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47 _. <br />area and no reintroduction program is planned for the project area. The remainder of this <br />document will pertain to the four federally listed Colorado River fishes. <br />CONSULTATION HISTORY <br />Early coordination on this project began between Rick Krueger, of my staff, and <br />Westwater Engineering (WWE) in July of 2008 with a discussion about the black-footed <br />ferret. Discussions between WWE and the Service also took place July 17, 2008; July <br />30, 2008; and August 14, 2008. <br />On January 21-22, 1988, the Secretary of the Department of the Interior; the Governors <br />of Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah; and the Administrator of the Western Area Power <br />Administration were cosigners of a Cooperative Agreement to implement the "Recovery <br />Implementation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River <br />Basin" (USFWS 1987). In 2001, the Recovery Program was extended until <br />September 30, 2013. An objective of the Recovery Program was to recover the listed <br />species while providing for new water development in the Upper Basin. <br />In order to further define and clarify processes outlined in sections 4.1.5, 4.1.6, and 5.3.4 <br />of the Recovery Program, a section 7 Agreement (Agreement) and a Recovery <br />Implementation Program Recovery Action Plan (RIPRAP) was developed (USFWS <br />1993). The Agreement establishes a framework for conducting all future section 7 <br />consultations on depletion impacts related to new projects and all impacts associated with <br />historic projects in the Upper Basin. Procedures outlined in the Agreement are used to <br />determine if sufficient progress is being accomplished in the recovery of the endangered <br />fishes to enable the Recovery Program to serve as a reasonable and prudent alternative <br />(RPA) to avoid jeopardy. The RIPRAP was finalized on October 15, 1993, and has been <br />reviewed and updated annually. <br />In accordance with the 1993 Agreement, the Service annually assesses progress of the <br />implementation of recovery actions to determine if progress toward recovery has been <br />sufficient for the Recovery Program to serve as a RPA for projects that deplete water <br />from the Colorado River. In the last review the Service determined that the Program has <br />made sufficient.progress to offset water depletions from individual projects up to 4,500 <br />acre-feet/year. Therefore, it is appropriate for the Recovery Program actions to serve as <br />Conservation Measures in the project description for projects up to 4,500 acre-feet/year. <br />After many years of successful implementation of the Recovery Program and Agreement, <br />Federal action agencies have come to anticipate Recovery Program activities and a <br />requirement of a financial contribution (for new depletions greater than 100 acre-feet) <br />toward these activities serving as RPAs that must be included in their project planning to <br />avoid jeopardy to listed species. Thus, the RPA has essentially become part of the <br />proposed action. The Recovery Program activities will now serve as conservation <br />measures within the proposed action and minimize adverse effects to listed species or <br />critical habitat. The following excerpts summarize portions of the Recovery Program <br />that address depletion impacts, section 7 consultation, and Project proponent <br />responsibilities: <br />2