Schedule for Furti 

 Rulemakings 



This program describes addi- 

 tional amendment proceed- 

 ings that are intended by tlie 

 Council tor further revisions. In 

 order to assure that these further 

 revisions are adopted in an orderly 

 manner, the Council commits to the 

 following schedule: 



A. Mainstem Coordi- 

 nation Plan 



On or before May 1 . 200 1 , the 

 Council will solicit recommendations 

 for a mainstem coordination plan, sim- 

 ilar to a subbasin plan. The plan will 

 consider ways in which the hydrosys- 

 tem operations called for in the bio- 

 logical opinions could be adjusted so 

 as to assure that these operations meet 

 the needs of ESA-listed stocks and 

 the dictates of the Northwest Power 

 Act. The hydrosystem measures con- 

 tained in this plan will also provide 

 necessary guidance to the Council's 

 subbasin planning process. 



The plan will include, as appropri- 

 ate, specific measures such as stan- 

 dards for systemwide coordination, 

 flow regimes, spill, resei"voir eleva- 

 tions, water retention times, passage 

 modifications at mainstem dams, 

 operational requirements to protect 

 mainstem spawning and rearing 

 areas, and operational requirements 

 to protect resident tish and wildlife. 

 The Council plans to complete 

 this rulemakmg by October 200 1 . 



B. Objectives for 

 Basin level Envi- 

 ronmental Charac- 

 teristics 



The Council has requested review 

 by the Independent Scientific Advi- 

 sory Board of the basin level environ- 

 menlal characteristics contained in 

 the Appendix to this program by .lime 

 2001 . Following this review, if fur- 

 ther changes arc merited, the Council 

 will request recommendations on or 



before October 2001 and consider 

 amendments to these objectives, with 

 final amendments adopted by .luly 

 2002. The date of completion may 

 vary depending on the comments 

 received and issues raised. 



C. Province Level 

 Goals, Objectives, 

 AND Strategies 



The Council will continue to work 

 with interested parties to develop 

 potential goals, objectives, and strate- 

 gies at the level of ecological prov- 

 inces. The Council expects that the 

 infomiation developed for, and in, the 

 subbasin planning process will also 

 infomi the province level elements, and 

 help shape the subbasin plans so that 

 they are coordinated with the plans of 

 other subbasins in their province. 



At this time, the Council is not 

 scheduling a further nilemaking for 

 province level goals, objectives, and 

 strategies. If further information is 

 developed that merits such amend- 

 ments, the Council will solicit recom- 

 mendations and accept amendments. 



In the course of adopting subbasin 

 plans, the Council will consider how 

 the proposed plans fit with one 

 another within and among provinces. 

 The Council expects that, at the 

 conclusion of the subbasin planning 

 process, it will conduct a specific 

 amendment process to incoiporate 

 specific provincial visions, objec- 

 tives, and strategies. 



D. Subbasin plans 



In .lanuai-y 2001. the Council will 

 issue a call tor recommendations lor 

 subbasin plans. Recommendations 

 will be received on or before May 

 1,2001; November 1. 2001; May 

 1, 2002; November 1, 2002; May 1. 

 2003; November 1. 2003; May 1. 

 2004; and Ni)vember 1, 2004. fhe 

 Council will make a decision on each 

 subbasin plan within one year of its 



receipt, unless otherwise agreed by 

 the recommending party. 



In other words, subbasin plans can 

 be submitted on any of these dates 

 during this three-year period, and the 

 date e)f final decision will be one year 

 or less after receipt. For example, a 

 plan submitted on November 1, 2002, 

 will be acted upon by November I, 

 2003. 



The Council is taking this 

 approach to assure that subbasin 

 plans can be submitted when ready, 

 and also to assure that the parties 

 working on a plan within a subbasin 

 have a reasonable opportunity to 

 come together on a common plan. 

 The Council recognizes that the 

 timing for submission of plans will 

 vary depending on a number of fac- 

 tors, including the level of inftirma- 

 tion and planning already available in 

 a subbasin and the working relation- 

 ship among the participants. 



Under the Northwest Power Act, 

 there is no requirement of consensus 

 in order for a recommendation to 

 be submitted to the Council and it 

 is possible that different parties will 

 submit different plans for a given 

 subbasin. However, the level of sup- 

 port by the affected parties in a sub- 

 basin for a plan can be an important 

 factor in gauging how well the 

 plan meets the standards of the 

 Northwest Power Act, and whether 

 that plan can be effectively imple- 

 mented. Thus, the Council strongly 

 encourages interested parties to work 

 together as much as possible to pres- 

 ent a single, well-supported plan for 

 each subbasin. 



2000 COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN FiSH AND WILDLIFE PR 



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