Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado
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Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/html/RI html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved IOMSt ream Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem Committee on Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Water Science and Technology Board Commission on Geosciences, Environment, and Resources National Research Council National Academy Press Washington, D.C. Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/html/R2html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS - 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W. * Washington, DC 20418 NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee re- sponsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance. Support for this project was provided by the Bureau of Reclamation under Cooperative Agreement # 1425-98-FC-40-22700. Cover: Photo of the Colorado River by David Rubin, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA. Copyright 1999 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/html/R3html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved COMMITTEE ON GRAND CANYON MONITORING AND RESEARCH JAMES L. WESCOAT, JR. (Chair),University of Colorado, Boulder TRUDY A. CAMERON, University of California, Los Angeles SUZANNE K. FISH, University of Arizona, Tucson DAVID FORD, David Ford Consulting Engineers, Sacramento, California STEVEN P. GLOSS, University of Wyoming, Laramie TIMOTHY K. KRATZ, University of Wisconsin, Trout Lake Station, North Boulder Junction WENDELL L. MINCKLEY, Arizona State University, Tempe PETER R. WILCOCK, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland National Research Council Staff JEFFREY W. JACOBS, Project Study Director ANITA A. HALL, Project Assistant zzz.. Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/httnl/R4html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD HENRY J. VAUX, JR. (Chair),University of California, Oakland CAROL A. JOHNSTON (Vice Chair), University of Minnesota, Duluth RICHELLE M. ALLEN-KING, Washington State University, Pullman GREGORY B. BAECHER, University of Maryland, College Park JOHN S. BOYER, University of Delaware, Lewes JOHN BRISCOE, The World Bank, Washington, D.C. DEMISE FORT, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque STEVEN P. GLOSS, University of Wyoming, Laramie EVILLE GORHAM, University of Minnesota, St. Paul WILLIAM A. JURY, University of California, Riverside GARY S. LOGSDON, Black & Veatch, Cincinnati, Ohio RICHARD G. LUTHY, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania JOHN W. MORRIS, J, W. Morris Ltd., Arlington, Virginia PHILLIP A. PALMER, DuPont Engineering, Wilmington, Delaware REBECCA T. PARKIN, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C. JOAN B. ROSE, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg R. RHODES TRUSSELL, Montgomery Watson, Pasadena, California ERIC F. WOOD, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey Staff STEPHEN D. PARKER, Director CHRIS ELFRING, Senior Staff Officer LAURA EHLERS, Senior Staff Officer JEFFREY W. JACOBS, Senior Staff Officer JEANNE AQUILINO, Administrative Associate MARK GIBSON, Research Associate ANITA A. HALL, Administrative Assistant ELLEN de GUZMAN, Senior Project Assistant ANIKE JOHNSON, Project Assistant Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/httnl/R5html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved COMMISSION ON GEOSCIENCES, ENVIRONMENT, AND RESOURCES GEORGE M. HORNBERGER (Chair),University of Virginia, Charlottesville RICHARD A. CONWAY, Union Carbide Corporation (Retired), S. Charleston, West Virginia THOMAS E. GRAEDEL, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut THOMAS J. GRAFF, Environmental Defense Fund, Oakland, California EUGENIA KALNAY, University of Oklahoma, Norman DEBRA KNOPMAN, Progressive Policy Institute, Washington, D.C. KAI N. LEE, Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts RICHARD A. MESERVE, Covington & Burling, Washington, D.C. BRAD MOONEY, JR., J. Brad Mooney Associates, Ltd., Arlington, Virginia HUGH C.MORRIS, El Dorado Gold Corporation, Vancouver, British Columbia H. RONALD PULLIAM, University of Georgia, Athens MILTON RUSSELL, University of Tennessee, Knoxville THOMAS C. SCHELLING, University of Maryland, College Park ANDREW R. SOLOW, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts VICTORIA J. TSCHINKEL, Landers and Parsons, Tallahassee, Florida E-AN ZEN, University of Maryland, College Park MARY LOU ZOBACK, U.S. Geological Survey, Menio Park, California Staff ROBERT M. HAMILTON, Executive Director GREGORY H. SYMMES, Associate Executive Director JEANETTE SPOON, Administrative and Financial Officer SAND1 FITZPATIUCK. Administrative Associate MARQUITA SMITH, Administrative AssistantlTechnology Analyst Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/html/R6html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self- perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technol- ogy and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administra- tion and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal govem- ment. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 19 16 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the govern- ment, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council. Downstream- Adaptive Management of Glen Canyon Dam and the Colorado River Ecosystem http //www nap edu/openbook/0309065798/html/R7html copyright , 2000 The National Academy of Sciences, all rights reserved Preface On March 26, 1996, the bypass tubes of Glen Canyon Dam were opened for the fist experimental "controlled flood" in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, marking a dramatic physical start for an even broader Adaptive Management Program ("Program"). The Program aims to monitor and analyze the effects of dam operations on downstream resources in the Grand Canyon ecosystem and to use that knowledge to recommend to the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, on a continuing basis, adjustments intended to preserve and enhance downstream values. Responsibility for scientific research and monitoring to support adaptive management rests with the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center ("Center") in Flagstaff, Arizona. During the past two years, the Center has established headquarters and hired staff, worked with stakeholder groups (known as the Adaptive Management Work Group and the Technical Work Group), commissioned a "conceptual model" of the Grand Canyon ecosystem, established protocols for research funding, and let contracts for research and monitoring. These actions have been guided in part by the Center's 1997 Long-term Strategic Plan (Center, 1997) which underwent initial revisions in 1998. As part