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<br />BACKGROUND
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<br />Public Law 93-320, the "Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act of 1974," authorized
<br />construction, operation, and maintenance of certain works in the Colorado River Basin to control
<br />the salinity of water in the Colorado River available for use in the United States and Mexico.
<br />Section 204 of the Act established the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Advisory Council
<br />(Council). A Charter for the Council was originally approved by the Secretaries of the Interior
<br />and Agriculture and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency on February 6,
<br />1976, revised on June 22, 1976, and subsequently renewed in 1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986,
<br />1988, 1990, and 1992. The Council receives reports from the federal agencies involved in
<br />salinity control activities and makes recommendations in the Annual Report to those agencies
<br />on appropriate means of controlling the River's salinity.
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<br />The Council is comprised of up to three members, appointed by the respective Governor,
<br />from each of the seven Colorado River Basin states. The current membership is shown on
<br />Attachment A. D. Larry Anderson, Utah, serves as Chairman of the Council and C. Laurence
<br />Linser, Arizona, as Vice Chairman. Most of the members of the Advisory Council are also
<br />members of the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum (Forum), an organization created
<br />by the seven Colorado River Basin states. The Council and Forum are related in their activities
<br />but have different functions.
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<br />The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) Salinity Coordinator, Stanley Gappa, serves
<br />as staff for the Council. In addition, the permanent Work Group of the Colorado River Basin
<br />Salinity Control Forum continues to serve the Council and the Forum in the capacity of a
<br />technical review and study team. Ernest M. Weber, California, is Chairman of the Work
<br />Group. The Council is also assisted by the Forum's Executive Director, Jack Barnett.
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<br />The 1972 Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as interpreted by the Environmental
<br />Protection Agency (BPA), required setting numeric criteria for salinity for the Colorado River.
<br />To accomplish this requirement, the seven Colorado River Basin states in 1973 created the
<br />interstate group, the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum. The Forum developed water
<br />quality standards for salinity for the Colorado River, including numeric criteria, and a basin-
<br />wide plan of implementation. The plan consists of a number of salinity control measures to be
<br />implemented by state and federal agencies (salinity control projects constructed by the
<br />Departments of Agriculture and Interior are cost-shared with the program's non-federal partners,
<br />states, and local interests). The control measures are directed at both nonpoint and point sources
<br />of salt loading. In addition, the states have adopted, as part of the plan, policies on National
<br />Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits, saline water use, intercepted ground
<br />water, and fish hatcheries. These were adopted by the seven Basin states as part of their state
<br />standards and were approved by EPA. The permanent Work Group, under the authority of the
<br />Forum, is charged with making the necessary studies, providing technical advice, and keeping
<br />current with events and changes which will enable the Forum to make decisions on matters
<br />concerning the numeric criteria and the plan of implementation. Since the establishment of
<br />salinity standards in 1975, the Forum has conducted five triennial reviews in 1978, 1981, 1984,
<br />1987 and 1990, as required by Section 303(c) of the 1977 Water Quality Act, as amended.
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