BOARD02159

• Board Meeting Date: 9/13/2005
• Description: ISF Section - Aspinall Unit Operations EIS
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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-river regulation, including Crystal Dam's role ofre-regulating peaking releases and the
flexibility for peaking operations at Morrow Point and Blue Mesa,
-minimum flows at the "Gunnison River below Gunnison Tunnel gage" of 300 cfs except
in severe droughts and emergencies.
-operate to attempt to prevent flows from exceeding 15,000 cfs at Delta per Corps of
Engineers agreements.
-honoring existing contracts, such as water sales and contracts, power contracts, llfi<i
Taylor Park Exchange agreement, and the Gunnison TunnellRidgway Reservoir
Exchange agreement, while recognizing that flexibility exists in certain contracts,
including hydropower contracts.
-following C€lI€lFaEl.€l water law and water rights as decreed nnder Colorado water
law, and the Law ofthe River.

Attachment A provides additional information on discretion/non-discretion.

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II. The environmental baseline is a "snapshot" of a threatened or endangered species'
health at a specified point in time, normally at the time ofESA consultation. It is an
Endangered Species Act (ESA) term and should not be confused with the NEPA terms of
"Existing Conditions" or "No Action Alternative." The baseline does not include the
proposed action. The environmental baseline, as defined in the implementing regulations
for section 7, "includes the past and present impacts of all Federal, State, or private
actions and other human activities in the action area, the anticipated impacts of all
proposed Federal projects in the action area that have already undergone formal or early
section 7 consultation, and the impact of State or private actions that are
contemporaneous with the consultation in process." In the case of an ongoing Federal
action under consultation, such as the Aspinall Unit, the Endangered Species
Consultation Handbook further clarifies that "The total effects of all past activities,
including the effects of the past operation ofthe project, current non-Federal activities,
and Federal projects with completed section 7 consultations, form the environmental
baseline." The environmental baseline does not include future effects ofthe proposed
Federal action; such effects are considered under the "Effects of the Action" section.

The baseline includes the Upper Colorado River Recovery Program in place with goals of
both endangered fish recovery and the protection of existing and future water uses. The
baseline includes work completed (or with ESAlNEPA compliance) under the Recovery
Implementation Plan such as the Redlands Fish Ladder, Craig backwater, and Redlands
fish screen.

The baseline includes a description of the species' populations and their distribution and
habitat. In terms of Aspinall ESA compliance, the condition of the river or the
hydrologic portion of the baseline is important. It is also important to note that in
addition the baseline includes many other factors affecting the species, for example the
presence of non-native fish, stream channelization, water quality, etc. This paper only
addresses the hydrologic portion of the baseline,

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