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<br /> <br />Water in the West: The Challenge for the Next Century <br /> <br />value of undertaking a systematic review of the <br />dam's purposes, authorities, and operations. Public <br />scoping should be part of this process. The agencies <br />should then be authorized and directed to undertake <br />such reviews, prioritized based on the results of the <br />scoping. Any need for modifying a facility's <br />structures, project authorities and purposes, <br />operations, project beneficiaries, or cost allocations <br />should be identified through a public planning <br />process and reported to the Congress if statutory <br />changes are required. The Congress should provide <br />funding and authority for those changes which <br />appear to improve the way water projects serve <br />public needs, while addressing equitably the rights <br />as well as the financial obligations of current watet <br />users. <br /> <br />Water Marketing and Transfers <br /> <br />The Commission finds that water transfers are an <br />essential part of any discussion of the future of the <br />West and its water, particularly given growth <br />projections. Voluntary water transfers are occurring <br />throughout the West and are helping to meet the <br />demand for new urban supplies and for environ- <br />mental flows in a manner that is both fair and <br />efficient. They are also a critical aspect of viable <br />Indian water rights settlements. However, water <br />transfers that occur without attention to their <br />potentially damaging effects on local communities, <br />economies, and environments can be harmful to <br />ecosystems and social systems that are dependent On <br />irrigation economies. <br /> <br />In view of the potential usefulness of voluntary <br />water transfers as a means of responding to <br />changing demands for use of water resources, <br />federal agencies should facilitate voluntary water <br />transfers as a component of policies for overall <br />water management, subject to processes designed to <br />protect well-defined third party interests. The <br />Congress should review existing water resources <br /> <br />legislation in order to assure that federal law does <br />not impede voluntary water transfers. <br /> <br />State and local jurisdictions should provide clear <br />rules governing a community's right to participate in <br />proceedings regarding transfers from <br />an area. <br /> <br />Enforcement of Reclamation Law <br /> <br />Reclamation should also take steps to ensure that <br />water use from Reclamation projects is in <br />compliance with project authorities and federal <br />Reclamation law. <br /> <br />Flood Plain Management <br /> <br />The 1997 floods in California, Nevada, and the <br />upper Midwest, along with the 1993 Midwest! <br />Mississippi floods, demonstrate the need for an <br />overarching flood plain management policy to <br />consistently achieve the nation's policies of flood <br />control, disaster prevention and mitigation, disaster <br />relief, and environmental restoration. <br /> <br />I. The majorrecornmendations of the 1994 <br />report, Sharing the Challenge: Floodplain <br />Management into the 21 st Century (the <br />Galloway Report) should be adopted and <br />implemented. <br /> <br />a. The responsibility for flood plain damage <br />reduction through flood plain <br />management should be shared among all <br />levels of government and by those at risk <br />of flooding. <br /> <br />b. Enhanced organization and consistency <br />of government activities would further <br />flood plain management and reduce <br />future flood damage. <br /> <br />xxiv <br /> <br />