By Mary Alice Murphy

Editor's Note: This article covers the first two presentations.

Sean Heath, new environmental manager at the Phoenix office of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, gave the first presentation related to the Arizona Water Settlements Act of 2004 on Friday afternoon, Feb. 26, the final day of presentations at the Sixth Natural History of the Gila Symposium.

"My focus is the National Environmental Policy Act process and the environmental impact statement," Heath said. "The New Mexico Unit of the Central Arizona Project, a diversion on the Gila River or its tributaries, triggers the purchase and delivery of water from the Colorado River to downstream users. Implementation of the diversion requires NEPA."

He said the AWSA statute says the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, upon request, "shall transfer the design" to the New Mexico Central Arizona Project Entity.

"We are expecting the CAP Entity to take over the design," Heath said.

He described the next steps. The CAP Entity Technical Committee has been established to create a project.

"We are also working on a NEPA memorandum of understanding between Reclamation and the Interstate Stream Commission," Heath continued.

During the NEPA process, public input will be sought. "We have no public involvement yet."

"The goal of NEPA is a record of decision by December 2019," Heath said, "unless an extension is by no fault of New Mexico."

Reclamation's role as the lead federal agency will turn control of design over to the CAP Entity for the diversion, upon request.

"Reclamation will fulfill NEPA and the federal trust to the tribes," Heath said. "We anticipate completion of the scope of work and MOU in spring 2016. The longer there is no progress, the more time slides, making it harder and harder to meet the deadline for the record of decision."

He noted the Technical Committee is working on a proposed project. "The members have one of Reclamation's engineers there to ensure the project design fits into Reclamation standards."

Issues to be addressed in NEPA include protecting endangered species, cultural resources and socio-economic benefits. Also to be considered is the cost benefit of any proposed project.

Heath said that Clean Water Act policies must be complied with, and cooperating agencies will likely include Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and local governments, all of which have expressed interest.

"We will also address consistency with existing land management plans," Heath said.

An audience member asked how aesthetics are valued. Heath said he thought they were personal.

"What about input on eco-system services?" a man asked. "Can you tell us about the peer review process?"

"Part of the plan will be a study on eco-system services," Heath replied. "We don't know yet who will do the peer review."

An audience member seemed surprised that a project had not been identified. "I thought it was up in Turkey Creek."

A Gila Valley resident, Mary Burton Riseley, asked if the feasibility would include risk analysis. "And what about the tunnel?" she asked.

Heath said more details were required on the project.

Allyson Siwik, Gila Conservation Coalition executive director, asked what the elements for the peer review plan were.

Heath said the plan would be set up with recognized experts, who may be part of Reclamation or not and that any scientific details are subject to peer review.

Norm Gaume, engineer and former ISC director, said it seems the purpose and the need for the water are crucial in determining how best to meet Southwest New Mexico needs. "The ISC says the New Mexico water is flowing to Arizona and we can't let that happen."

"All that will be fleshed out," Health replied.

Gaume persisted that he thought it was crucial to know the purpose and need by the time the proposal is presented to the public.

Heath concluded in answer to a question from another audience member that the cost-benefit would definitely be part of the EIS.

For the second presentation, Ali Effati, ISC senior water resources specialist, said the ISC policy on the Gila Project is to use the best available science.

"I will be giving a case study today," Effati said. "You may think linking science and decision-making in water resources is a given, but the decision making is done by water management agencies, such as Reclamation; NEPA for water projects; and includes integrated water resources management, National Research Council studies and applied science research programs.

"In peer review, we don't see papers focusing on linking science and water resource management," he continued. " Literature review shows that most studies are on how to balance and meet ecological and water users' needs. A sustained, intentional effort is needed to foster linkage between science and management. More cooperative interactions among scientists, managers and other stakeholders are critical. Policy questions should be informed by science, but other considerations also go into them. The role of decision-maker is often done where there is little scientific certainty. Reduction of uncertainty increases cost."

The case study Effati presented was on decision-making on the AWSA in New Mexico.

The Interstate Stream Commission is a water management agency, formed to investigate, protect, conserve and develop New Mexico's waters.

The decision-making considers uses of the water and funding provided to New Mexico, pursuant to Section 212 of the AWSA, which was signed into law in December 2004. The area covered by the planning process encompasses the four southwest counties of New Mexico, Catron, Grant, Hidalgo and Luna.

The ISC developed its general policy on the AWSA process before the Act had been passed. The goal was to guide a deliberate and extensive planning process for 10 years until December 2014, the statutory deadline for a decision on whether to utilize the water or not.

The three main tenets of the ISC Gila Policy are to recognize and mitigate impacts to Gila ecology, provide for current and future water uses and use the best available science.

ISC Gila Policy
"The Interstate Stream Commission recognizes the unique and valuable ecology of the Gila Basin. In considering any proposal for water utilization under Section 212 of the Arizona Water Settlements Act, the Commission will apply the best available science to fully assess and mitigate the ecological impacts on Southwest New Mexico, the Gila River, its tributaries and associated riparian corridors, while also considering the historic uses of and future demands for water in the Basin and the traditions, cultures and customs affecting those uses." G