BOARD00936

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

It is also believed that this agreement will help Arizona utilize its full 2.8 million AF allocation of .
Colorado River Water, while the state gains an ally in its efforts to change the Central Arizona Project's
(CAP) junior water rights status.

Pat Mulroy, General Manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, told the CAP Board that Nevada
desperately needs the additional water because the drought has hit them harder than other states. "The
drought wiped out 15 years of water supply for Southern Nevada," she said.

Nevada had counted on being able to use excess water from the Colorado River while developing new
sources from within the state. Because of the drought, there is no excess water in the river. Mulroy
promised that if Arizona cities face a water reduction due to drought during the next two decades, while
the deal is in effect, Nevada will voluntarily take the same reduction in use. She also said CAP's junior
rights status makes no sense and needs to be revisited.

Price-Stubb Fish Passage: The Final Environmental Assessment and finding of no significant impact
have been received. Construction of the fish passage will begin in the fall of2005. Once completed,
endangered fish will have access to approximately 50-miles of additional critical habitat. In addition,
there may also be recreational boating uses if right-of-way issues with the railroad can be worked out,
which does not look very promising at this time.

DOW Reports Trout Declining in Blue River: In December 2004 the DOW told an Anglers Roundtable
that dwindling water releases from Dillon Reservoir are to blame for declines of up to 50 percent in trout
populations in the Blue River, a Gold Medal fishery. DOW Biologist Billy Atkinson estimated there are
1,150 brown trout (6 inches or larger) per mile in the Blue River just below the reservoir. Sampling
almost the same section in 2002, biologists estimated 1,763 per mile, and as recently as 2001, the agency
tallied 2,280 per mile. Atkinson said the latest numbers barely meet Gold Medal criteria, which specify 40 .
pounds offish per acre and 12 fish 14 inches or larger. Out of9,000 stream miles in Colorado, only 168
miles qualify for the designation

The steep drop in trout numbers comes in spite of a series of habitat improvement projects begun in 2003
aimed at creating deeper holes and channels, giving trout a place to hide and feed. The situation would
probably be worse without the habitat improvements in the Blue, said David Nickum, director of
Colorado Trout Unlimited.

EPA Comments ou Flaming Gorge EIS: On Dec. 17,2004 the EPA gave notice of the availability of its
comments on Reclamation's draft EIS on the Operation of Flaming Gorge Dam to Protect and Assist in
Recovery of Populations and Designated Critical Habitat of Four Endangered Fishes. In the summary of
its comments, EP A stated that the "Preferred Alternative may adversely affect other wildlife and their
habitats. EP A also expressed concerns over the uncertainties surrounding both the impacts of the
proposed management actions and the adaptive management changes that may be necessitated in the
future. In addition, EP A expressed concerns that only one alternative was evaluated besides the No
Action alternative, and suggested that other alternatives be evaluated" (see 69 Fed. Reg. 75536).

NRLC Conference Announced: The Natural Resources Law Center Annual June Water Conference will
be held June 8-10 and will be entitled: "Hard Times on the Colorado River: Drought, Growth and the
Future of the Compact."

Upper Colorado River Basin Recovery Implementation Program: Attached is a letter dated
December 29, 2004 that concludes the Recovery Program has maintained sufficient progress, but lists
seven areas of concern. The concerns are 1) declining population estimates, 2) effectiveness of nonnative .
fish management actions, 3) more detailed reporting on the operation of the GVIC fish passage and
screen, 4) low flow water supply issues associated with the Grand Valley Project fish passage operation,

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