramento, CA 95815- 4702. The meeting will begin on Monday, November 13, at 1:00 p.m. and conclude on Tuesday, November 14, at 5:00 p.m. For room reservations call (800) 222 -8733 and ask for the MFE group rate of $103 for Sunday and Monday. http: / /www.westgov.org/wswc /news /1691.httnl 10/24/2006