In a letter submitted this month to Michael Gabaldon, chair of the Adaptive Management Program (AMP) for Glen Canyon Dam, Living Rivers outlined the justification for the Department of Interior initiating a new Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Glen Canyon Dam. This would would compel the federal government to examine decommissioning Glen Canyon Dam as a means of recovering endangered species habitat lost in Grand Canyon National Park as a result of the dam's operations.
Completed in 1996, the existing EIS for Glen Canyon Dam prescribed a set of operational criteria for the dam in an effort to halt the Bureau of Reclamation's violation of the Endangered Species Act in Grand Canyon. So far, all these efforts have failed.
* The decline of the Humpback Chub population from 8,000 to 2,000 fish, and the inability to establish a second location in the river corridor for Humpback Chub to live.
* The inability to provide enough sediment for the preservation of beach habitat. The number and size of beaches in the Grand Canyon have experienced a significant decline since the AMP began. This negatively effected the Canyon's recreational experience, but has also impacted the river corridor's cultural resources, which are now prone to erosion.
* Unanticipated impacts resulting from reduced elevations of Glen Canyon Reservoir, such as increased temperatures and modified nutrient dynamics, could have significant effects on the downstream resources in the Grand Canyon. As the drought situation persists, these effects will become more pronounced.
The key to reinstating National Environmental Policy Act compliance, through a supplemental EIS, is if new data or impacts are recognized. Clearly in the case of Glen Canyon Dam, significant new data (biological and sediment) indicate that the system needs re-evaluation.
