BOARD01318

• Board Meeting Date: 9/13/2005
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

.'

.

.

.

system below McPhee Reservoir from a fishery; both warm and cold water species, stream channel
geomorphology, and environmental perspective. Most of the field investigations have been completed
and the Dialogue's Technical Team is now attempting to put this information into a matrix fonnat for
presentation to the Dialogue Group as a whole. Additional fishery data will be collected this fall,
assuming flow conditions allow. It is anticipated that the Dialogue Group as a whole will review these
efforts in the late fall of 2005.

If you would like additional information on this project, please contact the Dolores Water Conservancy
District, 60 S. Cactus St., P.O. Box 1150, Cortez, CO 81321: ph. 970-565-7562; or via e-mail at
dwcd(aJ,frontier.net.

San Juan Public Lands, "Government to Government Roundtable" Update: The San Juan Public
Lands - "Plan for the Future" is a long-term planning effort by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the San Juan Basin of southwestern Colorado. The San Juan
Public Lands Center, as the joint USFSIBLM management unit is know, is the first governmental unit of
this type to conduct such a joint long-range planning effort. This plan will address the management of
over 2.5 million acres of National Forest and BLM lands.

As part of this planning effort a "Government to Government Roundtable" was formed to lead
discussions on water issues in the plan revision process. Since the first meeting of the Roundtable in May
2005, two additional meetings have been held one in June and one in July. The process is beginning by
laying a foundation of information for the Roundtable participants. Topics discussed have included:
applicable Federal and State laws, the Multiple Use concept, the process - a Deliberation Funnel, the
State's Instream Flow Program, and stream needs and expectations from a fishery perspective.

Future topics to be discussed will include: Water Facilities, Permitting Requirements, Options; Wild and
Scenic Rivers, Wilderness, Federal Reserved Water Rights; and other topics to be determined. Additional
meeting are anticipated to run at least through the end of the year.

The next scheduled meeting is for September 7,2005 at the San Juan Public Lands Center in Durango,
CO. The meeting is scheduled from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and the topics to be discussed include:
Wilderness "Roadless Area Inventory and Wilderness Evaluation", Wild and Scenic Rivers, "Wild and
Scenic Rivers Act" and "Selection of Streams Eligible for Wild and Scenic", Roundtable Discussion,
and 2'd Cut - Water Facilities, Permitting Requirements.

For additional information on the San Juan Public Land - "Plan for the Future" or the "Government to
Government Roundtable" process, please contact the following offices:

San Juan Public Lands Center
Ph. 970-247-4874
www.fs.fed.us/r2! sani uan
www.co.blm.gov/sjralindex.html

Office of Community Services
Ph. 970-2477468
htm:!/ ocs. fortlewis.edulforesmlan

Animas-La Plata Project -- Ute Tribal Ceremony Marks Rising of Ridges Basin Dam from the
Excavated Fonndation: At a celebration on August 12th to mark the initial placement of impervious core
material in Ridges Basin Dam, Reclamation announced the rising of the dam from its excavated
foundation. When completed, Ridges Basin Dam, a key component of the Animas-La Plata Project, will
boast one of the nation's most state-of-the art pumping plants and together with Lake Nighthorse will
provide the Four Comers area with 120,000 acre-feet of long-term water storage, which includes an
inactive pool of approximately 30,000 AF for recreation, fishery and water quality purposes. Upon

25