Rep. Boebert’s Bipartisan Bill to Protect Endangered Fish and Support 1,200 Colorado Water and Power Users Receives Hearing
Today, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert’s Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act advanced through the legislative process and received a hearing in the House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries.
Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (CO-03) said, “Today’s hearing means we are one step closer to recovering four endangered fish species and providing long-term security for 1,200 Colorado water and power users. My bill provides legal certainty for 2,500 water projects and ensure future water development in the Upper Colorado River Basin. These projects, including 1,200 in Colorado alone, provide water for local municipalities, tribes, major reservoirs, agricultural, ski areas, power generation facilities, and others that use more than 3.69 million acre-feet of water per year. I look forward to my bipartisan bill that has support in the Senate and from the administration being signed into law.”
Congresswoman Harriet Hageman (WY-AL) stated, “The Upper Colorado and San Juan River basin fish recovery programs have a proven legacy of recovering endangered fish species in the West, and their holistic stakeholder approach is a model for how governments, industries, and private organizations can partner together for meaningful change. I support Rep. Boebert’s reauthorization act for these programs that will continue to recover endangered and threatened fish species, provide greater stability for local water projects, and incorporate cost-sharing and in-kind funding measures to reduce the taxpayer’s burden. This is the kind of commonsense, cost-effective, impactful legislation that the American people deserve and a model of how the Endangered Species Act is intended to be implemented.”
Douglas Kemper, Executive Director, Colorado Water Congress said, “We greatly appreciate that the Colorado delegation is committed to these programs and is moving forward with legislation to sustain the two critical, multi-state cooperative endeavors. The legislation will achieve the crucial goals of extending authorization for Reclamation to continue to provide cost sharing funding to the Recovery Programs and of providing funding necessary for the programs to achieve sufficient species protection to maintain reliable ESA compliance for Reclamation and other water projects throughout the two river basins. The programs are a shining example of how the Endangered Species Act can be made to work when diverse stakeholders choose to work as one rather than fight or litigate.”
Steve Wolff, General Manager, Southwestern Water Conservation District testified, “I would like to thank Representative Boebert for introducing this bill and commend her staff for their efforts to seek input from the participants in the two recovery programs on the bill… These programs were established with two principal goals; 1) the recovery of four threatened and endangered fish species listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, and 2) allow water development and management activities to proceed in a manner consistent with state water law. These programs have been and continue to be successful in meeting both of those goals.”
Stephen Guertin, Deputy Director for Program Management and Policy, U.S Fish and Wildlife Service testified,“Reclamation supports this bill and urges extended re-authorization… as the continued recovery of endangered and threatened species is essential to Reclamation’s mission… Reauthorization of the recovery programs provides certainty for the programs and ensures current and future water development in the Upper Colorado River Basin. For more than 30 years, the recovery programs have been a model of Endangered Species Act implementation. The recovery programs’ goals are to protect and recover federally listed fishes (Colorado pikeminnow, razorback sucker, humpback chub, and bonytail) found only in the Colorado River basin while water development proceeds according to federal and state laws, interstate compacts, Supreme Court decrees, and federal trust responsibility to Tribes. The recovery programs’ actions provide ESA compliance for more than 2,500 federal, Tribal, and non-federal water projects which deliver more than 3.69 million acre-feet of water for agricultural, industrial, Tribal, and municipal uses.”
John Galusha, Chairman, Huerfano County Board of Commissioners stated, “Management of water resources, including the fish and wildlife that depend on good habitat and clean water, is an important part of preserving the agriculture and great outdoors that make Colorado great. The cooperative nature of the Upper Colorado and San Juan Fish Recovery Programs are part of what makes these programs effective. We appreciate Rep. Boebert’s leadership on this reauthorization and urge Congress to pass this bill with all haste.”
Andy Mueller, General Manager, Colorado River District said, “We are supportive of and grateful for the work being done in Congress by Congresswoman Boebert, Congressman Neguse and Senator Hickenlooper to reauthorize these critical programs. For more than thirty years, the Upper Colorado and San Juan Recovery Programs have served as a national model for collaboratively working to recover endangered species while protecting the water needs of growing communities in Colorado and throughout the Upper Colorado River Basin.”
Kyle Whitaker, Water Rights Department Manager, Northern Water stated, “We are grateful for the support of Congresswoman Boebert and the Colorado Congressional Delegation for continuing to support the Upper Colorado River Basin and San Juan River Basin fish recovery programs. This vital cooperative management program not only allows for the protection and recovery of the fish species, but also allows for the continued responsible use of Colorado River water by Coloradans. We urge Congress to act with haste to ensure this important program continues into the future.”
The Rio Blanco County Board of Commissioners said in a letter, “Rio Blanco county and our constituents care deeply about our natural resources, water policy management, and any recovery plans … We very much appreciate [Rep. Boebert’s] efforts over the last several months to develop legislation reauthorizing federal cost sharing for the recovery programs…We will continue working with you and other representatives of the four states’ delegations to address this issue.”
Alan Ward, Water Resources Division Manager, Pueblo Water stated, “Pueblo Water wholeheartedly supports continued funding of the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act. These recovery programs provide ESA compliance for water projects on the Upper Colorado River where Pueblo Water sources about a third of its water supply. The recovery programs are not a case of throwing money at a problem in the hope that it will fix the problem – rather the recovery programs have a proven track record of success resulting in the downlisting of two of the four endangered species. Reauthorization of the recovery programs continues the progress of bringing these endangered fish back from the brink of extinction.”
Steve Kastner, Purgatoire River Water Conservancy District stated, “An unhealthy Colorado River system benefits no one. The proposed Upper Colorado and San Juan Endangered Fish Recovery Act of 2023 will provide for a continuation of efforts to maintain and improve the environmental health of the Colorado River system to support not only the wildlife of the river system but will also benefit the many partners who rely upon this water source for the multitude of uses for which this water is placed.”
