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~ I ~ . r `- iii ;.! I. ~. II...iilit F C~_ r ,:`~ ="~- United States Department of the Tnteriur IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIi _ s .` ~• r~ V l l ((~1 ~. ~ ~ I'Itill .~{~~) ~YII I.r,I.I F'~. .)I:n,+lr. t: r,,.i„~...i ~.,.,,„ f014l:T t,F AViCF ,- ES-ti-RO-95-f OU1 GJ123 r~r ~ ,~ M; 65412 G.1 A ` July 23, 1996 Robert Storch, forest Supervisor Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, anA Gunnison National Forests 2250 Higt,way 50 Delta, Cr;loradu :1416 DCar Mr. $turCh r ,gtitt . ~,y'1m in accortlance with section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and the Interagency Cooperation Regulations (50 CFR 402`, 'he lish and Wildlife Service (Service) reviewed your .luly ]0, 1996, corr•espnndence regarding the impacts of the Mountain Coal Company Coal fxploratfon Project on endangered Colorado River fishes. The project rs located in 7. 13 S., R. 90 W., sections 21 and 22, Gunnison County, Coloradr. Pi„u~~tain Coal Company will use water for exploratory drilling at two CXp`.,raLlcr, holes identified as it and EE Twin. The proposed action will cause ai: averaq~ annual depletion of 0.14 acre-feet to the North Fork of the Gunnisor, ~:+,: 'n the Upper Colorado River Basin. A Recover-: :mplemrntation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Coloradr. Fiver Aasin (Recovery Program) was initiate<f on January 22, I9AA. fhc Rer...' ?rnyram was intended to he the reasonable and prudent alternative to avoio jeopardy to t.hc endangered fishes by depletions from the Upper Colorodc R'vor Basin. In order to further define and clarify the process fn the Recovery Program, a section agreement was implemented on October 15, 1993, by the Recovery Program participants. Incorporated into this agreement 1s a Recovery implementation Prnyram Recovery Action Plan (Plan) which identifies actions currently believed to be required to recover the endangered fishes in the most expeditious manner. Included in the Recovery Program was the requirement that a depletion fee would be paid to help support the Recovery Program. On March 5, 1995, the Service issund an intro-Service biological opinion determining that the depletion`er for del,let.ions of 100 acre-feet or less are no longer required because 'tip Recovery Prnqram has made sufficient progress to be the reasonable and I,rudent alternative to avoid the likelihood of jeopardy to the endangered fishes and to avu,d destruction or adverse modification of (heir critical -.. ci-- --~ i ,ti - ~ . t ~,:;