Senate Committee Approves Platte River Recovery Program

In late 2006 the governors of Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming and the Department of Interior signed the final program agreement after working together since 1997 to develop a recovery plan that benefits certain species yet allows continued water use and development along the Platte.

The plan affects the recovery of four threatened or endangered species - three birds and a fish - the whooping crane, piping plover, least tern, and pallid sturgeon.

The North and South Platte Rivers originate from snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. The rivers enter Nebraska via Wyoming and Colorado to form the Platte River at North Platte, Nebraska.

Water projects on the North and South Platte store over 7.1 million acre-feet of water in 190 storage facilities, irrigating 1.9 million acres, generating power, and providing municipal water supplies and recreation.

These projects and other activities have affected the Platte River, including the related habitat of the four threatened or endangered species that use the Big Bend Reach of the Platte in central Nebraska.

Endangered whooping cranes on the Platte River in Nebraska (Photo by Michael Forsberg courtesy USGS)

The legislation, passed out of the committee as HR 1462, will authorize the Secretary of Interior to proceed with the program and includes $157 million to carry it out. The cost will be shared 50/50 by the states and federal government.

The states will provide $30 million annually and credit for contributions of water or land for the purposes of implementing the program.

The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, is authorized to modify the Pathfinder Dam and Reservoir with the state of Wyoming. The 54,000 acre-feet capacity of the Pathfinder Reservoir, which has been lost to sediment but will be recaptured by the project, may be used for municipal, environmental, and other purposes, the bill provides.

The sponsors of the legislation, Senators Ben Nelson and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, and Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar of Colorado, applauded the committee's action as a major step towards final passage of the bill.

"The Platte River recovery is absolutely critical to improving and maintaining habitat for threatened and endangered species while allowing water use and development along the Platte River. Our legislation will ensure that this plan is able to be fully implemented and we are pushing the Senate to act on it as soon as possible," said Senator Nelson, a Democrat. "With the Committee's unanimous action, the road is clear for Senate passage of this bill."

"When a program is developed that protects water users' rights and creates wildlife habitat protection it is a win-win for every one involved. The Platte River recovery plan does just that," said Senator Salazar, a Democrat and a member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. "The program allows continued water use and development along the Platte that is critical to our farmers, ranchers and local communities and I am proud to support this sound conservation bill."

"This legislation aims to address one of the most pressing needs in the West, ensuring that the Endangered Species Act does not stop our most precious natural resource from flowing," said Senator Allard, a Republican. "I have been an outspoken critic of the Endangered Species Act, but when I see a program designed to work with people to find real solutions I support it. This program is a good step forward in recovering endangered species and still providing the necessary water to meet the demands we face in the Platte River region."

"This is important news for Nebraskans," said Senator Hagel, a Republican. "This is the kind of intra-state cooperation that will be necessary to address future water challenges in Nebraska and across the U.S."

Through the program, the states will provide benefits for the endangered and threatened species as well as land, water, and scientific monitoring and research to evaluate benefits of the program.

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