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Scoping Summary Report Fundamental questions, issues and themes are outlined below, along with Reclamation's response to these questions and issues. 2.4.2.1 Issues Related to the Proposed Actioll Compollet.ts Generat Issues 1, Comlllellt: The proposed water supply program should provide flexibility to accommodate future shifts in water policy and consideration of in-stream and other public interest beneficial uses in long-term water resource plaruling. Possible tools include water transfers and exchanges, conservation, pricing, irrigation efficiencies, operational flexibility, market-based incentives, water acquisition, conjunctive use, land fallowing, and wastewater reclamation and recycling, Reclamation's Response: The IA provides the mechanism to implement the QSA. A component of the QSA is the quantification of lID's and CVWD's Colorado River water allocations, Tllis quantification of lID and CVWD Colorado River water allocations under the QSA and IA would provide a maximum diversion amount for these agencies pursuant to Priority 3a under the Seven-Party Agreement and allow the IID/SDCWA water transfer to proceed. It further provides the basis for distributing supplies made available by specific conservation measures and projects, such as the All-American and Coachella Canal lining projects. By establishing the baseline from which shifts in water use can be carried out, tile IA does provide flexibility to consider other water resource management tools such as those mentioned above. The lA is limited to water uses in California, and tllerefore would not provide a basis for similar types of exchanges withjn Arizona or Nevada. Content of tile ElS 1. COlli lIIe/l t: The EIS should include an expanded project area to incorporate the agricultural valleys of Southern California, the Salton Sea, Southern California coastal areas and the Colorado River Delta. The EIS should provide a "road map" identifying the relationship of the proposed action to all major proposed and related Federal and State actions in the Lower Basin of the Colorado River. Reclalllation's Respollse: The California parties to the QSA are preparing a Program ElR for the QSA. The ElS will incorporate the ElR evaluation of impacts in the water service areas of CVWD, lID, MWD and SDCW A, and tile impacts to the Salton Sea. The EIS will also include an evaluation of any potential transboundary impacts. Reclamation agrees that it is important to understand how the proposed Federal actions relate to other activities and projects; the EIS will provide a "road map" describing the nature of the relationship among these activities/ projects. 2. COlllllle/lt: The EIS should describe and address impacts to the Colorado River corridor, and its associated biological resources, including the following: changes in water elevation, including groundwater levels; changes in sediment transport functions both on the main channel and associated backwaters, and into Mexico; need for additional lA, lOP alld Related Federal Actions EIS 7