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Glen Canyon Environmental Studies
While the National Park Service, Native Americans, river runners, and scientists had noticed that
some beaches were disappearing and that plant and animal life along the Colorado River were
changing since Glen Canyon Dam was completed in 1963, the Glen Canyon Environmental
Studies program of the Bureau of Reclamation was the first systematic effort to investigate the
effects of dam operations on downstream resources. The program began in 1982 and lasted
through 1996. The Glen Canyon Environmental Studies did identify a mix of positive and
negative consequences of dam operations on the downstream environment. In response to
substantial public concern over the findings of the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies, in 1989
the Secretary of the Interior announced that an environmental impact statement would be
completed to evaluate the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. With this announcement, the Glen
Canyon Environmental Studies focused on providing specific data for use in the Glen Canyon
Dam Environmental Impact Statement (Reclamation 1995).
Grand Canyon Protection Act
The Grand Canyon Protection Act (Appendix A) was enacted on October 30, 1992. Section
1802 states:
(a) IN GENERAL.−The Secretary shall operate Glen Canyon Dam in accordance with the additional criteria and operating plans specified in Section 1804 and exercise other authorities under existing law in such a manner as to protect, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve the values for which Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area were established, including, but not limited to natural and cultural resources and visitor use.
(b) COMPLIANCE WITH EXISTING LAW.−The Secretary shall implement this section in a manner fully consistent with and subject to the Colorado River Compact, the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, the Water Treaty of 1944 with Mexico, the decree of the Supreme Court in Arizona vs. California, and the provisions of the Colorado River Storage Project Act of 1956 and the Colorado River Basin Project Act of 1968 that govern allocation, appropriation, development, and exportation of the waters of the Colorado River Basin.
(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.−Nothing in this title alters the purposes for which the Grand Canyon National Park or the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area were established or affects the authority and responsibility of the Secretary with respect to the management and administration of the Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, including natural and cultural resources and visitor use, under laws applicable to those areas, including, but not limited to, the Act of August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535) as amended and supplemented.
The Secretary of the Interior was also directed to establish and implement long-term monitoring
programs and activities to ensure that Glen Canyon Dam is operated in a manner consistent with
the Grand Canyon Protection Act. These programs include necessary research and studies to
determine the effect of management of the dam on the natural, recreational, and cultural
downstream resources. These actions will also be undertaken in consultation with other federal
agencies, the Governors of the Basin States, Indian Tribes, and the general public, including
representatives of academic and scientific communities, environmental organizations, the
recreation industry, and contractors for the purchase of federal power produced at Glen Canyon
Dam. To accomplish these requirements, the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program
was established.
Glen Canyon Dam Environmental Impact Statement
The Glen Canyon Dam Environmental Impact Statement (Reclamation 1995) was completed in
March 1995. Its purpose was to “determine specific options that could be implemented to
minimize—consistent with law—adverse impacts on the downstream environmental and cultural
resources and Native American interests in Glen and Grand Canyons.” The Glen Canyon Dam
Environmental Impact Statement analyzed nine alternatives to allow the Secretary of the Interior
to balance competing interests and to meet statutory responsibilities for protecting downstream
resources and producing hydropower, and to protect affected Native American interests. The
preferred alternative was the Modified Low Fluctuating Flow Alternative.
Record of Decision on the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam
On October 9, 1996, the Secretary of the Interior signed the Record of Decision that presented
the rationale for choosing the Modified Low Fluctuating Flow Alternative. As noted in the
Record of Decision:
The goal of selecting a preferred alternative was not to maximize benefits for the most
resources, but rather to find an alternative dam operating plan that would permit recovery
and long-term sustainability of downstream resources while limiting hydropower
capability and flexibility only to the extent necessary to achieve recovery and long-term
sustainability. [Reclamation 1996:10]
The Record of Decision (Appendix G) included seven environmental and monitoring
commitments:
- Adaptive Management
- Monitoring and Protection of Cultural Resources
- Flood Frequency Reduction Measures
- Beach/Habitat-Building Flows
- New Population of Humpback Chub
- Further Study of Selective Withdrawal
- Emergency Exception Criteria
The commitments are explained in detail in the Record of Decision (Reclamation 1996;
Appendix G) and in the Glen Canyon Dam Environmental Impact Statement (Reclamation
1995:33-34); however, it should be noted that subsequent work of the Technical Work Group
and Adaptive Management Work Group have altered some commitments (Technical Work
Group 1998) with Endangered Species Act and National Environmental Policy Act compliance.
Statutes, Policies, and Resolutions
The Colorado River is managed and operated under numerous compacts, federal and state laws,
court decisions and decrees (including Native American water claim settlements), contracts,
treaties, and regulatory guidelines collectively known as the Law of the River. This collection of
documents apportions the water among the seven Basin States and Mexico, and regulates and
manages the river flows of the Colorado River. Some of the statutes included within the Law of
the River that have a major impact on dam operations are the Colorado River Compact of 1922,
the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact of 1948, the Colorado River Storage Project Act of
1956, the Colorado River Basin Project Act of 1968, and the Grand Canyon Protection Act of
1992. In addition to Colorado River specific legislation, the Endangered Species Act of 1973
and court decrees including Arizona v. California affect the extent to which water developments
and diversions can be utilized in the Colorado River Basin. The Law of the River and this
additional legislation control and influence the Adaptive Management Program.
Additional laws, Acts of Congress, executive orders, policies, tribal resolutions, etc., that control
or influence the Adaptive Management Program include the National Park Service Organic Act,
enabling legislation for Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation
Area, and Executive Orders that established reservation boundaries for the Navajo Nation and
the Hualapai Tribe. In addition, Section 204 of Title II of Public Law 106-377 controls the level
of funding of Adaptive Management Program activities from Colorado River Storage Project
power revenues. The Federal Advisory Committee Act controls operation of the Adaptive
Management Work Group and the Technical Work Group.
Environmental laws and regulations are important to the Adaptive Management Program. These
include, but are not limited to, the Endangered Species Act, National Historic Preservation Act
of 1966, and National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Adaptive Management Program
compliance with these statutes, regulations, policies, directives, etc., is described in a later
section.
Guidance Document for the Adaptive Management Program
Since the Adaptive Management Program became fully operational in 1997, questions and
uncertainties have arisen over the relationships of program elements, compliance priorities, and
other legal matters. Answers were sought from a Department of the Interior Solicitor. The
questions posed and answers received from the Department of the Interior’s Solicitor (Loveless
2000) are called the “Guidance Document for the Adaptive Management Program.” This
document is provided as Appendix B in the GCDAMP Strategic Plan.
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