Ken Curtis, Dolores Water Conservancy District said, “Local water users work alongside states, tribal nations and the federal agencies to save four threatened or endangered native fish in the Upper Colorado and San Juan Basins. We have adapted our current practices and modified our historic water projects to mitigate impacts on these native fish and made new investments to aid in their recovery to self-sustaining populations. Measurable progress has been made toward recovery. Now, we can’t afford to leave this work unfinished and risk losing control of our water that underpins and grows our local economies.”
Alden Vanden Brink, District Manager, Rio Blanco Water Conservancy District said, “We support the legislation as it firms the mission of the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program’s ability to finalize and adopt the White River Management Plan Programmatic Biological Opinion (PBO) for the endangered fish while benefiting water users too. Truly a win-win. We are the only river in the Upper Basin without a PBO and the reauthorization legislation is the appropriate vehicle to aid in securing this commitment from our federal partners.”
Leslie James, Executive Director, Colorado River Energy Distributors Association stated, “The Colorado River Energy Distributors Association (CREDA) is a not-for-profit association representing the majority of the 155 firm power customers of the Colorado River Storage Project (CRSP). CRSP power customers are all not-for-profit entities, including municipalities, rural electric cooperatives, state agencies, irrigation and electrical districts and tribal entities. CREDA members serve over 4 million customers in the States of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. CREDA has been a partner in the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program since its inception, and supports the proposed legislation extending the Program. The Program is important to CREDA and its members as it maintains ESA compliance for the federal Aspinall Unit and Flaming Gorge Dam operations, which are important carbon-free resources of the CRSP. CRSP customers have provided both capital and annual (base) funding for the Program, and supports the collaborative nature of the Program, which relies on capital features as well as operations to assist in the recovery of the four endangered fish species in the Basin, while maintaining the Congressionally authorized purposes of the federal projects.”
Background:
Congresswoman Boebert questioned Steve Wolff, the General Manager of the Southwestern Water Conservation District in Durango, Colorado, during a hearing before the House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries. He supports Congresswoman Boebert’s bill, and a video of his testimony is available below and his written testimony is available here.
Stephen Guertin, the Deputy Director for Program Management and Policy for U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, testified before the House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries in support of Congresswoman Boebert’s bill. His written testimony is available here.
Rep. Boebert’s bicameral and bipartisan bill provides a clean, seven-year reauthorization of the Upper Colorado and San Juan Recovery Programs that protect four threatened and endangered native fish species in the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins by extending conservation programs at current funding levels for seven additional fiscal years.
The Upper Colorado and San Juan Recovery Programs were established in 1988 to achieve full recovery of four federally listed endangered fish species including the humpback chub, bonytail, Colorado pikeminnow, and razorback sucker. Those designations led to the threat of significant water and power-use restrictions.
The recovery programs facilitate water delivery from the Navajo, Flaming Gorge, and Aspinall Unit reservoirs which collectively can store more than 6.5 million acre-feet of water as part of the Colorado River Storage Project.
For over three decades, states, tribes, local communities, environmental groups, energy users, and water users, have partnered to help recover four threatened and endangered fish species while continuing water and power facility development and operations in the Upper Colorado River Basin and the San Juan River Basin.
Non-federal partners contribute $11 million per year in water contributions, plus another $750,000 in staffing and in-kind contributions. Participating states contribute $500,000 to base funding each year in cash equivalents for recovery actions, including for fish hatcheries and non-native fish removal.
The Fish and Wildlife Service contributes $1.56 million per year in base funding. The Bureau of Reclamation provides cost-shared contributions to both base and capital funding. Reclamation’s capital funding supports major infrastructure projects at reservoirs, diversion dams, canals, and floodplains across the basin.
Without these programs, these 2,500 water and power users would have to perform extremely burdensome Section 7 consultations for all 2,500 individual projects.
Because of the success of these programs, the humpback chub and the razorback sucker are success stories with the chub been downlisted from endangered to threatened and the razorback being recommended for downlisting.
Last Congress, Rep. Boebert worked closely with the gentleman from Colorado, Mr. Neguse on a short-term extension to reauthorize these programs until September 30, 2024.
Rep. Boebert’s bill is the result of months of hard work with local stakeholders, the Bureau of Reclamation, Senator Hickenlooper, and others to provide a long-term solution by reauthorizing these vital programs until 2031.
Groups supporting Congresswoman Boebert’s Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act include: Aurora Water, Central Utah Water Conservancy District, Clifton Water District, Colorado River District, Colorado River Energy Distributors Association, Colorado Springs Utilities, Colorado Water Congress, Delta County Commissioners, Denver Water, Dolores County Commissioners, Dolores Water Conservancy District, Grand Valley Water Users, Huerfano County Commissioners, LaPlata Water Conservation District, Mesa County Farm Bureau, Montezuma County, Municipal Subdistrict, Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District, Pueblo Water, Purgatoire River Water Conservancy District, Rio Blanco Board of Commissioners, Rio Blanco Water Conservancy District, Rio Grande Water Conservation District, San Juan Water Commission, Southern Ute Tribe, Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District, Southwestern Water Conservation District, Tri-County Water Conservancy District, Utah Waters Users Association, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and Ute Water Conservancy District.
Cosponsors of Congresswoman Boebert’s Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act include: Rep. Ken Buck (CO-04), Rep. John Duarte (CA-13), Rep. Paul Gosar (AZ-09), Rep. Doug LaMalfa (CA-01), Rep. Doug Lamborn (CO-05), Rep. Harriet Hageman (WY-AL), Rep. Troy Nehls (TX-22), and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04).