BOARD01872

• Board Meeting Date: 9/27/1999
• Description: Colorado River Basin Issues - Interior Department's Indian Water Rights Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

STATE SERVICES BUILDING
1525 Shennan Street - 5th Floor
Denver, Colorado 80203
Phone [phone]
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KEN SALAZAR'
Attorney General

BARBARA MCDoNNELL
Chief Deputy Attorney General

MICHAEL E. MCLACHLAN
Solicitor General

STATE OF COLORADO
DEPARTMENT OF LAW

OFFICE OFTHE ATTORNEY GENERAL

September 27, 1999

CONFIDENTIAL

MEMORANDUM

PRIVILEGED ATTORNEY-CLIENT MEMORANDUM NOT
TO BE PLACED IN CENTRAL FILES. ANY CIRCULATION
OR DISTRIBUTION TO PERSONS OUTSIDE THE EMPLOY
OF THE CLIENT MA Y WAIVE THE PRIVILEGE.

TO: Colorado Water Conservation Board
FROM: Wendy Weiss W~

RE: Draft Report of the Working Group on the Endangered Species Act and Indian Water
Rights

DRAFT REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS

The draft report sets forth three broad public policy goals. These are:

1. Implementation of the Endangered Species Act which respects the seniority of Indian
water rights.

2, Implementation of the Endangered Species Act which does not prevent the completion of
activities authorized by Congress for the purpose of enabling Tribes to exercise their water
rights, while avoiding jeopardy to listed species and adverse modification of critiCal habitat.

3. Development ofIndian water resources consistent with the promotion ofhealthy
watersheds upon which sensitive species (including candidate, proposed and listed species)
depend.

The draft report then lists five specific objectives, each followed by more specific
recommendations. I summarize these below,

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