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Process <br />The evaluation will be led by Reclamation in cooperation with the Service, <br />states, operating entities, and other interests. The lead office for <br />Reclamation will be the North Platte River Projects Office in Mills, Wyoming, <br />where a study manager has been employed. Te€hn al work for 'tb6 'dvaivatkon <br />will be done by teams `of specialists from Reclamation and Service offices. <br />Interested organizations, agencies, and individuals will be kept informed <br />about the evaluation as it proceeds; many will prove to be sources of data <br />which will contribute to the results of the evaluation. <br />The Product <br />The evaluation and report preparation will be performed in ee. The <br />first stage will evaluate the operatiost -of existing Reclamation projects <br />located on the Plattelliver for the potential to affect threatened and <br />endangered species. The second stage will evaluate the oVwAtJpp of <br />Reclamation' -s -South Platte River Col6mdo -ad4 mpson Project for the <br />potential to affect threatened and endangered species. <br />The first stage evaluation will lead to a reppr,._gn the, ,ope ation of <br />RecIomation's, North Platte River Projects and their relationship to threatened <br />and endangered species. Using existing and newly developed data and <br />incorporating it into scientific models, the evaluation report will examine <br />and display: <br />1. Hydrologic OperatiolR's - How does the river system and man -made <br />facilities within the basin operate? Using historical data and <br />current operating data, the evaluation will examine river and _. <br />tributary flows, diversions, return flows, ground water effects, <br />climate, and land uses. It will consider irrigation, power <br />production, fish and wildlife, municipal and industrial demands, flood; <br />control, and other water uses. <br />2. River Hydraulic and er4 Characteristics - What are the relation- <br />ships between sediment loads, flow characteristics, and the river <br />channel? This portion of the evaluation will examine' - 'river <br />resps mfr different flows and''sediment yields. <br />3. spegaas.,, itat.Characteristics and Goals - How do threatened and <br />endangered species use the river system and what are the goals for <br />habitat management in the basin? This section will describe cdWftn# <br />habitat characteristics and fu. cds for fish and wildlife. <br />4. Evaluation of Project Operations - Do" the existing and or <br />-discretionary operation of Reclamation facilities in the Platte River <br />Basin affect positively or negatively threatened and endangered <br />species? This analysis will be con atent with legal' requirements <br />under which the facilities are operated (laws, compacts, rules,' <br />decrees). <br />0 iii <br />