[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 6, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35957-35961]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-14207]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation


Flaming Gorge Dam, Colorado River Storage Project, Utah

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a draft environmental impact 
statement and announcement of public scoping meetings.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), the federal agency 
with administrative and regulatory authority over Flaming Gorge Dam, 
intends to prepare a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) 
pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
of 1969 (NEPA), as amended, 42 United States Code (U.S.C.) 4332. The 
EIS will describe the effects of operating Flaming Gorge Dam to achieve 
the flows recommended by the Recovery Implementation Program for 
Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River Basin (Recovery 
Program), and comply with section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. The 
purpose of the proposed action is to protect and assist in the recovery 
of the populations and designated critical habitat of the four 
endangered fishes [razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus), Colorado 
pikeminnow (Ptychocheilus lucius), humpback chub (Gila cypha), and 
bonytail (Gila elegans)] that are found in the Green and Colorado River 
Basins, so that along with other activities in the Recovery 
Implementation Program Recovery Action Plan (Recovery Action Plan), the 
fish no longer require protection under the Endangered Species Act, 
while continuing the other authorized purposes of the Flaming Gorge 
Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project.

DATES AND ADDRESSES: Public scoping meetings will be held in mid-July 
in Salt Lake City, Vernal, and Fort Duchesne, Utah; Grand Junction, 
Colorado; and Rock Springs, Wyoming, to solicit public input regarding 
relevant environmental issues that should be addressed in the EIS. The 
schedule of scoping meetings is as follows:
     July 11, 2000, 6-9 p.m., Wyndham Hotel, 215 West South 
Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah.
     July 12, 2000, 6-9 p.m., Rock Springs Holiday Inn, 1675 
Sunset Drive (I-80 Exit 102), Rock Springs, Wyoming.
     July 13, 2000, 6-9 p.m., Adam's Mark Hotel, 743 Horizon 
Drive (I-70 Exit 31), Grand Junction, Colorado.
     July 18, 2000, 6-9 p.m., Western Park Convention Center, 
300 East 200 South, Vernal, Utah.

[[Page 35958]]

     July 19, 2000, 6-9 p.m., Ute Tribal Headquarters, 988 
South, 7500 East, Fort Duchesne, Utah.
    Each scoping meeting will begin with a one-hour open house where 
the public can view exhibits, informally discuss issues, and ask 
questions of staff and managers. The open house will be followed by a 
more formal scoping hearing in which each participant will be given 
time to make official comments. The comments will be formally recorded. 
Speakers are encouraged to provide written versions of their oral 
comments, and any other additional written materials, for the record. 
Comments should focus on the issues relevant to the proposed action.
    Comments may also be sent directly to Mr. Kerry Schwartz at the 
Bureau of Reclamation's Provo Area Office in Provo, Utah. Written 
comments should be received no later than September 5, 2000, to be most 
effectively considered.
    Those not desiring to submit comments or suggestions at this time, 
but who would like to receive a copy of the draft EIS, should write to 
Mr. Kerry Schwartz. When the EIS is complete, its availability will be 
announced in the Federal Register, in the local news media, and through 
direct contact with interested parties. Comments will be solicited on 
the document.
    Our practice is to make comments, including names and home 
addresses of respondents, available for public review. Individual 
respondents may request that we withhold their home address from public 
disclosure, which we will honor to the extent allowable by law. There 
also may be circumstances in which we would withhold a respondent's 
identity from public disclosure, as allowable by law. If you wish us to 
withhold your name and/or address, you must state this prominently at 
the beginning of your comment. We will make all submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, available for public disclosure in their entirety.
    The Bureau of Reclamation ensures meeting accessibility to persons 
with disabilities. If you need special assistance, please contact Kate 
O'Hare of the Bureau of Reclamation's Provo Area Office at (801) 379-
1276.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Kerry Schwartz, Environmental 
Protection Specialist, Bureau of Reclamation, Provo Area Office, 302 
East 1860 South, Provo, Utah 84606-7317; telephone (801) 379-1167; 
faxogram (801) 379-1159; email: [email protected]. Information 
about the proposed action and the EIS process can also be found on 
Reclamation's web site at http://www.usbr.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:   

