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<br />15 <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Under FOl'est Service policy, h.;'~t;T:t::'l'. it; LS nDt .19c83snry to assert <br />such a claim if a wildt':rness en':~-':iDp3S.s~S all of the headwaters, or <br />whe:re there are only NFS land.s upstt'eam of (he wilo0rness, since such <br />topographical circumstances cowbith.:d wi th lhe Wilderness Act providr: <br />speCial protection to those o.rC"~.qs. Fnr lh~::;se wi ldnrness areas 'w'ith <br />ncn-f'.jFS lands wi thin the wildl2rr.2S'; boundary or ups tream of the <br />wilderness, th~ Forest S~rvice will consid~r recommending that the <br />D~partment of JJstice claim a F2Jer6c reserved wilderness water right <br />if there is a risk that, ~ith0'jt the protection of such a watzr right. <br />a water development will be imp~eillented to the detriment of the <br />related wilderness values. <br /> <br />Risk is ~valuated in terms of th~ probability of the withdrawal of <br />watt.:f' for consumptive uses GC s~cra=;e on s: te or the probability of <br />diversion of water au:. of the d:'alr:::it:(; tL<:i.~ would be harmful to <br />wilderness purpose. which ge~2~~ally .:leill1S having a noticeable, perma- <br />nent effect'on the natural ecosyste~ or upon the recreational, scenic, <br />scientific, conservation, educational or historical v~lues of the <br />wilderness. The evaluation of risk, which is made with regard to <br />specific sites within a specific wilderness, will include considera- <br />tion of the type of potentia~ development, engineering and economic <br />feasibility, access, land owne~~hip patter~s, and loc~l development <br />trends. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Aside from any legal uncertain to' a.,l tr.e at tendan t Ii cigati ve risks in <br />other judisdictions regarding t~~ e~iste~ce of wilderness water <br />rights, the Foces t Service's reLic' t 3~C..? t.~ assert Federal reserved <br />w~ter rights for wilderness in ;:,ir~~Ir:;3r:.an:..~(~s other tha.n those des- <br />cribed above is based i~ large ;~~t on the practical difficulty and <br />high cost that such Ii tiga~ion '"oull entail, The character of the <br />wilderness areas is the prod,;ct of inn":ne,,able interrelated natural <br />components which do not lend themselves to easy numerical definition. <br />Measuring the precise amount of water found in natural lakes or ponds, <br />or in seeps or springs, or trickling from the myriad of tiny streams <br />in the highest~eaches c.f the wilderness area will be extremely diffi- <br />cult. Further, sophisticated m'.>asudng de"ices and other necessary <br />tachnical i1lpleI:lents, like other indicia of man. are, and heve been, <br />absent frcm wilderness a~2as. S~ historic baseline data is not avail- <br />able. <br /> <br />It is pOC1sible for the F')C23t :>r'/l..i) tu identify the speCific wild,"r- <br />n~}ss ....alues other tban i18cucal c.:,)s:"'6l2ffi preservation, such as primi- <br />tive recreation. fish and wildlife ~abitat ~rolection, preservation of <br />a~y specific featurHs of scienrif~c. educational or cultural value, <br />arId to attempt to quant i fy the amounts of water needed to protect <br />those values. The total of those: amounts would represent a quantity <br />needed to achiev:~ w.ild~rness protection, b\.lt mayor may not nE:'ces- <br />sadly provide for natt:ral ecosystem protr"ction. While this method <br /> <br />. <br />