BOARD00936

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

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("PRill") and the Southem Ute Indian Tribe under which PRID and the Tribe would donate water to the
CWCB to provide instream flow protection for the Pine River.

Under this proposal, PRill and the Tribe would donate a specific amount of water to CWCB for instream
flows in the Pine River each winter. The amount of water donated would vary depending on reservoir
storage levels and runoff forecasts. During the summer months, PRID would donate the right to use
project water delivered for irrigation uses to preserve or improve the natural environment.

Staff has also been working with the State and Division Engineers to ensure the agreement comports with
water administration practices and Colorado water law. Once finalized, staff believes this agreement will
provide "equal or better" protection for the natural environment than what could be achieved with a new
junior instream flow water right.

Additionally, this agreement will serve as an example of the types of protection that can be achieved
utilizing a partnership approach to instream flows in the state.

The parties anticipate that their ongoing discussions will lead to a formal request to the Board to accept
the donated water in late spring of 2005.

Dolores River Dialogue Update: The Dolores River Dialogue is a process involving water users,
environmental groups, recreational interests, and local, state and federal agencies, The group was formed
to explore the possibilities of better managing the water resources in the Dolores River Basin to
everyone's benefit. To address the many facets ofthis issue the group has developed a Plan to Proceed
that involves the formation of a Technical Team, a Core Hydrology group and a Core Science Group.
The Technical Team oversees the scope of work in the Plan to Proceed and is responsible to the Dolores
River Dialogue Group as whole.

The Core Hydrology Group is looking into the hydrology and water use in the Dolores Basin and is
identifying opportunities for improved water management for wet, normal and dry year conditions. The
Core Science Group will look into the river system below McPhee Reservoir from a fishery, both warm
and cold water species, stream channel geomorphology, and environmental perspective. All work done
by the work groups will be reviewed in a Dolores River Dialogue workshop planned to be held sometime
this summer.

If you want additional information, please contact Philip Saletta, General Manager, Dolores Water
Conservancy District, 60 S. Cactus St, P.O. Box 1150, Cortez, CO 81321,970-565-7562 or via email at
[e-mail].

Animas-LaPlata Project: Language contained in the 2005 federal omnibus appropriations bill provides
that non-Indian stakeholders in the project may be held harmless for most if not all of the approximately
$163,000,000 in project cost increases associated with the Animas La-Plata Project and further provided
approximately $10,000,000 for construction of required transmission facilities. Copies of the relevant
language from the bill are attached. This is very good news for all project participants.

San Juan River Recovery Program: A workshop on the San Juan RIP Hydrology Model will be held
Thursday, February 17th, beginning at 9:00 am, at the Best Western Inn, 700 Scott Ave, Farmington, New
Mexico. The workshop, presented by Reclamation, will be designed to educate and inform program
participants as well as interested individuals from the various agencies involved in the Recovery Program.
The agenda for the workshop is as follows:

I. Overview of the Generation II Model

II. Rationale for the Transition from Gen II to Gen III

- Including capabilities and limitations of Gen II

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