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<br />the potential impacts the drought has and we're focusing primarily on agriculture and tourism as
<br />the main issues that will.. . and the impacts of wildfire _? _' It's a very qualitative memo, this
<br />time we don't really have much data behind it, and the position is getting the data we have
<br />available and printing an _? -' and it will be this weekend to acquiring more data, and we
<br />expect to have more then, _? _ so at this point, and it is very qualitative, on the first page we
<br />then look at the economic impact on tourism, on page two it remains that tourism could be
<br />impacted, and then we discuss it in relationship to the '77 drought and the 2000 drought, and our
<br />outlook for the 2002 drought, too. Page four has the economic impact on agriculture, and on page
<br />5 economic impact by forest fires, and impact statement of _? _' I've begun to get my
<br />information together _? -' as of now we will probably save _?_
<br />
<br />Brad - Thank you. Any questions? Next, let's go to Wildlife, and hear what they're up to.
<br />
<br />- We met last week, the Wildlife Task Force met last week, and essentially one of the
<br />more positive message to come from this.. .our main focus has been on aquatics right now,
<br />because that's probably what we view as the biggest threat, possible threat. And we've been
<br />working together, especially the state agencies, as time was limited. CWCB, Division of Wildlife
<br />and Water Resources have set up a few e-mails and a few connunication lines to make sure that
<br />the DOW biologists and the CWCB.. .you know, I'm familiar with CWCB regulations and the
<br />possible uses of some of the instream flows, and we've worked to travel_? _ on trying to
<br />talk through the issues like these, and we put together this aquatic update on drought and I've got
<br />Robin Knox, he's one of our aquatic managers and he'll go over this, just general state conditions
<br />that we got from most of our field people, _?_'
<br />
<br />Robin Knox - Thank you. My name is Robin Knox, the Sport Fish Program Manager for the
<br />State, and obviously the fishing recreation bordering on the neighborhood of a $600 million total
<br />impact industry in the state is very important to us, both to the status of our fish species as well as
<br />the attendant economic impacts from angling recreation. At this point in time I think we're as
<br />much in the dark about what's gong to happen because, gosh, I've been with the state for 23 years
<br />and we've never experienced these conditions in our streams, so we don't know what all the exact
<br />impacts are going to be. It's just very difficult to say right now. However, I do have a supply of
<br />dip nets out in the back for those of you who want to go into the Rio Grande and help us collect
<br />fish. We are setting up a list of critical waters...we have other concerns beside recreational
<br />fishing, of course, we have certain endangered species and we have aquatic wildlife that is in
<br />danger of becoming listed as a federal threatened or endangered species, so we are monitoring
<br />those situations very carefully to the extent of our manpower. Right now it's difficult to say, we
<br />have not had that many specific impacts to this point in time, I think its more of us really gearing
<br />up to be watching for what happens. Fish habitat, generally, is dependent upon the low flows in
<br />the streams. Runoff really doesn't count, because it just increases the water level for a short period
<br />of time, the fish populations are dependent upon the habitats at low flows, so when we get down to
<br />flows that are 5 and 10 and 15% of normal, over an extended period of time, its doubtful that we'll
<br />lose all our fish, but one of the biggest problems in Colorado of course if that we are a "trout state"
<br />and trout do have. . . water temperature raises to 70 degrees will basically kill trout, so once again,
<br />it depends on what happens with the summer. A hot summer, if we have a good monsoon we may
<br />be saved by precipitation events. But for right now we are really just developing the list of critical
<br />waters that we're going to manage in the _?_'
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