WSP01139 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Unit~ Under the New PrQernm w::a. I-'- l- I-' San Juan River-Hammonil (Reclamation anilllSDA ): The San Juan River Unit drainage contributes approximately one million tons of salt annually to the Colorado River Basin. In the Hammond area, Reclamation has completed a planning report/BIS. The recommended plan proposes to line all unlined sections of the Hammond Project Irrigation system. The estimated salt load reduction would be 27,700 tons/yr. NRCS completed an investigation in 1992 to explore the potential for a USDA program in the San Juan River Basin in the Hammond area. Investigations indicated that a USDA on-farm program is not cost-effective in this area. Price-San Rq,fael River.~ (Reclamation anilllSDAJ: An estimated 430,000 tons of salt annually reaches the Colorado River from these two river basins. The Price and San Rafael rivers, tributaries of the Green River, are 120 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. The final planning report/BIS was completed and issued in December 1993. The preferred plan would reduce salt loading to the Colorado River by an estimated 161,000 tons per year. Other units that have not been fully investigated but have some potential under the new program include: San Juan-Hogback (USBR/USDA); Uinta Basin I (USBR); Olenwood Springs Desalinization (USBR); Sinbad Valley (USBR/BLM); Dirty Devil River (USBR); Grand Valley II Balance (USBR); and, Lower Gunnison North Fork (USBR). Bureau of Land Manallement The BLM is continuing the implementation of actions which will minimize salt discharge to the Colorado River system. To ensure Basin-wide technical consistency, appropriate watersheds are being ranked by federal and state interagency teams in order to establish relative salinity control priorities. These watershed rankings have been completed in Arizona, Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming, however, they have not yet been initiated in Nevada or New Mexico. Additionally, Resource Management Plans are being implemented through plans which focus on smaller geographic areas. These plans (often a multiple resource plan or allotment management plan) may prescribe management activities, land treatments, and/or structural projects for salinity control. For the past several Review periods, the Resource Management Planning process has been the primary mechanism for making BLM land use decisions, and it has also served as an important first step in BLM salinity control program implementation. Recently, BLM has placed more emphasis on resolving resource management issues and problems in full collaboration with other federal, state, Tribal, and local governments and agencies, as well as the general public. As a result of these developments, BLM's resource management decision-making process has become more participatory and collaborative. For example, through the active involvement of the citizen- owners of the eight Resource Advisory Councils (RAe) in the Colorado River Basin, the development of shared state/regional standards and guidelines for rangeland health will occur. Analysis and assessment activities in support of resource planning will be ongoing, and will focus on issues like ecological health, restoring resources at risk, sustaining development, and 4-6