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~~1'"{~"" 'Y"...J..;... J :..... J .. relevant studies underway by the National Park Service have been completed and; made available forcpublic review and comment. The NPS studies and their results should be published in a draft supplement to the final EIS and made available for public review and comment to all the parties who submitted comments on the draft EIS for'the AB Lateral Project." Trout Unlimited als.o recommended delaying a decision on the Facility until NPS studies were completed, and expressed concerns on the need for the Facility and on adverse impacts on the Gunnison River fishery. The Colorado Environmental Coalition , recommended that the ROD be delayed until NPS studies were completed and, that a supplementtb the FEISshould be prepared addressing th~se studies. The Sierra ClUb Legal Def,ense Fund also expressed a similar recommendation to delay the ROD. They also asserted several legal challenges to the FEIS and the process Reclamation used to prepare the NEPA documents and to select alternatives. VI. ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENTS AND MONITORING It is recognized that the reSUlting agreement between Reclamation and the NPS for delivery of water to the BLCA may reduce the water available to the Facility. It is also recognized that if the NPS pursues the quantification of its reserved right, that right will be 'senior to the water rights secured by the Sponsors in 1982 and 1987 and could affect the Facility's water supply. However, the NPS cannot control the quantity it will ultimately secure for its reserved right since the NPS's quantification claim must be Cadjudicated in the Colorado courts and will be subject to challenge by other parties to the adjUdication. Furthermore, the UVWUA has a senior 1913 water right that it could assert a~ the basis for diversions for the Facility, although its exclusive use for hydropower generation is questionable. To resolve these issues, the Sponsors have committed tohbnor an adjudicated Federal reserve water ,right for the BLCA. Likewise, Aspinall Unit water contracted to the BLCA could not be diverted through the, Gunnison Tunnel. Based upon these discussions and commitments, 'which avoid the risks and uncertainties of the NPS litigatirig the quantification of its reserved right, Reclamation concluded that the ROD should not be delayed further because BLCA resources can be protected and legislation affecting the Gunnison River can proceed. Field reviews of the Uncompahgre River were held with the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the EPA, and the COE to r~view the need for bank and wetland protection along the Uncompahgre River and to determine methods to reduce impacts. A Section 404 Permit application was submitted to the COE by the Sponsors and a public notice on the permit application was issued on August 1, 1991. ,Based on data contained in the FEIS, the EPA recommended that the , 8 ~ , -<~>~,~