Wyoming State Water Plan
Wyoming State Water Plan
Wyoming Water Development Office
6920 Yellowtail Rd
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Phone: 307-777-7626
Wyoming Water Development Office
6920 Yellowtail Rd
Cheyenne, WY 82002
Phone: 307-777-7626
Welcome
Facilitator Sherri Gregory-Schreiner welcomed the group and the meeting was
called to order at 6:02 p.m. All attendees introduced themselves, followed by a
review of the overall meeting agenda. A sign-in sheet was passed around to
record attendance. The next meeting is scheduled for March 24 in Cokeville.
Water Development Commission Report
Barry Lawrence updated the BAG on the status of the plans for the other basins.
The BAGs for the Wind/Bighorn and the Snake/Salt Basins will be meeting
December 17 in Powell and December 18 in Jackson; whereas the BAGS for the
Green, Powder/Tongue and Northeast Wyoming Basins will be meeting
November 19 in Green River, November 20 in Sheridan and November 21 in
Moorcroft. Barry discussed the status of all basin studies, including the Platte
River Basin, and schedule for future meetings.
Jodie Pavlica provided details on the proposed Smiths Fork Flume installation and the Cokeville Reservoir projects.
Storage Restrictions from Low Bear Lake Levels
Don Shoemaker of the State Engineer.s Office discussed the anticipated
problems with filling the reservoirs in the basin during 2003. He reviewed pre-
1955, 1955, and amended compact water rights and how they are related to Bear
Lake levels, and more specifically, the trigger at surface elevation 5911.
PacifiCorp Settlement Agreement
Jim Mende, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, discussed the agreement
among 13 parties for the FERC relicensing of the Bear River hydroelectric
projects. The Soda, Grace/Cove and Oneida facilities are the 3 components of
the Bear River project. He addressed the Protection, Mitigation and
Enhancement portion of the settlement agreement, which included the
Bonneville Cutthroat Trout, implementation of minimum flows in the Grace
bypassed section, and the formation of an Environmental Coordination
Committee.
Bear River Basin Water Quality Study Update
Eric Duffin and Scott Evans, Cirrus Ecological Solutions, reviewed the scope of
work for the TMDL study, and summarized the approved, pending, and in-
process TMDL plans in Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. They discussed the
pollutants of concern in the three states as well as the dollars spent toward water
quality improvements. The final report is due March 2003. A demonstration of
the TMDL listing/GIS database was presented.
Drought in Wyoming
Jan Curtis, Wyoming State Climatologist, discussed the current drought. The
Palmer Drought severity index indicates that this area experiences drought 20%
of the time. He summarized current projections, the drought triggers, and cloud
seeding activities in Utah.
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 8:35 p.m.