BOARD00936

• Board Meeting Date: 1/25/2005
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

REOUEST FOR INCREASE IN AUTHORIZATION FOR THE UPPER BASIN RECOVERY
PROGRAM

The non-federal participants in the two programs request that the authorization for the Program be
changed as follows:

1. The authorization for appropriations to the Secretary, federal participation in capital projects (Section
3(a)) be amended from $46 million to $58.5 million.

2. Total cost of capital projects be increased from $100 million to $112.5 million (Section 3(b)).

3. The construction cost ceiling for the Upper Colorado Recovery Program shall be increased from $82
million to $94.5 million.

4. The non-federal cost sharing amounts in P.L. 106-392 remain the same ($17 million for the Upper
Basin states and $17 million power revenues collected pursuant to the Colorado River Storage Project
Act).

REOUEST FOR EXTENSION OF TIME TO COMPLETE CONSTRUCTION

.

Construction of Recovery Program facilities in both the Upper Colorado Recovery Program and San Juan
Recovery Program has been managed by the Bureau of Reclamation's Grand Junction office. The cost
for Program management has been within budget and is expected to be within budget for the remainder of
the Program. This has been accomplished with existing staff at Reclamation for both construction
management in the Grand Junction office and contract management in the Regional office in Salt Lake
City. It is the opinion ofthe non-federal Reclamation participants that the construction program has been
conducted efficiently and effectively, given the real world difficulties of implementing complex projects .
associated with water diversion and power production facilities in the Upper Basin, and numerous
associated property issues that had to be addressed in implementing the construction and land acquisition
programs.

For the San Juan Program, information is still being collected on habitat restoration, re-operation of
reservoirs, need for fish screening and fish passages. As a result, the cost effectiveness of these facilities
and the need for these facilities to achieve recovery is under evaluation.

In order to continue operating efficiently and effectively, it is requested that the construction authorization
period for the Upper Basin and San Juan programs be extended through FY 2010. This reflects the
number and size of the projects to be completed, and need to complete those projects efficiently and
effectively with existing staff in Reclamation. This extension will also provide for spreading out the
remaining project costs on a more or less even basis, and not create extraordinary requests in annual
Reclamation budgets.

Given that a trip to Washin/lton D.C. is anticipated in mid Februarv. the Board will be asked to
consider a resolution of support for this ceilin/l increase and time extension throu/lh 2010 at the Board
meetin/l.

Colorado River Salinity Control Program: The Work Group met on Jan. 11-12 and approved several
funding allocations that will benefit the USDA program in Colorado.

New studies of potential project sites in the Yampa, White and Pine River drainages will be considered.
A second phase of a sprinkler demonstration will be installed north of Montrose. In addition the NRCS
will begin a study in conjunction with the USGS of the effects on water use and quality resulting from the .
urbanization offormerly irrigated agricultural lands in Mesa and Delta Counties.

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