Why is PRRIP important to water users/consumers?

The waters of the Platte River serve the people of Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska in many ways. Federal and non-federal water projects in the Platte River Basin, including 15 major dams, provide municipal and industrial water supplies for about 5 million people, irrigate 3.5 million acres of farmland, and generate tens of millions of dollars of renewable hydroelectric power. These projects also provide flood control, recreation, and fish and wildlife habitat.
 

Under the Endangered Species Act (

Endangered Species Act

), federal agencies must ensure that water projects do not harm the continued existence of any threatened or endangered species or adversely modify critical habitat. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

) concluded that the threatened piping plover and the endangered whooping crane, least tern and pallid sturgeon could be affected by water diversions throughout the Platte River Basin.

The Platte River Recovery Implementation Program (

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

) is a collaborative stakeholder-driven process that provides

Endangered Species Act

compliance for water users throughout the Platte River Basin. Without this regulatory certainty, water users would be subject to more arduous requirements to ensure the continued protection of threatened and endangered species in the basin. Because of the

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

, water projects with a federal nexus, such as those in need of permits under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act or federal funding for project construction or operations, enjoy a streamlined Section 7 (of the

Endangered Species Act

) consultation process.

Seeking ESA Coverage for Water-Related Activities through PRRIP

The

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

allows existing and most new water users and water-development activities above the Loup River confluence to operate in regulatory compliance because of the offsetting measuring being implemented in the

The Central Platte River extending from Lexington, NE, downstream to Chapman, NE (download map)

in central Nebraska. State-specific resources are located below:

What is the goal of the program’s water plan?

The

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

aims to offset depletions in the Platte River at the

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

’s

The Central Platte River extending from Lexington, NE, downstream to Chapman, NE (download map)

through the addition of new water and the retiming of flows for species’ benefits.
 
The Water Objective for the

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

’s 13-year First Increment (2007-2019) is to improve central Platte River streamflow by an average of 130,000 to 150,000

Acre-feet per year

by reducing shortages to flow targets (target flows) designated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

). Initial projects in each state—the Tamarack I groundwater recharge project in Colorado, the Pathfinder Reservoir

The Environmental Account (or EA) is a portion of the water stored in Lake McConaughy that is set aside and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the benefit of the target species.

(

Environmental Account - The EA is a portion of the water stored in Lake McConaughy that is set aside and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the benefit of the target species.

) in Wyoming, and the Lake McConaughy

Environmental Account - The EA is a portion of the water stored in Lake McConaughy that is set aside and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the benefit of the target species.

in Nebraska—were credited with providing 80,000

Acre-feet per year

towards this objective. 
 
The

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

’s Milestone #4 requires the implementation of a

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

(

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

) to provide the remaining 50,000 to 70,000

Acre-feet per year

through a combination of water projects utilizing new or leased water sources, re-timing of divertible flows in excess of

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

targets, and conservation. 
 
Examples of

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

projects include the leasing of water from water irrigators in the Central Platte, as well as groundwater recharge in Elwood Reservoir in Nebraska and in six existing canals near the

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program

Associated Habitat Reach during the non-irrigation season. Additional

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

projects involving leasing and recharge are in various stages of development.
 
The flow-related objectives described above are intended to improve Platte River flows compared to flow conditions when the Platte River Cooperative Agreement was signed in 1997. In addition to the initial state projects and implementation of the

The Water Action Plan is the roadmap developed to meet the First Increment Goals. A study titled “Reconnaissance-Level Water Action Plan” was prepared in 2000 and utilized to formulate the Program’s Water Action Plan. The study identified potential water conservation and water supply projects (such as storage reservoirs, groundwater recharge, water leasing, and improved water management) and estimated the amount of water that could be re-regulated/conserved and credited toward the Program objectives. It described the process for moving projects through feasibility studies and implementation, with the approval of the Governance Committee. The study was updated in 2009 and focuses on water projects that can be implemented to achieve the First Increment Objectives. (download Water Plan)

, the three states and the federal government each have depletions plans that describe how they will offset impacts to target flows from water-related activities that were started after July 1997. These depletions plans are reviewed and updated annually to verify compliance.