Agenda: Colorado Wildlife Commission Workshop December 9 1994

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Memo to: Colorado Wildlife Commission Date: December 9, 1994 Regarding: FISH RECOVERY & NON - NATIVE SPORTFISH STOCKING Page 2 Yampa River. In cooperation with the Colorado River Water Conservation District and the water users in the Yampa Basin, the Water Conservation Board is developing an "operation and management plan" to protect fish recovery flows and assure the future availability of adequate water supplies and storage facilities (including the enlargement of the Elkhead Reservoir). Reoperation of the Flaming Gorge, Blue Mesa, and Navajo Reservoirs to help "mimic the natural hydrograph" is also progressing through research stages toward final reregulation of storage releases under the ESA Section 7 process. Existing flows in both rivers are also being augmented with storage releases from the Steamboat and Ruedi Reservoirs through leases with the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation and the Bureau of Reclamation.. The San Juan River Recovery Program has just finalized its Long Range Implementation Plan after only 2 years in existence. The Recovery Program for the Upper Colorado River Basin is developing hatchery and grow -out facilities and preparing to construct fish passage structures at the Redlands, Price Stubs, and Government Highline diversion dams in the Gunnison and Colorado Rivers. Both Programs have initiated experimental stocking of the endangered species. The endangered fishes are still in very precarious condition, except perhaps in the Green River (where the reoperation of Flaming Gorge may have produced sufficient new habitat improvements to cause a detectable improvement in the Colorado squawfish populations), but most significant and immediate concern facing the Recovery Programs may be funding. Some participants project that the total cost of capitol projects will be in the $50 -100 million range, and a total program cost in the neighborhood of $200 million. Although there is considerable debate around these projected expenses, there is no doubt that recovery will be expensive and there will probably be growing pressure for states, water users, and recreation interests (i.e., fishing and boating) to pay a larger proportion of these expenses while Congress funds a steady or slightly increased portion. There appears to be specific interest in exploring the possibility of each state adopting appropriate means for collecting an additional fee from anglers and boaters. However, the shift of control in the U.S. Congress makes it very difficult to predict much of anything about federal funding for these programs or about reauthorization of the ESA. The worst case scenario is probably a loss of existing federal funds and no significant change in the ESA. Our Colorado River Fishes Recovery Team has met approximately 5 times this year, including additional participation by both the Southwest and Northwest Regional Wildlife Managers and their staff and the inclusion of Colorado Department of Agriculture representatives. Your Headquarters staff has actively engaged the Anglers Roundtable (Denver based) in our education/evaluation /decision processes, and initiated the organization of a comparable group in the Grand Valley. Our review of the Non - native Sportfish Management Procedure has included representatives of the National Wildlife Federation and its Colorado affiliate, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, the Colorado Department of Agriculture (and its Aquaculture Board), the Sportsmans' Council, the FWS, various water management interests, and