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3 N. (J~ CJl -.J Boulder Canyon Project Adjustment Act (54 Stat. 774; 43 U.S.C. 618a), the Colorado River Storage Project Act (70 Stat. 105; 43 U.S.C. 620), or the Colorado River Basin Project Act (82 Stat. 885; 43 U.S.C. 1501). Water Quality Although a number of water quality related legislative actions have been taken on the State and Federal levels, four Federal acts are of special significance to the Colorado River Basin (Basin)-the Water Quality Act of 1965 and related amendments, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (Public Law 92-500), the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act of 1974 as amended, and the Clean Water Act of 1977 as amended. Also central to water quality issues are agreements with Mexico on Colorado River System waters entering that country. The Water Quality Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-234) amended the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and established a Federal Water Pollution Control Administration (now Environmental Protection Agency [EPA]). Among other provisions, it required States to adopt water quality criteria for interstate waters inside their boundaries, The seven Basin States initially developed water quality standards that did not include numeric salinity criteria for the Colorado River primarily because of technical constraints. In 1972, the Basin States agreed to a policy that called for the maintenance of salinity concentrations in the Lower Colorado River System at or below existing levels, while the Upper Basin States continued to develop their compact-apportioned waters. The Basin States suggested that Reclamation should have primary responsibility for investigating, planning, and implementing the proposed Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program. The enactment of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 affected salinity control in that the legislation was interpreted by EPA to require numerical standards for salinity in the Colorado River. In response, the Basin States . founded the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum (Forum) to develop water quality standards including numeric salinity criteria and a basinwide plan of implementation for salinity control. The Basin States held public meetings on the proposed standards as required by the enacting legislation. The Forum recommended that the individual Basin States adopt the report, Water Quality Standards for Salinity Including Numeric Criteria and Plan of Implementation for Salinity Control, Colorado River System. The proposed water quality standard called for maintenance of flow-weighted average total dissolved solids concentrations of 723 milligrams per liter (mg/L) below Hoover Dam, 747 mg/L below Parker Dam, and 879 mg/L at Imperial Dam. Included in the plan of implementation were four salinity control units and possibly additional units, the application of effluent limitations, the use of saline water whenever practicable, and future studies. The standards are to be reviewed at 3-year intervals. All of the Basin States adopted the 1975 Forum recoII111lended standards. The Environmental Protection Agency approved the standards. The Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act of 1974 (Salinity Control Act) (Public Law 93-320) provided the means to comply with United States obligations to Mexico which included, as a major feature, a desalting plant and brine discharge canal. These facilities will enable the United States to deliver water to Mexico having an average salinity no greater than 115 parts per million (ppm) +/- 30 ppm (United States count)