BOARD00714

• Board Meeting Date: 7/9/1975
• Description: Agenda or Table of Contents, Minutes, Resolution
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

remarkable scenic, recreational,
cultural or other similar values
present and future generations.
Scenic System by designating the
prescribed the method for adding

geologic, fish and wildlife, historic,
for the benefit and enjoyment of
The Act created the National Wild
initial components of the system and
additional components at later dates.

The map I have here portrays the Colorado rivers involved; namely, the
Big Thompson, the Cache La Poudre, Colorado, Conejos, Elk, Encampment,
Green, Gunnison, Los Pinos, Piedra, Yampa and the Dolores.

On February 5, 1975, the executive director of the Colorado Department
of Natural Resources made an official request to the Secretaries of
the Interior and Agriculture requesting that these wild and scenic
river studies be done on a joint state and federal basis. These
requests were granted by both secretaries. Therefore, the state of
Colorado will be a full partner in the performance of these studies and
in the preparation of recommendations to Congress. The Water Conserva-
tion Board was named as principal coordinating agency for the state
input. These wild and scenic river studies, with exception of the
Dolores study, will be completed by October, 1979. Congress made
special provisions for the Dolores River by specifying that it must be
completed by January 3, 1976.

This, apparently, was to insure that the wild and scenic river study
would not interfere with the progress of the Dolores project or the
Paradox Valley project. The Dolores study, which is nearing completion,
will be discussed in some detail and will be the subject of some color
slides later in the presentation.

Rivers that are included in the national wild and scenic rivers system
must be free flowing and possess one or more of outstandingly remarkable
values. They can be added to the system either or two ways, by act of
Congress or pursuant to designation by a state legislature. The state
designated rivers included in the national system must be permanently
administered by the state and be found by the Secretary of the Interior
to be suitable for inclusion in the system. Every river in the system
must be classified, designated and administered as one of the following:

Wild river areas are those rivers or sections of rivers that are
free of impoundments and generally inaccessible by trail, with water-
sheds and shorelines essentially primitive and water unpolluted.

Scenic river areas are those rivers or sections of rivers that
are free of impoundments, with largely primitive shorelines, largely
undeveloped, but accessible in places by roads.

Recreational river areas are those rivers or sections of rivers
that are readily accessible by road or railroad that may have had
some development along their shorelines and that may have undergone
some impoundment or diversion in the past.

Provisions in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act restrict boundary locations
to include an average of not more than three hundred and twenty acres

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