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<br />, <br /> <br />U ., 1- '. 7 <br />'u :ltl <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Coordination Committee urges the Service, consistent with the applicable regulations and <br />policies, to address the section 7 consultation needs of the tribes. Moreover, the Coordination <br />Committee recognizes that the Department of the Interior intends to use its authority to the fullest <br />extent possible to preserve and protect the water resources of the tribes in the Basin. <br /> <br />3.0 Long Range Plan <br /> <br />The Program's initial Long Range Plan (LRP) was necessarily focused on the approximate seven- <br />year research period as defined in the Service's October 25, 1991 Animas-La Plata biological <br />opinion issued to the Bureau of Reclamation. The LRP defined the principal Program actions <br />scheduled for completion through 1997. The efforts during the research period did not include <br />implementation of specific, on- the-ground recovery actions that would directly benefit <br />endangered fish or their habitat. Now that the initial research period has concluded, the Program's <br />Biology Committee is in the process of identifYing and prioritizing all foreseeable actions <br />determined to be necessary to achieve recovery of endangered fish and their habitats in the Basin, <br />including projects requiring capital construction funds, and is developing an updated LRP. The <br />Coordination Committee will review the recommendations of the Biology Committee and adopt <br />an updated LRP, incorporating capital, monitoring, and research projects as appropriate. The <br />LRP, as amended and updated annually, will be the basis for formulating annual budgets, making <br />funding requests to Congress and state legislatures for the Program, and provision of funding by <br />Western Area Power Administration from power revenues pursuant to P.L. 106-392. The LRP <br />will be reviewed annually by the Program and modified as needed to reflect new information and <br />actions needed to achieve recovery while continuing with water development. Additionally, <br />amendments to the LRP will reflect available funding and changes in priorities for <br />implementation of recovery actions. Any actions proposed in the LRP will be in compliance with <br />the ESA. <br /> <br />4.0 Incidental Take <br /> <br />Section 9 of the ESA and federal regulation pursuant to section 4( d) of the ESA prohibit the take <br />of endangered and threatened fish and wildlife species, without a special exemption. Take of <br />listed fish and wildlife species is defined as to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, <br />capture or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct. Harm is further defined by the <br />Service to include significant habitat modification or degradation that results in death or injury to <br />these species by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns including breeding, feeding, <br />or sheltering. Harass is defined by the Service as intentional or negligent actions that create the <br />likelihood of injury to these species to such an extent as to significantly disrupt normal behavior <br />patterns which include, but are not limited to breeding, feeding or sheltering. Incidental take is <br />defined as take that results from, but is not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful <br />activity. <br /> <br />Incidental take statements contained in biological opinions exempt federal action agencies and <br />sponsors of water development and water management activities (project sponsors) from the <br />ESA's section 9 prohibitions so long as they are in compliance with any reasonable and prudent <br /> <br />2 <br />