Laserfiche WebLink
<br />1997 ANNUAL REPORT <br /> <br />o <br />...] <br /><.0 <br />W <br /> <br />stations within the Colorado River Basin be given the highest priority. The Council asks that it be <br />advised of any proposed cutbacks in gaging on the Colorado River as many ofthe gages are essential <br />to determine if salinity control measures are effective and to predict future salinity control needs. <br /> <br />Department of Agriculture <br /> <br />In the past, the Department of Agriculture's on-farm program has had some of the most cost <br />effective salinity control projects. The plan of implementation identified in the 1996 Review places <br />considerable reliance upon the continuation of the USDA program. The Council is concerned that <br />by including the USDA's salinity control program in the much broader Environmental Quality <br />Incentives Program (EQIP), USDA's commitment to its Colorado River salinity control efforts has <br />dwindled. Because of the importance of the on-farm salinity control program to the entire Colorado <br />River Basin, the Council strongly recommends that the Colorado River Basin be designated a <br />national priority area and that as a national priority area sufficient funding be provided to <br />maintain USDA's efforts in the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Program (CRBSCP) as <br />described in the 1996 Review. This recommendation was made last year and USDA has not acted. <br />Because technical assistance, education, and monitoring and evaluation are critical to the success of <br />USDA's program, the Council recommends that funding for these activities be provided in addition <br />to the funds for cost sharing made available under the EQIP. The Administration seems to vacillate <br />on this issue to the detriment of the program. <br /> <br />The Council also finds that while USDA purports to be meeting its statutory obligations to <br />implement the CRBSCP through EQIP, the "locally led" process of funding initiatives developed <br />at the grassroots level on a state by state basis has failed to evaluate or adequately recognize the <br />downstream benefits of the basin-wide CRBSCP. The Council does not believe USDA can meet <br />its obligations as intended by Congress until funding allocations properly consider all program <br />purposes and benefits. The Council requests a response addressing how USDA intends to meet <br />its obligations to continue its implementation of the CRBSCP through EQIP. <br /> <br />COLORADO RIVER BASIN SALINITY CONTROL ADVISORY COUNCIL <br /> <br />6 <br /> <br />,; <br />