Background

    Flaming Gorge Dam, located on the Green River in northeastern Utah, 
is an authorized storage unit of the Colorado River Storage Project. 
The dam was authorized for construction by the Colorado River Storage 
Project Act of 1956 (Public Law 84-485). The underlying project 
purposes are defined by section 1 of the Act (43 U.S.C. 620) which 
authorized the Secretary of the Interior to ``construct, operate, and 
maintain'' Flaming Gorge Dam:

    . . . for the purposes, among others, of regulating the flow of 
the Colorado River, storing water for beneficial consumptive use, 
making it possible for the States of the Upper Basin to utilize, 
consistently with the provisions of the Colorado River Compact, the 
apportionments made to and among them in the Colorado River Compact 
and the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, respectively, providing 
for the reclamation of arid and semiarid land, for the control of 
floods, and for the generation of hydroelectric power, as an 
incident of the foregoing purposes. . . .

    In 1968, Congress enacted the Colorado River Basin Project Act (43 
U.S.C. 1501 et seq.). This Act provided for a program for further 
comprehensive development of Colorado River Basin water resources. 
Section 1501(a) states:

    This program is declared to be for the purposes, among others, 
of regulating the flow of the Colorado River; controlling floods; 
improving navigation; providing for the storage and delivery of the 
waters of the Colorado River for reclamation of lands, including 
supplemental water supplies, and for municipal, industrial, and 
other beneficial purposes; improving water quality; providing for 
basic public outdoor recreation facilities; improving conditions for 
fish and wildlife, and the generation and sale of electrical power 
as an incident of the foregoing purposes.

    In addition, the Criteria for Coordinated Long-Range Operation of 
Colorado River Reservoirs (including Flaming Gorge Dam) were mandated 
by section 1552 of the Colorado River Basin Project Act. Article I.(2) 
of the criteria requires that the Annual Operating Plan for Colorado 
River reservoirs ``. . . shall reflect appropriate consideration of the 
uses of the reservoirs for all purposes, including flood control, river 
regulation, beneficial consumptive uses, power production, water 
quality control, recreation, enhancement of fish and wildlife, and 
other environmental factors.''
    Construction of Flaming Gorge Dam was completed in 1964 and full 
operation of the dam and reservoir began in 1967. The powerplant began 
commercial operation in 1963. The Bureau of Reclamation operates the 
powerplant located at the base of the dam and the Western Area Power 
Administration (Western) markets the power.
    Reservoir releases through the powerplant currently range from 800 
to 4,700 cubic feet per second (cfs). Reclamation established interim 
operating criteria for Flaming Gorge Dam in September 1974. Under those 
interim criteria, Reclamation agreed to provide a minimum flow of 400 
cfs at all times. Continuous flows of 800 cfs were to be provided for 
the foreseeable future and under normal conditions. Continuous flows 
exceeding 800 cfs were to be provided when compatible with other 
Colorado River Storage Project reservoir operations. The 800 cfs and 
higher continuous flows were intended to enhance fishing, fish 
spawning, and boating. Maximum releases (approximately 4,700 cfs) are 
constrained by generator output and reservoir elevation. In addition, 
the dam has the capacity to release up to 4,000 cfs through two river 
outlet tubes that bypass the powerplant, and an additional 28,800 cfs 
can be released through the spillway. In 1979, Reclamation began 
releasing water through a multi-level outlet structure to provide 
warmer water for the downstream fishery.
    On February 27, 1980, the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) 
requested consultation under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act 
regarding projects under construction, and for the continued operation 
of all existing Reclamation projects in the Upper Colorado River Basin 
(including the Colorado River Storage Project). Formal consultation on 
operation of Flaming Gorge Dam was initiated on March 27, 1980. 
Reclamation is the lead agency for the consultation, with Western 
becoming a party to the consultation in 1991.
    Coincident with its request for consultation on the operation of 
Reclamation projects in the Upper Colorado River Basin, the Service 
issued a Final Biological Opinion for the Strawberry Aqueduct and 
Collection System, a major feature of the Central Utah Project, on 
February 27, 1980. The biological opinion determined that Strawberry 
Aqueduct Collection System flow depletions from the Duchesne and Green 
Rivers would likely jeopardize the continued existence of the 
endangered Colorado pikeminnow and

