Platte River Channel Becomes a Focus for Platte River Cooperative Program Studies2001

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IN REPLY REFER TO: United States Department of the Interior BUREAU OF RECLAMATION & FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE Platte River EIS Office PO Box 25007 Denver, Colorado 80225 -0007 303 - 445 -2096 PRESS RELEASE BUREAU OF RECLAMATION Contact: Curt Brown FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE Mark Butler Lynn Holt FOR RELEASE: February 2, 2001 (303) 445 -2096 PLATTE RIVER CHANNEL BECOMES A FOCUS FOR PLATTE RIVER COOPERATIVE PROGRAM STUDIES As part of an effort by the Department of the Interior's to conduct an environmental and endangered species impact assessment for the proposed Platte River Recovery Program, the Department has delivered to the states of Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado, a technical report describing the factors that, according to the report, have caused the Platte River channel to narrow and the habitat for the birds to be reduced. The report was developed by two senior scientists at the Department's Bureau of Reclamation. The Platte River Recovery Program is a cooperative effort by the three states, water users, and environmental groups, and the Department of the Interior to develop a basinwide program to address habitat needs for the whooping crane, piping plover, least tern and pallid sturgeon. The report, entitled, "The Platte River Channel: History and Restoration" evaluates the effect that water depletions throughout the Platte River Basin have had upon the Central Platte River and the habitat it provides for the bird species. Early surveys and photographs show that, historically, the Central Platte was wide, shallow, and much less vegetated than it is today, all river characteristics deemed by the Department to be important to the species. The report concludes that up to 80 -90 percent of this habitat in the Central Platte has been lost, primarily due to the effects of upstream water diversions and dams which have reduced the amount of both water and sand moving through the Central Platte. Further, the report indicates that the narrowing of the river channel is likely to continue as the river completes its adjustment to the ` reduction in peak flows and sediment load. The report projects that the river channel from Kearney to Grand Island will continue to narrow until it loses roughly an additional 25 percent of its width over the next 50 years. Ralph Morgenweck, Regional Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service said, "We've known for many years that we have been losing important habitat in the river and that the reduced sediment supply to the Central Platte was involved, but until recently the loss of sediment had not been studied sufficiently to consider possible solutions. Sediment transport issues were discussed at