Laserfiche WebLink
1 <br />r <br />t <br />t <br />fl <br />ii <br />1 <br />1 <br />1 102 -575, § 1802(a). Notably, the Grand Canyon Protection Act directed Reclamation to <br />2 prepare an environmental impact statement under the NEPA within two years, <br />3 addressing the impacts of Glen Canyon Dam operations. Id. § 1804(a). The Grand <br />4 Canyon Protection Act anticipates that protecting the natural, cultural and recreational <br />5 resources will negatively impact hydropower capacity and revenues. Id. § 1809. <br />6 37. On March 21, 1995, Reclamation concluded its administrative process for <br />7 complying with the Grand Canyon Protection Act's mandate to prepare an EIS. On <br />8 October 9, 1996, Reclamation determined how it would on operate Glen Canyon Dam <br />9 in its Record of Decision (" 1996 ROD "). The administrative process surrounding that <br />10 decision "was prepared with an unprecedented amount of scientific research, public <br />11 involvement, and stakeholder cooperation." As NEPA requires, Reclamation <br />12 considered various operation alternatives that had varying degrees of impacts to the <br />13 resources and selected its "preferred alternative," which is called "Modified Low <br />14 Fluctuating Flow" regime. As part of Dam operations, this chosen alternative included <br />15 "beach habitat building flows," which are scheduled high water releases of short <br />16 duration designed to rebuild beaches and restore shoreline habitat areas. According to <br />17 Reclamation, the Modified Low Fluctuating Flow regime has less adverse impacts than <br />18 prior Dam operations. <br />19 38. Because the 1968 Act LROC and AOPs were not intended by Congress to <br />20 protect downstream resources in the Grand Canyon, the Grand Canyon Protection Act <br />21 requires Reclamation to develop operating criteria and annual operating plans specially - <br />22 designed for Glen Canyon Dam. 16 U.S.C. § 1804(c)(1)(A). These criteria and plans <br />23 are in addition to the 1968 Act LROC and 1968 Act AOPs for the Colorado River <br />24 System Reservoirs as a whole. Id. On March 3, 1997, Reclamation adopted specific <br />25 operating criteria for Glen Canyon Dam. 62 Fed. Reg. 9447. The Operating Criteria for <br />26 Glen Canyon Dam are to be reviewed every five years to ensure the purposes of the <br />27 Grand Canyon Protection Act are being accomplished. 62 Fed. Reg. at 9448/1. <br />28 39. Whereas the 1996 ROD established daily and hourly release limits, the <br />Complaint 12 <br />Case 3:07 -cv- 08164 -DGC Document 1 Filed 12/07/2007 Page 12 of 20 <br />