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<br />I <br /> <br />I <br /> <br />MR. WILLIAMS: <br />the facts and <br />basic facts. <br /> <br />Well, okay. Basically, we are talking about determining <br />not really bargaining. We are talking about determining <br /> <br />MR. SPARKS,: Well, we are in a never-never land on what is enough water <br />for the environment. There is no answer to that. <br /> <br />MR. VANDEMOER: As a nonlawyer, it worries me that if we are going to <br />have this administrative hearing--we never have had it yet--don't we <br />open the door for every controversy that comes up in future meetings? <br />In other words, people have not been happy before. We have gone ahead <br />on the basis that we have done what we thought was fair. And if we do <br />this, I feel we have to do this at every meeting for everybody that <br />feels our application of the facts is not to their liking. It worries <br />me that, if this board opens up for an administrative hearing on this <br />thing--we have had problems on every river basin that we have done so <br />far. People have been unhappy, but we have gone ahead and done it. <br /> <br />MR. SPARKS: We have solved those, Herb. As you recall, we have had <br />people appearing time and time again in opposition to many or these <br />over the years, but we were always able to solve them. <br /> <br />MR. VANDEMOER: My point is--this month you look at these figures from <br />NUS, and you look at the figures from the Game and Fish, and then you <br />compromise and we gO on the compromise and we don't get into an admin- <br />istrative hearing of this board sitting and trying to determine--well, <br />it worries me that we are going to get into--I think Ben's point was <br />well taken. How much water does a fish need? We are not expert on that. <br />I don't know how we can tell. I think we have got to get to some type <br />of middle ground and sit on it. ' <br /> <br />MR. SPARKS: I don't know if there is a judge in the state who is an <br />expert on it either, but they pass on it all the time. <br /> <br />MR. VANDEMOER: I just hate to have this board get into administrative <br />hearings on this matter. <br /> <br />MR. STAPLETON: Well, I think the Denver Water Board and the Grand' <br />county Commissioners are hitting us. None of us are anxious to have <br />this first. I am hopeful that we can work out a middle ground, but I <br />have attended at least six or eight meetings of a preliminary nature <br />here, and we haven't had much movement. And I'm not anticipating that <br />we will this time. <br /> <br />Our only choice, Herb, as I see it, is just if the staff said that their <br />final recommendations are "X," we either have to accept those without a <br />hearing, in which case I don't know what litigants would say about our <br />reasonableness under the circumstances, or let them present some of <br />their testimony, even though it may be thoroughly opposed to what they <br />would like. Unfortunately, the Legislature has given us this responsi- <br />bility, and I guess I must say that maybe we are lucky enough to have <br />avoided matters up to this time. But maybe our luck has run out. <br /> <br />-29- <br />