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liJ WATER Court protects endangered fish, The Division 5 Water Court Sept. 2 issued two decrees for water rights to protect stream flows needed to recover four endangered fish speci,es in the Upper Colorado River basin. The in-stream flow protec- tions are part of the Recovery Program for Endangered Fishes of the Upper Colorado, developed by a partnership created in 1988 among the states of Colorado, Wyoming and Utah, sever- al federal agencies, environmental groups and water users. Partnership participants agreed on a plan to reestablish self- sustaining populations of four fish species - Colorado squaw- fish, razorback sucker, humpback chub and bony tail chub - found only in the Colorado River basin. The first of the two decrees issued to the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) was for a case filed in 1992. The decree assures that 581 cfs (cubic feet per second) ofreturn flows from the Orchard Mesa hydroelectric facility will remain in a segment of the Colorado River known as tile "15-Mile Reach" during the months of July, August and September. The decree for the second case, filed in 1994, protects 300 cfs of accretions within the 15-Mile Reach. Accretions are additions to the river from a variety of sources such as itriga- tion return flows and storm water. "The decrees issued on Sept. 2 demonstrate the CWCB' s commitment to meeting its obligations to the endangered fish recovery effort and represent a significant new development to our instream flow program," said Peter Evans, CWCB deputy director and Colorado representative to the Recovery Program's Management Committee. Appropriation and acquisition of water rights through Colorado's instream flow program to preserve native fish habi- tat are among the CWCB's major responsibilities. The partner- ship enables cities, irrigators and other water users to maintain existing water supplies and to develop new water projects that otherwise would have difficulty meeting federal Endangered Species Act requirements. Colorado's participation in the recovery program has enabled 120 water development projects to move forward with- out litigation or opposition by federal agencies. I !& I'. BOARDS & COMMISSIONS Colorado Ground Water Commission. Governor Roy Romer has appointed Ernest L. Mikita, Eugene A. Bauerle and Richard F Huwa to the Colorado Ground Water Commission. All three members represet;lt agricultural water users of the state. Mikita replaces Theodore R. Schubert who retired after serving on the commission for 12 years. Mikita is a fanner, rancher and dairyman from the Calhan area of the Upper Big Sandy Designated Ground Water Basin. Bauerle and Huwa are reappointed for their second, four- year terms. Bauerle is a resident agriculturist from the Northern High Plains Designated Ground Water Basin. Huwa is a resi- dent agriculturist from the Lost Creek Designated Ground Water Basin. The commission is responsible for administration of ground water within the boundaries of the designated basins which include the Northern and Southern High Plains, Kiowa-Bijou, Lost Creek, Camp Creek, Upper Black squirrel, Upper Big Sandy and Upper Crow Creek. Apart from alluvial aquifers, these basins include the eastern half of the Denver Basin bedrock aquifers and all of the Ogallala Aquifer. The next meeting of the commission will be at 9 a.m., Nov. 14, Centennial Building, 1313 Sherman St., Room 318, Denver. For information, call 303/866-3587. Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. Bruce Johnson, a real estate broker and farmer from Greeley, has been re-appointed to the OGCc. Jolmson is a Republican from the Fourth Congressional District with experience in agri- culture who is not employed by the oil and gas industry. Colorado Water Conservation Board. The CWCB elect- ed Patricia Wells as chair and Jolm A. C. "Allen" Davey as vice-chair at the its September meeting in Durango. Wells. who is general counsel for Denver Water and repre- sents the City and County of Denver on the CWCB, succeeds. Richard "Eric" Kuhn from the Colorado River drainage. Davey, a civil engineer from Del Norte, represents the Rio Grande River drainage. STATE PARKS &! Jack Placchl new Off-Highway Vehicle manager. Jack Placchi has been hired as Colorado State Parks' Off- Highway Vehicle (OHV) Program Manager. Placchi formerly worked for the U.S. Forest Service in Granby, where he managed the Grand Lake Shared Use Trail System, the Winter Park area mountain bike trail network, a large snowmobile grooming program and wilderness area trails. His new position, classified as a Planning/Grants Specialist II, is funded by vehicle registration fees paid by users of A TV s and trail motorcycles. The position was created at the request of OHV user groups. Mark Gershman directs Natural Areas program. Ecologist and natural resources planner Mark Gershman joined the Natural Areas program Sept. 8 as the new manager. Gershman formerly worked with the City of Boulder, environ- mental education schools, and the National Park Service. At Boulder, he worked as a ranger, then on a planning team for wetlands protection. He has conducted wetland inventories, developed natural resource management plans and provided environmental review for the city's open space program. The Natural Areas program identifies and protects the spe- cial places of the state. 3