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. . RFP for Water 2025 Challenge Grant Program Available Online: The Request for Proposals for the Water 2025 Challenge Grant Program is available online at www.doi.gov/water2025 , The $4 million Challenge Grant Program seeks proposals from irrigation and water districts that want to partner with Reclamation, make more efficient use of existing water supplies through water conservation, efficiency and water market projects, The deadline for submitting proposals is April 8, Selection and award will be in Mayor June with implementation beginning in early August. Examples of proposals Reclamation is seeking include development of water accounts that would provide a way to market water for existing needs; retrofitting and modernizing existing facilities to achieve better water management using new technology; and canal lining or construction of new measurement devices that will allow for more accurate measurement and accounting, leading to increased efficiency, 21st Century Water Commission: Several months ago, proposed legislation creating the 'Twenty-First Century Water Commission" was introduced and generated concerns. Subsequently, the bill was re-written and introduced as H.R, 135, A copy is attached as introduced on Nov, 21, 2003, A copy ofa letter from the National Water Resource Association expressing support for the bill is attached, USGS Study Documents Changes in High Plains Aquifer: A new report by the USGS describes changes that have taken place in the High Plains aquifer from the time that significant groundwater pumping began in the 1940's to the year 2000, The results show a six percent decrease in the volume of water stored in the High Plains (or Ogallala) aquifer. Underlying portions of eight states, including Colorado, the massive aquifer spans 173,000 square miles, The areas of water-level declines are not common to the entire region, The two states with the greatest amounts of depletion are Texas and Kansas, USGS scientists estimated the water in storage by using data collected by the USGS and other entities between the years 1920 and 2000 from more than 20,000, The report "Water in Storage and Approaches to Ground-Water Management, High Plains Aquifer, 2000," USGS Circular 1243, also includes a state-by-state summary of approaches to groundwater management. It can be obtained by contacting USGS Information Services at 1- 888-ASK-USGS (1-888-275-8747), Cooling Water: On Feb, 16 EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt signed a final rule to protect aquatic life from being killed by cooling water intake structures at large power plants, EP A estimates that the rule will affect about 550 facilities, The new rule will require all large existing power plants to meet performance standards to reduce the number of organisms pinned against parts of the cooling water intake structure by 80 to 95 percent. Depending on location, the amount of water withdrawn, and energy generation, certain facilities will also have to meet performance standards to reduce the number of aquatic organisms drawn into the cooling system by 60 to 90 percent. To offer these large power plants flexibility to comply and to ensure energy reliability, facilities will have several compliance alternatives to meet the performance standards. This rule fulfills a consent decree filed in 1995 as a result of a lawsuit brought by several environmental groups. The national standards are the second of three rules for cooling water intake structures being developed under the consent decree, The first rule was for new facilities and was completed in December 2001. Scheduled for proposal in November 2004, the third rule will be for existing electric generating plants using smaller amounts of cooling water and for other manufacturers, 5