[[Page 35959]]

humpback chub. The biological opinion included a reasonable and prudent 
alternative (RPA) to avoid continued jeopardy to the endangered fish. 
The RPA was that Flaming Gorge Dam and Reservoir would compensate for 
those depletions and would be operated for the benefit of the 
endangered fish in conjunction with its other authorized purposes.
    The Service rendered other biological opinions for the Upalco, 
Jensen, and Uinta Units of the Central Utah Project during the late 
1970s and early 1980s that all relied on the operation of Flaming Gorge 
Dam to provide flows for endangered fishes. Recent biological opinions 
for the Duchesne River Basin, Narrows Project, Price-San Rafael 
Salinity Control Project, and other water development related projects 
in the Colorado River Basin also rely on the operation of Flaming Gorge 
Dam to provide flows for endangered fishes.
    However, because information related to the habitat requirements 
for the endangered fishes was unavailable, issuance of a final 
biological opinion by the Service for the operation of Flaming Gorge 
Dam was delayed until data collection and studies could be completed 
and used to recommend specific flows in the Green River downstream from 
the dam. Dam operations were initially evaluated for potential effects 
on endangered fishes from 1979 to 1984. Releases from the dam were 
modified from 1985 to 1991 to benefit endangered fishes and allow 
summer flow regimes in the Green River that could be tested and 
evaluated.
    In 1987, the Recovery Program was initiated. The goals of the 
Recovery Program are to protect and recover the endangered fish species 
of the Upper Colorado River Basin so that they no longer need 
protection by the Endangered Species Act. The states of Colorado, 
Wyoming and Utah; Reclamation, Western, and the Service; and 
environmental, water, and power user organizations are all participants 
in the Recovery Program. Under the Recovery Program, there are five key 
elements needed to recover the endangered fish species: (1) Habitat 
management; (2) habitat development/maintenance; (3) native fish 
stocking; (4) non-native species and sport fish management; and (5) 
research, data management, and monitoring. The operation of Flaming 
Gorge Dam is essential to successful implementation of two of these 
five elements: habitat management and habitat development/maintenance. 
Operation of the dam is one of many management actions described in the 
Recovery Action Plan. Implementation of all Recovery Action Plan 
activities are expected to recover the endangered fish.
    Using biological tests and evaluations conducted from 1979 to 1991, 
the Service issued a biological opinion on the operation of Flaming 
Gorge Dam on November 25, 1992. That opinion stated that the current 
(1992) operation of Flaming Gorge Dam was likely to jeopardize the 
continued existence of the endangered fish in the Green River. The 
opinion also described elements of an RPA that, in the opinion of the 
Service, would offset jeopardy to the endangered fishes. The RPA 
required: (1) Refinement of the operation of Flaming Gorge Dam so that 
flow and temperature regimes of the Green River more closely resembled 
historic conditions; (2) conducting a five-year research program 
including implementation of winter and spring research flows, beginning 
in 1992, to allow for potential refinement of flows for these seasons. 
The research program was to be based on the Five-Year Flaming Gorge 
Flow Recommendations Investigations which was approved by the Recovery 
Program. The research program was to provide for annual meetings to 
refine seasonal flows based on research findings and water year 
forecasts. Except for specific research flows during the five-year 
research program, year-round flows in the Green River were to resemble 
a natural hydrograph described under element 1 of the RPA; (3) 
determination of the feasibility and effects of releasing warmer water 
during the late spring/summer period and investigation of the 
feasibility of retrofitting river bypass tubes to include power 
generation, thereby facilitating higher spring releases; (4) legal 
protection of Green River flows from Flaming Gorge Dam to Lake Powell; 
and (5) initiation of discussions with the Service after conclusion of 
the five-year research program to examine further refinement of flows 
for the endangered Colorado River fish.
    The five-year research program concluded in 1996. The Recovery 
Program funded a synthesis report of the research and development of 
the flow recommendations. The synthesis report and flow recommendations 
provide the basis for Reclamation's proposed action and for additional 
Section 7 consultation among Reclamation, Western, and the Service. 
Other threatened and endangered species that may be affected by 
implementation of the flow recommendations will be included in the 
discussions with the Service.

