BOARD02617

• Board Meeting Date: 3/24/2003
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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Colorado River Water Marketing: Our Colorado River Commissioner Scott Balcomb has received a
memorandum from a Mr. Tom Schwerin from Aspen that he has been hired by the City of Las Vegas
to "engineer and accumulate" 600,000 acre feet of water in Colorado for delivery to the City of Las
Vegas. He stated in his very brief, four-paragraph memo that stated (verbatim):

"I propose the following:

You represent the Governor in Colorado's interest in its extra 600,000 +/- acre-feet as
registered at the state-line gage. And I solve the accumulation, eastward trans-mountain
pumping problem.

I will work and get paid by the City of Las Vegas to engineer and accumulate these 600,000
acre feet. The work will be done in such a way that the City of Las Vegas pledges its credit up
to $50 million to lease 50 percent of this water for 90-years with two open rate options."

This front-end credit is the present value of the stream, Colorado can negotiate a yearly
valuation fee based on the differential.

Signed

Tom Schwerin"

Weare in the process of determining how serious this project may be and developing a response to Mr.
Schwerin identifying Colorado's opposition to such a scheme.

CRRP Coordinated Facilities Study: The Executive Committee for the Coordinated Facilities Study
being undertaken as a component ofthe Upper Colorado Endangered Fish Recover Program (CRRP)
met on March 6 to put the finishing touches on the draft report. The Executive Committee is also
preparing a recommendation to submit with the report to the recovery program. The report cannot be
completed until the Water Acquisition Committee has reviewed and accepted the report. Thus, this
project will take a few more months to complete.

CRRP Funding: Colorado made its first cost share payment pursuant to the Long-term Funding
Legislation for the CRRP and San Juan Recovery Programs when it transferred $1,359,200 to the
National Fish and Wildlife Federation in December 2002. A contract amendment was recently signed
with the Foundation that would transfer an additional $1,560,000 in cost share funds. In addition, the
Management Committee for the CRRP agreed to allow Colorado a credit of $150,000 towards its cost
share obligation for the use of storage space at Highline Reservoir and to also provide the Colorado
Division of Parks an additional $172,500 for a water quality at the facility.

Ruedi Reservoir Contract Negotiations: CWCB staffis representing Colorado in contract
negotiations with Reclamation and the USFWS to develop a contract that would deliver 10,825 acre-
feet of water per year through 2012 to benefit endangered fish and critical habitat in the Colorado
mainstem. The third contract negotiating session was held on Feb. 28 in Glenwood Springs. We
continue to make good progress on the contract now that cost increase issues with other contractors
have been addressed. The cost issue was resolved with Reclamation and the Service agreeing to report
the capital costs in the Recovery Program documents and the Recovery Program covering the
associated annual operation and maintenance costs. The last significant issue deals with shortage
sharing provisions. This contract is one of the major commitments made in the Programmatic
Biological Opinion for the 15-mile reach. The Board will have to approve the contract.

CRRP Highlights: The Upper Colorado River Recovery Program has published its "Program
Highlights 2002-2003" document for the Upper Colorado River and San Juan River Basin Recovery
Implementation Programs The paper is posted on the Internet at www.r6.fws.govlcrrip/dc.htm. Also
on this site in pdf form are letters of support and the list of Program Participants who attended the
briefing trip to Washington, D.C. on March 12-18.

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