Common use of Habitat Restoration Clause in Contracts

Habitat Restoration. Modifications were made under this recovery element to protect the physical habitat constituent element. a. Access to historically inundated floodplain habitats is believed to be very important to recovery of the razorback sucker and Colorado pikeminnow. Although the Recovery Program has begun a program to evaluate and restore flooded bottomland areas, the fish’s riverine habitat has been and continues to be so channelized by levees, dikes, rip-rap, and tamarisk, that broader floodplain restoration and protection (e.g., through mechanisms such as landowner incentives, conservation easements, and perhaps zoning) is needed. Recovery Program participants were not sure exactly how such mechanisms might be implemented, so an issue paper on restoration and protection of the floodplain has been developed. The issue paper first addressed what restoration and protection measures are needed and then how they might be accomplished. After completion of the issue paper, viable options were identified and a restoration strategy developed for selected geographic areas (e.g. Grand Valley and Ashley Valley). Floodplain restoration activities may be implemented by the Recovery Program or by Recovery Program participants individually. Responsibilities of other agencies were identified in the issue paper, and actions were implemented consistent with authorities outside the Recovery Program. b. The Recovery Program has been evaluating agricultural diversion structures in the Yampa River and has discovered that although not all of these structures impede Colorado pikeminnow passage, annual bulldozing in critical habitat in the river required to maintain many of these structures may destroy or adversely modify fish habitat. Upgrading these structures so that they are more secure would eliminate the need for annual bulldozing and consequent adverse modification of critical habitat. c. Fish passage structures are planned for a number of diversion dams in the Upper Basin in the current RIPRAP. However, without screens or "entrainment preclusion structures," adult fish, especially razorback sucker, may go into the diversion canals. To keep fish in the more secure river habitat, a modification was made to include an entrainment preclusion structure on the proposed passage structure at the Grand Valley Project diversion (Roller Dam). Also, the need for an entrainment preclusion structure at Redlands diversion dam will be evaluated after construction of the fish ladder there.