BOARD00278

• Board Meeting Date: 5/11/1998
• Description: WSP Section - Colorado River Basin Issues - Endangered Species Issues - Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program Sufficient Progress Letter
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

Accomolishments

In the past year, the Program has made some important strides, including: completing a lease for
2,000 af of water from Steamboat Reservoir; continuing to operate Flaming Gorge Reservoir and
the Aspinall Units to provide research flows; coordinating reservoir operations for the Colorado
River, completing an agreement for delivery of water from Wolford Mountain Reservoir;
adjudicating two instream flow water rights (581 cfs and irrigation season return flows) in the
IS-Mile Reach of the Colorado River; seeing success ofthe Redlands fish passage; completing
construction of the GVIC fish passage; and placing additional fish passage construction back on
schedule. These accomplishments indicate considerable efforts by the participants of the
Program toward recovery ofthe endangered fish.

Concerns

The Service's June 16, 1997, assessment of "sufficient progress" outlined nine specific recovery
actions judged to be of critical importance in 1997. These were items that would have a
significant effect on sufficient progress, and the Service was concerned that they were behind
schedule. Critical recovery actions from that list that now are seriously behind schedule are:
1) acquisition of floodplain habitats or easements; 2) filing of Colorado instream flow
appropriations and completion of a long-term agreement for water delivery from Ruedi
Reservoir'; and 3) pond reclamation in the Grand Valley and Gunnison River (for nonnative fish
control).

The Service also recognizes that we are behind in developing brood stock and meeting
augmentation goals for razorback sucker. Since this is primarily Service responsibility, we
hesitate to use it in evaluating sufficient progress. However, we do believe that efforts must be
increased to ensure that brood stock development is completed and that augmentation goals in
approved plans are met. We have made efforts to maximize our chances for successfully
meeting augmentation goals. Construction of the Ouray National Fish Hatchery will be
completed in early summer. The Service has received Recovery Program approval to collect
adult razorback suckers in the Green River during spawning. It is hoped that up to 16 additional
"lots" of razorback suckers will be collected. Currently we have nine of the 25 needed lots. If
successful we will have met our goals for establishing brood stock for this species. This effort
will also result in obtaining additional fish for stocking during the next several years. At the
March 15, 1998 Management Committee meeting, funds were approved for construction of a
building to produce Colorado squawfish for stocking in the Colorado River. With these and
other aggressive measures we will soon be in a position to meet our brood stock and
augmentation goals.

These are directly related to critical actions cited in the Service's AprilS, 199{1,
assessment of sufficient progress, which required these actions to be accomplished in
order to restore the depletion threshold from 1,500 to 3,000 acre-feet.

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