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<br />> <br /> <br />The Governance Committee approved a program extension to December 31,2005. This <br />is the last extension approved by the Governors in the most recent amendment of the <br />Cooperative Agreement. Because the program will not begin until the funds are in place a <br />further Governor-approved Cooperative Agreement will be needed to cover the part of 2006 <br />prior to the beginning of the program. The Governance Committee agreed that all bridge <br />measures would be continued on the same schedule. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />The FWS asked the Governance Committee to consider amending the program <br />documents in order to clarify the program so that the BO could be completed. Most of the <br />requests were rejected as FWS efforts to revisit issues decided before, although some issues <br />will be studied further. Finally, the federal depletion plan also came under severe criticism <br />because it failed to offer any mitigation for or even count decreased stream flow due to <br />USDA forest management. Colorado agreed to take the lead on the issue. The Governance <br />Committee all agreed that they had no power to force a change in Forest management <br />practices, but they also agreed that Forest management impacts that have an adverse effect <br />on the Program water projects would be quantified. The DNR Forest Initiative working <br />group and Jim Witwer are to meet with the Regional Forester and staff to attempt to quantify <br />the vegetation management impacts for each forest and seek a commitment to report these <br />figures on an annual basis. The impact figures then could be used to allow project operations <br />when target flows are not being met due to the forest management activities or project <br />operations would be paper tilled in the amount of these impacts for the purpose of <br />determining milestone compliance. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />The next Governance Committee meetings are June 6 and 7; July 12 and 13; August 4 <br />and 5; and September 12 and 13. <br /> <br />8. Rio Grande Well Controversy. <br /> <br />The case is moving forward through the discovery phase. <br /> <br />9. Ground Water Right for Great Sand Dunes National Park, 2004 CW 35 <br /> <br />On December 30, 2004, the United States filed a claim for ground water in both the <br />confined and unconfined aquifers underlying the new Great Sand Dunes National Park <br />(GSDNP), pursuant to the requirements in the GSDNP statute. The case is assigned to the <br />Referee for Water Division No.3 and nothing has happened since the Statements of <br />Opposition were filed. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />4 <br />