II

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2284

To redesignate the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument as

a national park, to establish the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National

Conservation Area, to establish the Curecanti National Recreation Area,

to include the Gunnison River in the Nation’s Wild and Scenic River

System, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 14 (legislative day, JULY 11), 1994

Mr. CAMPBELL introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To redesignate the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National

Monument as a national park, to establish the Black

Canyon of the Gunnison National Conservation Area,

to establish the Curecanti National Recreation Area, to

include the Gunnison River in the Nation’s Wild and

Scenic River System, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Black Canyon National

5 Conservation Act of 1993’’.
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1 SEC. 2. REDESIGNATION OF THE NATIONAL MONUMENT AS

2 A NATIONAL PARK.

3 (a) REDESIGNATION.—The Black Canyon of the

4 Gunnison National Monument is hereby redesignated as

5 the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

6 (b) AREA INCLUDED.—The national park shall con7 sist of the existing Black Canyon of the Gunnison Na8 tional Monument. Any funds available for the purposes of

9 the monument shall be made available for the purposes

10 of the park. All valid existing rights within the monument

11 shall be included in the national park.

12 (c) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of the Interior

13 (hereinafter referred to as the Secretary) shall administer

14 the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in ac15 cordance with this Act and with the provisions of law gen16 erally applicable to units of the National Park System in17 cluding but not limited to the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to es18 tablish a National Park Service, and for other purposes’’,

19 approved August 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16 U.S.C. 1–

20 4), and the Act of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666; 16

21 U.S.C. 461–467). The Secretary shall continue to manage

22 the existing Black Canyon of the Gunnison National

23 Monument pursuant to Presidential Proclamations No.

24 2033 dated March 2, 1933, No. 2286 dated May 16,

25 1938, and No. 2372 dated October 28, 1939; the Act of

26 October 20, 1976 (90 Stat. 2892, Public Law 94–567);
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1 and the Act of July 13, 1984 (90 Stat. 397, Public Law

2 98–357).

3 (d) WATER RIGHTS.—Any reservation of water or

4 water rights arising from the designation of the national

5 park shall not expand or otherwise conflict with in any

6 manner the decreed amounts or uses of the existing re7 served water right for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

8 National Monument. Any reservation of water or water

9 rights for the national park shall be completely coincident

10 with the existing reserved water right for the Black Can11 yon of the Gunnison National Monument and be a mere

12 extension of the Monument’s existing reserved water right

13 through the national park except, that no date of reserva14 tion or appropriation for the national park may be claimed

15 which precedes the date of enactment of this Act. Any res16 ervation of water or water rights for the conservation area

17 shall be deemed to be fully satisfied by deliveries under

18 the water service contract described in section 8(c) herein

19 in any year.

20 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BLACK CANYON OF THE

21 GUNNISON NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA.

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In order to protect that area

23 in Colorado containing the Gunnison Gorge and other

24 unique and nationally important recreational, geologic,

25 ecologic, scenic, educational, and scientific resources of the
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1 public lands (as such term is defined in section 103(e) of

2 the Federal Land Policy and Managment Act of 1976)

3 in and around the lower Gunnison Gorge for the benefit

4 and enjoyment of future generations, there is hereby es5 tablished the Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area

6 (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘conservation

7 area’’).

8 (b) AREA INCLUDED.—The conservation area shall

9 consist of approximately 64,139 acres as generally de10 picted on the map entitled ‘‘Gunnison Gorge National

11 Conservation Area’’ dated 1993.

12 (c) MAP AND DESCRIPTION.—As soon as practicable

13 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall

14 file a map and boundary description of the conservation

15 area designated under this section with the Committee on

16 Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Sen17 ate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the

18 United States House of Representatives. The map and de19 scription shall have the same force and effect as if in20 cluded in this Act, except that the Secretary may correct

21 clerical and typographical errors in such boundary descrip22 tion. The map and boundary description shall be on file

23 and available for public inspection in the offices of the Di24 rector and Colorado State Director of the Bureau of Land

25 Management, Department of the Interior.
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1 (d) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary, acting

2 through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management,

3 shall manage the conservation area to protect its resources

4 in accordance with this Act, the Federal Land Manage5 ment and Policy Act of 1976, and other applicable provi6 sions of law.

7 (e) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing rights,

8 all federal lands within the conservation area and all lands

9 and interests therein which are hereafter acquired by the

10 United States are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of

11 entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land

12 laws and from location, entry, and patent under the min13 ing laws, and from operation of the mineral leasing and

14 geothermal leasing laws and all amendments thereto.

