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Show : : -3- I will enclose some material here which will indicate my responsibility for contributed funds - work I have done. I would like to tell you something of my efforts on the C.U.P. Since I have worked most of the time on wilderness issues, per se, I'haee not felt out of line in spending some time on the C.U.P. as a response to some of the other funds granted me. As you know, environmental groups have brought suit on -the Bureau of Reclamation on its water storage projects on the Colorado River. This suit is based on the increased salnnity of the River. In responding to the suit, the BuRec is to do a Programmatic EIS on the Colorado River Basin and with this in mind, the Bureau held public hearings last fall throughtout the southest. In order to prepare myself for a hearing in Vernal, Utah, in October, I spent a week in Duchesne with Stafe Fish and Game and Forest Service staffs researching ^impacts on wildlife in the Uinta Range streams „ ~and riaarrian ecosystems from proposed C.U.P. developments. I prepared a list of questions and presented these at the Vernal hearing. I followed up with a report which I forwarded^to^ Secretary Andrus - asking his help. He instructed Commissioner Higginson to set up a meeting with the Utah based BuRec staff to answer .my questions. This meeting took place in Salt Lake • City Febriiary 9. Three regional solicitors were present, wildlife staff, geologic staffs and C.U.P. planners. The Bureau stone-# walled me in"rerfusing to let me tape the meeting and in refusing to address additional questions I had prepared since the Octove meeting, so I went back to Andrus again - suggesting that he form an independent Task Force to review the entire Utah^water allocation issue. (Water is allocated to Utah from the Uinta Range streams - by proposed dewatering these streams - for purposes of Utah development and agricultural operations - and in total disregard of other values of these valuable'wild trout streams for the recreationist across the land.> All laws under which the BuRec operates have contained no environmental constraints and the Bureau has continually, since 19 51, failed to respond to recommends stream flows of agencies responsible for management of wildlife - the F.S., the BLM, the F S Wildlife Service, and State F 8 Game. In 1965, Governor Hampton promulgated ^State Doctrine stating that fish would have*no consideration in stream flow allocations! Whatever Andrus is doing in Washington now about water issues, he is responding to me in Utah. I forwarded additional material to John Hough, Andrus' Seattle based Rep., asking him to meet in Salt Lake City with concerned citizens relative to the C.U.P. Hough forwarded my material to Bob Sanchez, Rocky Mt. Region, Rep. and as of Friday, Sanchez contacted me and I# am in the process of setting up a group of attorneys, university staffs, and concerned citizens to meeti with him for discussion. We are aiming at a May 4 meeting day. In addition, I have forwarded copies of all my repotts and correspondence to Andrus to Environmental Defense Fudn, Environmental Policy Center, Natural Resources Defense Council,. |
