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<br />~r. . -.,f <br /> <br />. . . <br />12. How will water development In the upper C<Jlorado RIver BasIn be affected by thIs program? <br />p . <br /> <br />. <br />1be purpose of the Recovery Program is recover the fish while allowing water development to proceed in !he upper <br />Colorado River Basin. The Recovery Program provides an agreed-upon process for conduaing consultations on <br />new water projects in accordance with Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act According to Section 7, federal <br />agencies shall /lOt take any action that is likely to jeopardize !he continued existence of threaten and endangered <br />species. <br /> <br />Under !he Recovery Program. !he impacts caused by new water depletions or reductions in river flows will be offset <br />by a one-time contribution of $10 per acre-foot of a project's average annual net depletion. (This figure is adjusted <br />annually for inflation; for fiscal year 1991, it is $10.91.) 1be U.S. FIsh and Wildlife Service implements this on a <br />case-by-case basis depending on whether progress in implementing the Recovery Program. especially acquiring and <br />protecting in-stream flows under state law. has been sufficient to offset depletion impacts of a proposed project. <br />Since 1988, this process has been used successfully on more than 30 water projects in Colorado. Wyoming and <br />Utah. As a result, more than $40.000 has been geneIated to fund recovery activities for !he fish. <br /> <br />1be Recovery Program contains no specific provisions for offsetting direct (non-depletion) impacts of water <br />projects constructed in habitat occupied by endangered fish. This includes impacts caused by habitat alteration, <br />construction, blockage of migration routes. convening occupied river habitat into a reservoir and temperatUre <br />modifications caused by reservoir releases. Whenever possible, !he FIsh and Wildlife Service will suggest <br />"reasonable and prudent alternatives" to offset these types of direct project impacts. But water projects that would <br />cause direct impacts to cenaln reaches of the Green. Colorado. White and Yampa rivers identified in !he Recovery <br />Program as "extremely imponant to the protection and recovery of the fish" would likely result in a situation for <br />which no reasonable or prudent alternatives exist. <br /> <br />13. How will you know when the flsh are recovered? <br /> <br />The Recovery Program calls for "self-sustaining" populations of fish and natural habitat to suppon them. Members <br />of the Recovery Program are developing quantified goals for each species. Because the bonytail chub is so rare. the <br />immediate goal for this fish species is to prevent extinction. <br /> <br />000964 <br /> <br />5 <br />