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<br />OOOG2~ <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />BLM Wilderness Study Areas - Water Rights Report <br />Introduction <br /> <br />In 1976, the U.S. Congress required the BLM to conduct a wilderness review of <br />Colorado's public lands. Fifty-four roadless areas, totalling about 800,000 <br />acres, were designated as Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs). In January 1991, after <br />detailed study and substantial public involvement, BLM recommended 22 of the <br />original 54 areas, totalling 431,000 acres, for wilderness designation. <br />Currently, BLM's recommendations are under consideration by congress for <br />designation as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. <br /> <br />Congressional decisions about wilderness designation will require information <br />about water use practices on each stream within the wilderness study areas. This <br />information will be used to determine whether the exercise of any water rights <br />would be affected by wilderness designation. Detailsd information about each <br />stream system is required because water use practices surrounding the wilderness <br />study areas are extremely diverse. Some WSAs are headwaters areas with no water <br />diversions in the vicinity. other WSAs are located midstream on large river <br />systems which support hundreds of upstream water rights. The purpose of this <br />report is to objectively and accurately summarize this very large body of <br />information and present in terms undsrstandable to the informed citizen. <br /> <br />This report provides the following types of information: <br /> <br />. Location Within Watersheds - The report identifies whether the WSA is located <br />in the headwaters or midstream of each watershed which contains WSA acreage. <br /> <br />. Water-Dependent Wilderness Value. - The report summarizes species, ecological <br />processes, and human activities within the WSA which are dependent on water <br />sources. These sources include streamflows, lakes, ponds, springs, wells, and <br />wetlands. <br /> <br />. Water v... - The report summarizes human uses of water in the vicinity of each <br />WSA. These use range from supporting industrial facilities to watering <br />livestock. <br /> <br />. Streaa Hydrology - For streams which support both wilderness values and water <br />diversions, the report provides information on typical streamflow patterns. <br /> <br />. Water Rights - The report lists water rights which are located upstream and <br />downstream of each WSA, as well as water rights located within each WSA. For <br />streams with very large numbers of water rights, a summary of water rights is <br />provided in lieu of a complete listing. In cases where exercise of water rights <br />significantly affects streamflow levels, water availability, administration of <br />water right priorities, and diversion patterns are analyzed. <br /> <br />. Land OWner.hip - Private land ownership within and upstream of the WSA is <br />provided to help assess the potential for future water development in the <br />vicinity. <br /> <br />When using the information in this report, the reader should be aware of the <br />following assumptions and limitations: <br /> <br />. Recommendations for Water Manag_ent - This report makes no BLM recommendations <br />about how water in potential wilderness areas should be protected or managed. <br />Rather, the report provides objective and accurate information for any water- <br />oriented wilderness discussions which occur between interested parties. Should <br />wilderness negotiations produce draft legislation which considers different <br />wilderness boundaries, or consider other areas for wilderness designation, BLM <br />will augment this study to address those areas. <br /> <br />1 <br />