Budget AHG/TWG/GCMRG/USBR Combined Budget Conference Call June 14 2010

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Budget AHG /TWG /GCMRG /USBR Combined Budget Conference Call June 14, 2010 Conducting: Shane Capron, TWG Chair Participants: Matthew Andersen, GCMRC /USGS Cliff Barrett, UAMPS George Caan, Colo. River Commission /NV Marianne Crawford, USBR Helen Fairley, USGS /GCMRC Dave Garrett, m3Research /Science Advisors Paul Grams, USGS /GCMRC John Hamill, USGS /GCMRC Chris Harris, Colo. River Board CA Norm Henderson, NPS Amy Heuslein, BIA Lisa lams, USBR Leslie James, CREDA Meeting Recorder: Linda Whetton Convened: 1 p.m. (MDT) Rick Johnson, Grand Canyon Trust John Jordan, Federation of Fly Fishers Glen Knowles, USBR Dennis Kubly, USBR Barbara McKenzie, USGS /GCMRC Ted Melis, USGS /GCMRC Steve Mietz, NPS /GRCA Don Ostler, UCRC (alternate for WY) Clayton Palmer, WAPA Jason Thiriot, Colo. River Commission /NV Dave Wegner, member of the public Michael Yeatts, the Hopi Tribe Introduction. Dennis explained that since it was difficult to get a majority of the BAHG together, it was decided to have a combined conference call with the BAHG and TWG members in hopes that the discussion would set the stage for a more effective and efficient meeting on June 29 -30. He said in the interim there have been some questions posed about the pages in the workplan that look at the projected release volumes and daily release ranges for 2011 and some concern that Reclamation was getting ahead of itself by putting out this much detail at this time. He said he just sent out an e-mail that gives a little more clarification and an apology that the change didn't get made in the plan itself but there are three points that he tried to make in the e-mail concerning the projections: 1) We are in a year under existing compliance where there is a wide range in the forecasts that are projected, volumes anywhere from 8.25 to 14 maf, and that as the year proceeds, these projections will improve and modeling .capability will more accurately portray what will be the final release volume; 2) DOI agencies are having discussions concerning the hydrograph and are focusing on processes by which there might be a recommendation for one or more hydrographs that would fit within existing compliance, butthat process has not been completed yet; 3) as we move through the adaptive management program and more information becomes available and people are looking at the potential for transitions from an experimental phase to amore management oriented phase, there may be implications about whether we're still continuing to emphasize experiments or whether we're really moving forward to establishing some more standard changes in operations. That consideration begs the question of the relative roles of the TWG, AMWG, and the Department. Consequently, the program is in a hiatus of needing to provide information to the TWG upon which to develop a hydrograph recommendation but feeling that there is not a place or time where they can do that and do justice to the process. Rick said he wanted to clarify the process that the TWG would have an opportunity to consider one or more hydrographs at the upcoming TWG meeting. Dennis said that nothing has changed. In the time before the next meeting, GCMRC will have completed some of their modeling work and be in a better position to provide more information on expected hydrologic conditions. Rick expressed concern that one of the things that came out of the Ecosystem Modeling Workshop was that release fluctuations would create a negative mass balance. ACTION ITEM: Any additional concerns should be sent via e -mail to Shane Capron by COB Thursday, June 17. Because GCMRC staff will be at a conference in Las Vegas at the time of the next TWG meeting, it was decided to hold a Webinar /Conference Call on Wednesday June 21 from 1 -2 p.m. (AZ time, 2 -3 p.m. MDT) for a discussion on hydrology and sediment modeling. John said he expects approval of their