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. . . Summary The information contained in this report and the associated instream flow file folder forms the basis for staff s instream flow recommendation to be considered by the Board. It is staff s opinion that the information contained in this report is sufficient to support the findings required in Rule 5.40, Colorado's Instream Flow Program was created in 1973 when the Colorado State Legislature recognized "the need to correlate the activities of mankind with some reasonable preservation of the natural environment" (see 37-92-102 (3) eR.S,). The statute vests the CWCB with the exclusive authority to appropriate and acquire instream flow and natural lake level water rights. In order to encourage other entities to participate in Colorado's Instream Flow Program, the statute directs the CWCB to request instream flow recommendations from other state and federal agencies, The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) along with the Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) have jointly recommended this segment of the San Miguel River to the CWCB for inclusion into the Instream Flow Program. The San Miguel River is being considered for inclusion into the Instream Flow Program because it has a natural environment that can be preserved to a reasonable degree with an instream flow water right. The BLM and CDOW are very interested in protecting streamflows because of the strong local support for instream flow protection on the San Miguel River; the river is very accessible and supports extensive use by the public. According to CDOW, the San Miguel River supports an above average fish population, in terms of numbers of fish, The population consists of numerous species including rainbow and brown trout (see CDOW's Fishery Inventory Report in Appendix B). In addition to the fishery resource, the San Miguel River supports a high quality diverse aquatic macro invertebrate community and a very high quality riparian community. The BLM has designated this reach of the San Miguel River a Special Recreation Management Area (SRMA), The purpose of this SRMA designation is to provide recreational experiences along the San Miguel River Corridor (fishing, boating, camping, etc.) and to manage that recreation in a manner that protects the riparian and river values, The BLM has also committed significant resources to supporting public usage, including ranger patrols and boat launch facilities, In addition, within the boundaries of the SMRA, the San Miguel River between Leopard Creek and Horsefly Creek is identified as and Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC), BLM designated the river corridor as an ACEC because the free flowing river supports globally rare riparian plant communities. Figure 1 shows the stream reach and areas covered by the SMRA and ACEC designations. The San Miguel River is a tributary of the Dolores River and is approximately 78 miles long, It begins at the confluence of Bridal Veil and Ingram Creeks at an elevation of approximately 9175 feet, and terminates at the confluence with the Dolores River at an elevation of approximately 4875 feet. The river is located within San Miguel and Montrose Counties, The total drainage area of the river is approximately 1500 square miles. The San Miguel River generally flows in a northwesterl y direction. The subject of this report is a segment of the San Miguel River beginning at the confluence of Fall Creek and extending downstream to the confluence with Horsefly Creek (see Figure I), This segment is located near the Towns of Placerville and Norwood, To date, the staff has received only one recommendation on San Miguel River, from the Bureau of Land Management and the Colorado Division of Wildlife, The recommendation for the Fall Creek to Horsefly Creek segment is discussed below,