Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to conduct a study to determine the most feasible method of meeting water supply and storage requirements within the area served by the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado.
Prohibits the Secretary from entering into any new contracts or contract extensions or renewals: (1) with entities for the use of excess capacity space in Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities to store water or for use outside the natural basins of the Arkansas or Colorado rivers; or (2) for beneficial use of the facilities or water rights outside such basins.
Authorizes the Secretary to provide financial assistance to Colorado to conduct a study to identify the cumulative impacts of water transfers from the Arkansas and Colorado River basins to communities not located in such basins and from agriculturally based communities within the Arkansas River basin to expanding municipalities within that basin.
Sets forth conditions under which any excess project water storage capacity of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project to divert, store, impound, pump, exchange, or convey nonproject water made available under contracts may be used to increase diversion of nonproject water from the natural basin of the Colorado River within Colorado into another river basin for delivery or storage.
Authorizes the Secretary to enter into contracts for the use of excess project capacity for the purpose of diverting, storing, impounding, pumping, exchanging, or conveying nonproject water for irrigation, domestic, municipal industrial, or other beneficial purposes within the natural basin of the Arkansas River within Colorado.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1833 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1833
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to engage in a feasibility
study relating to long-term water needs for the area served by the
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 29, 2007
Mr. Salazar introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to engage in a feasibility
study relating to long-term water needs for the area served by the
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FEASIBILITY STUDY.
(a) Study.--Pursuant to Federal reclamation law (the Act of June 7,
1902, and all Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto), the
Secretary, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, is authorized to
conduct a feasibility study to determine the most feasible method of
meeting the present and future water supply and related storage
requirements within the area served by the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project,
including the potential enlargement of Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities.
The feasibility study shall--
(1) be conducted consistent with the document titled
``Economic and Environmental Principles and Guidelines for
Water and Related Land Resources Implementation Studies''
(United States Water Resources Council, 1983, United States
Government Printing Office), any subsequent modifications of
that document, and all applicable Federal statutes; and
(2) include, but not be limited to, an evaluation of
existing and reasonably feasible and practicable potential
water supplies, uses, and management options as they relate to
meeting the document referred to in paragraph (1).
(b) Submission of Study.--The Secretary shall submit the
feasibility study authorized by this section to the President and the
President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
Representatives.
(c) Use of Funds.--No Federal funds shall be expended for the
construction of enlargements or any other alternative identified in the
feasibility study authorized by this section for which authority does
not before the date of the enactment of this Act, without further
authorization by Congress.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations; Matching Requirement.--There
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $4,000,000 to conduct
the feasibility study authorized by this section. All Federal funds
made available to conduct that study shall be matched in equal amount
by non-Federal funds.
(e) Limitation on Construction.--No construction to enlarge the
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project may be conducted until the studies referred
to in section 3 are completed.
SEC. 2. SECRETARY AUTHORIZED TO FOLLOW ORIGINAL CONGRESSIONAL INTENT OF
PROJECT.
Not withstanding other provisions of law, the Secretary shall not
enter into any new contracts, contract extensions, or contract
renewals--
(1) with entities for use of excess capacity space in
Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities to store water or for use outside
of the natural basins of the Arkansas or Colorado rivers; or
(2) that use the Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities or water
rights for beneficial use outside the natural Basins of the
Arkansas River or the Colorado River.
SEC. 3. STATE OF COLORADO STUDIES.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior may provide
financial assistance to the State of Colorado, under the direction of
the Governor of that State, to conduct a study, or choose an
appropriate organization such as Colorado State University-Pueblo to
conduct a study, to identify the cumulative impacts of past, current,
or proposed transfers of water from the Arkansas and Colorado River
basins to communities not located in the natural basins of the Arkansas
River or the Colorado River, and from agriculturally based communities
within the Arkansas River basin to expanding municipalities within the
Arkansas River basin.
