BOARD01505

• Board Meeting Date: 11/15/2005
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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formed to explore thc possibilities of better managing the water resources in the Dolores River Basin to
everyone's benefit.

To date, the Dolores River Dialogue has made great progress. The DRD has convened over a year of
successful, well.attended meetings of diverse stakeholders with an interest in river management. The
DRD has established two data/science study groups to assess the condition of aquatic and riparian
systems in the lower Dolores River, and to consider the critical questions of water availability and project
constraints in identifying opportunities to achieve DRD goals.

The group has successfully fund raised from a range of stakeholders to support its continued meetings and
scientific investigations. The DRD was recently awarded a Colorado Watershed Protection Fund grant
for $15,000. These dollars will be leveragcd to provide $60,000 of support for the DRD efforts.

The DRD core science team and core hydrology team have issued preliminary reports. These technical
teams will integrate the river resource assessment - which identifies flow conditions that support native
fish and riparian habitats - with the hydrologic water availability report - given climatic conditions and
the needs of all the human users of the river. These needs include the natural systems of the river,
agriculture, cold water fisheries and recreational boating. Integrating these two studies into a matrix or
simplified model will allow stakeholders to understand the opportunities and work towards informed
resource management decisions.

When the matrix of opportunities for river restoration has been developed, the DRD will convene a
workshop to identify practical actions toerthallCe the lower Dolores River, given the resource needs and
water availability. Public participation of diverse stakeholders is a cornerstone of the Dolores River
Dialogue and this workshop will be the culmination of the scientific work to date.

If you would like additional information on this proje()t, please contact Kenny Smith, General Manager,
Dolores Water Conservancy District, 60 S. Cactus St., P.O. Box 1150, Cortez, CO 81321: ph. 970-565-
7562; or via e-mail atdwcdlalfrontier.net.

San Juan PubBc Laods - "Government to GoveromeDt RonndtabIe" Update: The San Juan Public
Lands - "Plan for the Puture" is a long-term planning effort by the U.S. Forest Service (USPS) and the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the San Juan Basin of southwestem Colorado. The San Juan
Public Lands Center, as the joint USFS/BLM management unit is known, is the firat 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, stream needs and expectations from a fishery perspective, water facilities
permitting requirements, Wild and Scenic River analyses, and Wilderness Areas.

Puture topics to be discussed will include: livestock water facilities, Colorado Ditch Bill, Pederal
Reserved water right claims, and Plan Revision Concepts. Additional meetings are anticipated to run at
least through the first quarter of next year.

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