BOARD01037

• Board Meeting Date: 1/27/1999
• Description: WSP Section - Colorado River Basin Issues - 15-Mile Reach and Yampa River Endangered Fish Instream Flow Applications
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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Colorado Water Conservation Board

Department of Natural Resources
721 Centennial Building
1 313 Sherman Street
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone: [phone]
FAX: [phone]

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MEMORANDUM

Bill Owens
Governor

Greg E. Walcher
Executive Director, DNR

TO:

FROM:

Colorado Water Conservation Board Members

Peter Evans ~ ~
Acting Director

Peter H, Evans
Acting Director, CWCB

DATE:

January 26, 1999

RE:

Agenda Item 18(k), January 27-28, 1999 Board Meeting _
IS-Mile Reach and Yampa River Endangered Fish Instream Flow
Applications

At our November 1998 meeting, the Board decided to continue its deliberations
regarding next steps on the pending water right applications (Case 5-95CW296 and 297)_
The Board deferred action because we were uncertain whether these flow protection
measures would be necessary to support a favorable outcome in the pending Endangered
Species Act consultation. I believe the Board was also reluctant to take action on these
applications before the Recovery Program decides to remove the particular flow
protection measures from the Recovery Action Plan ("RIP RAP").

As of today, we still have not seen a draft of the proposed programmatic
biological opinion concerning depletion impacts above the 15-Mile Reach and do not
expect to see one until February 19, 1999_ However, the Recovery Program Manager,
Henry Maddox, indicates that I) the Fish and Wildlife Service has received all the
necessary intormation from us for the assessment of current and future depletion impacts,
2) the Fish and Wildlife Service is proceeding with development of the programmatic
biological opinion according to the agreed schedule, and 3) the Fish and Wildlife Service
expects to review a draft of the proposed programmatic biological opinion with Recovery
Program Participants and other interested parties on February 19, 1999.

Despite this slow but continuing progress, the Division 5 water court referee is
still pressing for a decision to either move forward or withdraw the water right
applications at the next status conference (February 22?).

There appears to be a roughly-even split of opinions concerning the value of
Board's 15-Mile Reach baseflow application. Many (but not all) of the participating
water user representatives favor withdrawal of both the baseflow and recovery flow water
right applications. The rest of the Recovery Program participants (including the Fish and
Wildlife Service) seem to believe that the potential value of the baseflow application