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Biological Assessment BIOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT River Management Alternatives for the Rio Grande Canalization Project UNITED STATES SECTION, INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARY AND WATER COMMISSION UNITED STATES AND MEXICO January 2004 BIOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT River Management Alternatives for the Rio Grande Canalization Project Contract IBM020002, Task Order 3 Prepared for: United States Section, International Boundary and Water Commission The Commons, Building C, Suite 100 4171 North Mesa Street El Paso, TX 79902-1441 Prepared by: PARSONS 8000 Centre Park Drive, Suite 200 Austin, Texas 78754 January 2004 River Management Alternatives for the RGCP Biological Assessment Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES................................................................................................................iv LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................................iv ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ...............................................................................v SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................1-1 1.1 RGCP Authorization, Location, and Operation .........................................................1-1 1.1.1 Description ........................................................................................................1-1 1.1.2 Operation and Maintenance...............................................................................1-2 1.2 Report Organization and Content...............................................................................1-5 SECTION 2 RIVER MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES ........................................2-1 2.1 Composition of River Management Alternatives.......................................................2-1 2.2 The No Action Alternative .........................................................................................2-1 2.2.1 Levee System Management...............................................................................2-2 2.2.2 Floodway Management .....................................................................................2-5 2.2.3 Maintenance of Pilot Channel and Irrigation Facilities.....................................2-5 2.2.4 Sediment Management ......................................................................................2-7 2.3 Flood Control Improvement Alternative....................................................................2-7 2.3.1 Levee System Management...............................................................................2-8 2.3.2 Floodway Management ...................................................................................2-10 2.3.3 Maintenance of Pilot Channel and Irrigation Facilities...................................2-11 2.3.4 Sediment Management ....................................................................................2-11 2.4 Integrated USIBWC Land Management Alternative ...............................................2-11 2.4.1 Levee System Management.............................................................................2-11 2.4.2 Floodway Management ...................................................................................2-12 2.4.3 Maintenance of Pilot Channel and Irrigation Facilities...................................2-16 2.4.4 Sediment Management ....................................................................................2-16 2.5 Targeted River Restoration Alternative....................................................................2-16 2.5.1 Levee System Management.............................................................................2-17 2.5.2 Floodway Management ...................................................................................2-17 2.5.3 Maintenance of Pilot Channel and Irrigation Facilities...................................2-19 2.5.4 Sediment Management ....................................................................................2-20 2.6 Comparison of Alternative Features.........................................................................2-20 2.7 Environmental Measures and Associated Projects...................................................2-20 2.7.1 Linear Projects.................................................................................................2-20 2.7.2 Point Projects...................................................................................................2-25 2.7.3 Summary of Alternatives by Project ...............................................................2-25 i January 2004 River Management Alternatives for the RGCP Biological Assessment Contents 2.8 Implementation Timetable........................................................................................2-29 2.8.1 Linear Projects.................................................................................................2-31 2.8.2 Point Projects...................................................................................................2-32 SECTION 3 INTERRELATED STUDIES...................................................................3-1 3.1 dRAFT eNVIRONMENTAL iMPACT iMPACT - River Management Alternatives for the Rio Grande Canalization Project................................................3-1 3.2 Biological Assessment - USIBWC Rio Grande Projects: American Dam to Fort Quitman, Texas .....................................................................3-1 3.3 Environmental Assessment for Operation and Maintenance of the Rectification Project.........................................................................................3-1 3.4 Rio Grande Rectification Project Mitigation Assessment..........................................3-2 3.5 Bridge of Americas Replacement EA ........................................................................3-2 3.6 American Canal Extension Project EA ......................................................................3-2 3.7 Reconstruction of the American Canal Project EA....................................................3-2 3.8 Rio Grande Management Plan....................................................................................3-3 3.9 Biological Assessment of Spoil Removal in the RGCP.............................................3-3 3.10 EIS for El Paso-Las Cruces Sustainable Water Project..............................................3-3 3.11 Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act Report for the El Paso- Las Cruces Regional Sustainable Water Project ........................................................3-4 3.12 Biological Assessment for the El Paso-Las Cruces Regional Sustainable Water Project...........................................................................................3-4 3.13 RGCP Threatened and Endangered Species Survey Technical Report......................3-4 3.14 Alternatives Formulation Report................................................................................3-5 3.15 City of Las Cruces Biological Evaluation..................................................................3-5 3.16 Reformulation of River Management Alternatives for the Rio Grande Canalization Project................................................................................3-6 SECTION 4 ECOLOGICAL SETTING.......................................................................4-1 4.1 Climate .......................................................................................................................4-1 4.2 Soils and Geology.......................................................................................................4-1 4.3 Hydrology...................................................................................................................4-2 4.4 Vegetation...................................................................................................................4-2 4.4.1 Historic Vegetation............................................................................................4-2 4.4.2 Invasive Species................................................................................................4-3 4.5 Wetlands.....................................................................................................................4-5 4.6 Vegetation Community Classification.......................................................................4-6 4.6.1 Riparian Communities.......................................................................................4-6 4.6.2 Uplands..............................................................................................................4-8 ii January 2004 River Management Alternatives for the RGCP Biological Assessment Contents 4.7 Reference Communities .............................................................................................4-8 4.8 Vegetation Management Within the RGCP .............................................................4-11 4.8.1 Leased Areas...................................................................................................4-11 4.8.2 Mowed Areas...................................................................................................4-12 4.9 Aquatic Communities...............................................................................................4-13 4.9.1 Historic Aquatic System..................................................................................4-13 4.9.2 Current Aquatic Communities.........................................................................4-13 SECTION 5 METHODOLOGY....................................................................................5-1
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