(b) Study Criteria.--The study authorized under this section shall
evaluate the following:
(1) Environmental impacts such as impacts on water quality
and wildlife habitat, and water supply both for human and
environmental and recreational uses.
(2) Social, cultural, recreational and economic impacts,
including any disproportionate impacts of minority and/or low-
income populations that result from actual or proposed water
exchanges, water trades, and out-of-basin transfers from the
Arkansas River basin and the Colorado River basin.
(3) The financial effects of water transfers out of the
Arkansas River basin and the Colorado River basin for the
sending and receiving communities.
(4) The impacts, including cumulative effects, of proposed
water supply and storage methods on the area served by the
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and the natural basins of the
Arkansas River and the Colorado River within Colorado that may
be impacted by the implementation of such water supply and
storage methods, taking into account the hydrologic conditions
during the period from 1982 to the date the study is conducted.
(5) The impacts of return and exchange flows in the
Fountain Creek due to proposed and past transfers and exchanges
of water from the Arkansas River to municipalities and
entities, including the municipality of Colorado Springs,
including but not limited to--
(A) the effects on water quality and flood
potential; and
(B) mitigation alternatives for identified impacts,
including flood control storage facilities on the
Fountain Creek.
(6) Any effect to stream flows in the Roaring Fork River
due to any expansions of the Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities.
(7) Feasible options to resolve or mitigate the impacts and
effects evaluated in the study.
(c) Submission of Report.--As a condition of assistance under the
section, the Governor of Colorado shall submit a report of the results
of the study funded under this section to the President and the
President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate and the Speaker of
the United States House of Representatives upon completion of the
study.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $10,000,000 to carry out this section.
SEC. 4. COLORADO RIVER BASIN PROTECTION.
(a) Use of Water Storage Capacity.--Any excess water storage
capacity of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project to divert, store, impound,
pump, exchange, or convey nonproject water made available under
contracts shall not be used so as to increase diversion of nonproject
water from the natural basin of the Colorado River within Colorado into
another river basin for delivery or storage unless--
(1) the diversion is the subject of a decree entered before
the date of the enactment of this Act for which no new
infrastructure or legal approvals are necessary to divert the
water out of the natural basin of the Colorado River;
(2) the diversion is the subject of an agreement in
existence on the date of the enactment of this Act,
contemplating additional diversions diverted through or stored
in the facilities studied by this Act, between the beneficiary
of such transbasin diversion and the water conservation
district, as defined under Colorado law, from within whose
boundaries the waters are proposed for diversion;
(3) the diversion is the subject of an intergovernmental
agreement or other contractual arrangement executed after the
date of the enactment of this Act, between the beneficiary of
such transbasin diversion and the water conservation district,
as defined under Colorado law, from within whose boundaries the
waters are proposed for diversion; or
(4) the beneficiary of such transbasin diversion provides
compensatory storage or alternate water supply in an amount
equal to the quantity diverted out of the basin for the benefit
of the water conservation district, as defined under Colorado
law, from within whose boundaries the waters are proposed for
diversion.
(b) Submission of Agreements Required.--Prior to executing any
agreement or arrangement for provision of compensatory storage or
alternative water supply that allows for increased diversions of
nonproject water as described in subsection (a), the parties to such
agreements or arrangements shall submit the agreement or arrangement to
the Secretary of the Interior, who, within 30 days, shall submit such
agreement or arrangement to the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and
the Speaker of the House of Representatives for a period of not less
than 60 days.
(c) No Precedent.--This section shall not be considered as
precedent for any other congressionally authorized project.
SEC. 5. CONTRACTS WITH IN-BASIN ENTITIES.
The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to enter into contracts
with an entity, private or public, for the use of excess capacity in
the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project for the purpose of diverting, storing,
impounding, pumping, exchanging, or conveying nonproject water for
irrigation, domestic, municipal and industrial, or any other beneficial
purpose within the natural basin of the Arkansas River within Colorado.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power.
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