White Paper: Options for Managing the Land Protection Component of the PRRIP

• Description: Prepared for the Governance Committee and Land Committee of the Cooperative Agreement for Platte River Research ‎(aka Platte River Recovery Implementation Program or PRRIP)‎
• State: CO
• State: NE
• State: WY
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Date: 11/30/1999
• Author: Marty Zeller, Conservation Partners and Mary Jane Graham
• Title: White Paper: Options for Managing the Land Protection Component of the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

White Paper:
Options for Managing the Land Protection Component
of the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program
I. Introduction
This report presents options for an entity or entities to protect, manage and
enhance habitat lands along the Platte River under a basin -wide program involving the
federal government, the three states of Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming, and basin
stakeholders. These options are designed to meet the habitat land protection objectives of
the proposed Platte River Recovery Implementation Program (Program) put forward in
the 1997 Cooperative Agreement signed by the Secretary of the Interior and the
governors of the three basin states. The proposed Program calls for protecting, managing
and enhancing habitat land in Nebraska along an 80 -mile stretch of the Platte River to
benefit three endangered or threatened species. Ten thousand acres of habitat land are
projected to become part of the Program in the first nine to thirteen years, and 29,000
acres in the long term.
To meet the habitat land protection goals of the proposed Program, some
organization or organizations will be needed to carry out tasks and achieve results. The
basic task- implementation arm of the land component of the Program is broadly referred
to in this White Paper as the "Land Entity." Three decisions must be made in choosing a
Land Entity. First, there must be agreement on where the Land Entity will fit within the
larger Program structure. The Land Entity may not, and likely will not, carry out all of
the functions that make up land component of the Program. Second, when the role and
powers of the Land Entity are understood, it must be decided how parry and stakeholder
interests will be represented in the Land Entity and larger structure. Finally, an
organization or set of organizations must be selected or created that can fill the agreed
upon role.
This White Paper explores the options available to the Governance Committee,
the policy- making arm of the Cooperative Agreement, in making decisions that shape the
Land Entity. To put the choices in context, the White Paper first lists the tasks and
responsibilities that make up the land component of the Program, to explore which of
them might be assigned to a Land Entity and which should be addressed elsewhere in the
Program structure. Second, the report summarizes the constraints on the state and federal
governments, exploring whether there are legal limits on the responsibilities to be
assigned to a Land Entity or the type of organization that might be selected as the Land
Entity. An appendix addresses legal authorities and limitations in greater detail. Third,
the White Paper explores key policy expectations or needs identified by the states and