BOARD01008

• Board Meeting Date: 1/27/2004
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppdles/ppqdocs.htrnl) outlining APHIS' intention to implement the
release of the Chinese leaf beetle in 2004 in 14 western states including Colorado. The Colorado
Department of Agriculture is developing a strategy for incorporating this technique through the
establishment of nurseries in both western and eastern Colorado.

Rep:ional Conference -- Interior is cosponsoring a regional Tamarisk Conference with USDA and
the National Invasive Species Council in Albuquerque on Mar. 3l through April 2. For fiscal
year 2004, Interior has identified approximately $2 milJion in new funding for tamarisk activities
in the Southwest and is anticipating additional funding in 200S. The purpose of the meeting is to
determine how to best use these funds. The workshop will also result in the production of a
document that identifies the problems associated with tamarisk and native habitat management,
highlights critical research gaps, provides a coffi?rehensive overview of the effectiveness of
available best practices and prioritization of projects throughout the Southwest, and maps the
best current understanding of the regional distribution oftarnarisk. A second objective is to
establish a framework for forging close, working partnerships that would lead to future on-the-
ground projects. Colorado is seen as a major partner at this conference.

State Update -- Shane Henry, a DNR Assistant Director, coordinated an effort to develop a
statewide plan to control tamarisk on public lands within 10-years. Governor Owens requested
the plan and a proposed plan has been presented to his office for review and consideration. The
plan was developed with a working group composed of representatives from the BLM,
Reclamation, Colorado Department of Agriculture, CSU, Denver Botanic Gardens, Mesa Siate
College, The Nature Conservancy, Tamarisk Coalition, University of Denver, and the U.S.
Forest Service.

We have reviewed the proposed plan and we have attached the Executive Summary. The full
plan report will be available on web sites following the Governor's review and can be provided
to interested Board members upon request in either CD or hard copy. While we had no direct
input on developing or drafting the plan, our involvement with the Coalition, which served as the
principal author of the Plan, provided an avenue for the Board's issues to be considered. Of
particular interest to the Board are the following points from the Plan Report:

. The role of state agencies should be limited, with two to four designated staff members,
acting as the Tamarisk Support Team, to provide technical and funding coordination to
local watershed groups. DNR land management agencies (Parks, DOW) are presumed to
have the lead role.

. The inventory of infested acres is a vital component of the control strategy, and the
Board's ongoing work with the Coalition is recognized. Future efforts to extend the
inventory statewide will be necessary.

. The CWCB should participate in an early s?ring 2004 regional Tamarisk Strategy
Workshop to be held in Albuquerque, N.M., "to help influence federal actions so that
they mesh with Colorado's 10 Year Plan."

. The Governor's Office should be the lead on communicating to Congress the state's
positions on and support for proposed federal legislation.

At a future Board meeting, following the Governor's acceptance and endorsement, the Board can
considerthe-proposed-lO=Year-Plan; and-the-Board' nolein-future-tamarisk-controI-activities-in
more depth. In the meantime, staff will confer with the new DNR director and his staff as the
Governor provides feedback on the plan and DNR begins implementation of the plan and the
creation .ofthe State Tamarisk Support Team.

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