Purpose and Need for Action

    The purpose of the proposed action is to protect and assist in the 
recovery of the populations and designated critical habitat of the four 
endangered fishes, while maintaining the other authorized purposes of 
the Flaming Gorge Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project. The 
proposed action is needed because:
    1. The populations and critical habitat of endangered fishes have 
been adversely affected or modified by, among other things, operation 
of Flaming Gorge Dam.
    2. Reclamation is required to avoid jeopardizing the continued 
existence of listed species, or destruction or adverse modifications to 
designated critical habitat, due to operation of Flaming Gorge Dam, to 
the extent possible, in conjunction with other purposes of the Flaming 
Gorge Unit (dam and reservoir).
    3. All federal agencies are required to utilize their authorities 
in furtherance of the purposes of the Endangered Species Act by 
carrying out programs for the conservation of listed threatened and 
endangered species.
    4. Operation of Flaming Gorge Dam is a key element of the Recovery 
Program's objectives of recovering the fish by offsetting the adverse 
effects of flow depletions from the Green River, and allowing water 
development in the Upper Colorado River Basin.
    5. Flaming Gorge Dam is the primary water storage and delivery 
facility on the Green River upstream from the confluence with the 
Colorado River capable of providing sufficient flow management to allow 
opportunities to conserve endangered fish populations and protect 
critical habitat.
    6. Operation of Flaming Gorge Dam serves as a reasonable and 
prudent alternative, as defined by the Endangered Species Act, to 
offset jeopardy to endangered fish and their critical habitat for 
numerous other existing or proposed water development projects in the 
Upper Colorado River Basin.

Proposed Action

    Reclamation proposes to take action to protect and assist in the 
recovery of the four endangered fishes and designated critical habitat 
by modifying operations of Flaming Gorge Dam, to the extent possible, 
to achieve the recommended flows in the Green River, while continuing 
the other authorized purposes of the Colorado River Storage Project. 
Reclamation would implement the proposed action by modifying the 
operations decision process for Flaming Gorge Dam to provide water 
releases of sufficient magnitude and with the

[[Page 35960]]

proper timing and duration considered necessary to assist in the 
recovery of endangered fish and their designated critical habitat, 
while maintaining the other authorized purposes of the Flaming Gorge 
Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project.
    The following table summarizes the final flow recommendation for 
the Green River described in the April 2000 Flow Recommendations for 
Endangered Fishes in the Green River Downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam 
report prepared by the Recovery Program. The flow recommendations are 
specific to three defined reaches of the Green River (from Flaming 
Gorge Dam to the Colorado River confluence), the period of the year 
(spring and summer through winter), and five annual hydrologic 
conditions (wet to dry), with base flows higher in wet years than in 
drier years.

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Scope of Analysis

    The purpose of this EIS is not to identify and evaluate 
alternatives that maximize all natural resources upstream and 
downstream from Flaming Gorge Dam. The purpose of this EIS is to 
evaluate the impacts of implementing the recommended flows to protect 
and assist in the recovery of the populations and designated critical 
habitat of the four endangered fishes living in the Green River 
downstream from Flaming Gorge Dam.
    The proposed scope of the analysis for this EIS will focus on 
responding to the following analysis question:

    If Reclamation operates Flaming Gorge Dam to achieve the flow 
recommendations needed to protect and assist in the recovery of the 
endangered fishes and their critical habitat in the Green River, 
then the effect(s) on other relevant resources/issues, both 
downstream and upstream from the dam, would be . . .

    Scoping conducted for the EIS will be used to identify issues 
associated with the proposed action and its purpose and need. Scoping 
will also be used to identify other significant resources that may be 
affected, identify the interested parties or parties affected by the 
proposed action, and assist Reclamation in developing reasonable 
alternatives that are consistent with the intent of the flow 
recommendations. The geographic scope of the EIS (how far upstream/
downstream from the dam can impacts

[[Page 35961]]

be meaningfully evaluated) has not yet been determined. Reclamation 
invites comments suggesting a reasonable geographic scope of analysis 
for the EIS.
    As a result of previous discussions with interested parties and 
earlier scoping activities, Reclamation has identified the following 
resources or issues as potentially relevant and ones that should be 
addressed in the EIS: threatened and endangered species, wetland and 
riparian resources, aquatic resources, water quality, water supply, 
recreation activities and facilities, cultural resources, power 
generation, damage to human improvements, operation and maintenance of 
the dam, sediment transport, vectors such as mosquitoes, social and 
economic effects, and Indian trust assets. Other relevant issues may be 
identified as a result of the scoping process associated with 
completion of this EIS.

    Dated: May 31, 2000.
Charles A. Calhoun,
Regional Director, Upper Colorado Region.
[FR Doc. 00-14207 Filed 6-5-00; 8:45 am]
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