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<br />1)\)0905 <br /> <br />development in Wyoming that Nebraska claims would injury wildlife <br />and other interests in Nebraska. Nebraska is now in the process of <br />developing its case in support of this request for modification. <br /> <br />...... .. " <br />Kecommenuallun <br />At a minimum, the draft program should be revised to acknowledge <br />the evolving character of the decree. <br /> <br />Lack of Goals and Objectives for the Water Management <br />Plan <br /> <br />Any Habitat Conservation Program intended to provide for <br />threatened and endangered species on the Central Platte River must <br />contain a well defined water management plan as well as a land <br />based plan. The current draft provides a land management plan that <br />establishes specific objectives for the amounts and types of habitat, <br />but the water management plan lacks this specificity. The draft <br />Program does contain a commendable and forward thinking List of <br />Potential Sources of Water (pages 12-13), but the water management <br />plan fails to establish even basic objectives for quantifying the <br />magnitude or the timing of flows for the Big Bend reach of the Platte, <br />Because water management is a vital component of the habitat <br />conservation and species recovery effort, this omission is very <br />troubling. <br /> <br />For more than a decade this issue has been central to every <br />major project and proposed development in the Platte .River Basin, <br />but it has been vigorously avoided in the PRMJS process. With the <br />long history of biological opinions, and administrative and court <br />proceedings, there is clearly a well founded basis in the record for <br />establishing a set of recommendations. For nearly ten years the <br />various committees and work groups involved in the PRMJS have <br />avoided adopting a set of objectives for water management. Even in <br />the absence of a coordinated effort there will be future biological <br />opinions and court proceedings that will have to address this issue. <br />Avoiding the question in this document will not advance the PRMJS <br />process nor contribute to viable solutions regarding endangered <br />species. <br /> <br />Page 5 July 30, 1993 <br />National Audubon Society- Comments on: <br />PR1\lJS-l\tIA WG IS Draft IIPlaUe River Habitat Conservation !)rogral11." <br />