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<br />iJP11TII TATES DEPARTMEIV'7' OF TILE : .'ERIOR <br />FISH AND WII.DLIFE SERVICE <br />ECOLOGICAL SERVICES <br />We~ern Cobrado Otfioe <br />529 25'h Roed, Suile B-113 <br />Grand ]unction, CO SISOSfi199 <br />Phone: (303) 243-2778 FAX (303) 245-69)t3 ._ <br />QV REPLY REFER 7'O: <br />ES/CD:BLM-Uncompahgre Basin RA <br />~S 65412 GJ <br />/% ~Q,,~v~" ~ April 14, 1993 <br />\l~~/W emorandum <br />pp~~p}~pl~(E ~s. <br />AMERf(A~~ <br />rri~ <br />.~.w~ <br />~ ^ <br />b rya <br />dtECEIVE:1 <br />APR ] G 1y;;.; <br />lJrco©Q:J<ge ra,~ <br />Ara <br />V " To: Area Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Uncompahgre Basin <br />Resource Area, Montrose, Colorado <br />From: Assistant Colorado State Supervisor, Fish and Wildlife Service, <br />Ecological Services, Grand Junction, Colorado <br />Subject: Mountain Coal Company Coal Lease Application <br />This responds to your April 1, 1993, request for a list of species that may <br />occur within the area of influence of the proposal by Mountain Coal Company to <br />develop a coal lease on Federal mineral estates located in Delta and Gunnison <br />counties, Colorado. The list of federally listed and candidate species you <br />have provided is nearly identical to the list we recently provided to the <br />Paonia Ranger District for a similar proposal by Mountain Coal Company on <br />Forest Service lands. We are providing the following list of federally listed <br />and candidate species, some biological background for each of the species, and <br />several issues regarding compliance with the Endangered Species Act. <br />Federally Listed Soecies <br />Colorado squawfish Ptvchocheilus Lucius <br />Humpback chub Gila cypha <br />Bonytail chub ila elegans <br />Razorback sucker ranch exanus <br />Bald eagle Haliaeetus leucoceohalus <br />None of the above federally listed fish species occur within the project area. <br />However, the Fish and Wildlife Service believes that major causes for the <br />decline of the Colorado squawfish, humpback chub, bonytail chub, and razorback <br />sucker, include the effect of impoundments and associated water depletion from <br />the Colorado River and its tributaries. Consequently, the water use for all <br />activities associated with the project should be identified, and evaluated to <br />determine whether such a depletion will occur. Any individual or combination <br />of water uses associated with the coal exploration proposal causing a net <br />depletion of water from the upper Colorado River basin will be considered by <br />the Service a negative impact to the federally listed fish. With such a <br />finding, the Service will expect the forest Service to conclude "may affect' <br />to these fish species, and request formal consultation with this office, as <br />required by the Endangered Species Act. Your calculation of the net depletion <br />should consider the entire life of the project, and be reported as the average <br />annual depletion in acre-feet. <br />