BOARD02377

• Board Meeting Date: 7/13/1998
• Description: WSP Section - Colorado River Basin Issues - 15-Mile Reach Recovery Water Rights - Cases No. 5-95CW296 and 5-95CW297
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

1600 WeJ.121h Avenue' Donver, Colorado 80254
Phone (303) 62Bo8OOO . FIX No. (303) 628.619'

'eoENVER "VATER

July 2, 1998

Peter Evans, Acting Director
Colorado Water Conservation Board
1313 Shennan Street, Room 721
Denver, CO 80203-2279

Wendy Weiss
First Assistant Attomey General
Colorado Water Conservation Board
1313 Sh=an Street, Room 721
Denver, CO 80203-2279

.

Randy Seaholm, Chief, Interstate Streams
Investigating Section
Colorado Water Conservation Board
1313 Shennan Street, Room 721
Denver, CO 80203-2279

Dear Peter, Wendy, and Randy:

Subject: Future of CWCB Actions Concerning Cases 5-95CW296, 5-95CW297,
6-95CW155 and 6.95CW156

The Water Conservation Board has asked water users for input concerning the disposition
of the instream flow water right applications referenced above. Questions regarding
future actions on these already controversial cases have risen because the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (FWS) has indicated decrees for the 1 SoMite Reach flow filings would
not be considered an element in the 1 SoMite Reach Biological Opinion.

Denver Water recommends the following actions be taken:

.

1. Do not withdraw from any of the instream flow filings at this time. Although the
FWS apparently does not intend to rely on the 1 S-Mile Reach instream flow filings
for the programmatic biological opinion. all four applications are currently in the
Recovery Program Recovery Action Plan (RIPRAP), and it is unclear how
withdrawing the filings would affect the Section 7 Agreement. The Recovery
Program should be consulted in making the decision.

CON,mVF