15 (f) HUNTING, TRAPPING AND FISHING.—To the ex16 tent compatible with the purposes for which the conserva17 tion area is established, the Secretary shall permit hunt18 ing, trapping, and fishing within the conservation area in

19 accordance with applicable laws and regulations of the

20 United States and the State of Colorado; except that the

21 Secretary, after consultation with the Colorado Division

22 of Wildlife, may issue regulations designating zones where

23 and establishing periods when no hunting or trapping shall

24 be permitted for reasons of public safety, administration,

25 or public use and enjoyment.
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1 (g) GRAZING.—To the extent compatible with the

2 purposes for which the conservation area is established,

3 the grazing of livestock in the conservation area, where

4 established prior to the date of the enactment of this Act,

5 may be permitted to continue in accordance with the Act

6 of June 28, 1934 (43 U.S.C. 315 et seq.; commonly re7 ferred to as the ‘‘Taylor Grazing Act’’), section 402 of

8 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976,

9 and other laws applicable to such use of the public lands.

10 (h) WATER RIGHTS.—Any reservation of water or

11 water rights arising from the designation of the conserva12 tion area shall not expand or otherwise conflict with in

13 any manner the decreed amounts or uses of the existing

14 reserved water right for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

15 National Monument. Any reservation of water or water

16 rights for the conservation area shall be completely coinci17 dent with the existing reserved water right for the Black

18 Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument and be a

19 mere extension of the Monument’s existing reserved water

20 right through the conservation area; except, that no date

21 of reservation or appropriation for the conservation area

22 may be claimed which precedes the date of enactment of

23 this Act. Any reservation of water or water rights for the

24 conservation area shall be deemed to be fully satisfied by
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1 deliveries under the water service contract described in

2 section 8(c) herein in any year.

3 (i) MOTORIZED VEHICLES.—To the extent compat4 ible with the purposes for which the conservation area is

5 established, the use of motorized vehicles in the conserva6 tion area shall be allowed, but only on routes specifically

7 designated for such use as part of the management plan

8 prepared pursuant to this Act, except where needed for

9 administrative or emergency purposes.

10 (j) VISITOR USE.—Visitor use of the conservation

11 area shall be permitted to the extent compatible with the

12 purposes for which the conservation area is established.

13 The Secretary shall have the power to implement such rea14 sonable limits to such use of the conservation area as he

15 finds appropriate for the protection of the resources of the

16 conservation area, including requiring permits for public

17 use, or closing portions of the conservation area to public

18 use.

19 (k) ENFORCEMENT.—Any person who violates the

20 provisions of this section or any regulation promulgated

21 by the Secretary to implement this section shall be subject

22 to a fine of up to $10,000 or imprisonment of up to one

23 year, or both.
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1 SEC. 4. DESIGNATING THE GUNNISON RIVER AS A WILD

2 AND SCENIC RIVER.

3 (a) DESIGNATION.—Section 3(a) of the Wild and

4 Scenic Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1274(a)) is amended by add5 ing the following new paragraph at the end:

6 ‘‘( ) GUNNISON, COLORADO.—The Gunnison River

7 from the upstream boundary of the Black Canyon of the

8 Gunnison National Monument downstream to the con9 fluence of the Smith Fork, to be administered by the Sec10 retary of the Interior.’’.

11 (b) WATER DEVELOPMENT.—For the purposes of the

12 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, the storage, diversion and

13 consumptive use of the water of the Gunnison River by

14 projects located entirely downstream of the river segment

15 designated by subsection (a) as a component of the Na16 tional Wild and Scenic River System, shall not be consid17 ered to have an adverse effect on the values for which the

18 segment is so designated.

19 (c) WATER RIGHTS.—Any reservation of water or

20 water rights arising from the designation of the Wild and

21 Scenic River shall not expand or otherwise conflict with22 in any manner the decreed amounts or uses of the existing

23 reserved water right for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

24 National Monument. Any reservation of water or water

25 rights for the Wild and Scenic River shall be completely

26 coincident with the existing reserved water right for the
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1 Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument and

2 be a mere extension of the Monument’s existing reserved

3 water right through the designated wild and scenic reach;

4 except, that no date of reservation or appropriation for

5 the Wild and Scenic River may be claimed which precedes

6 the date of enactment of this Act. Any reservation of water

7 or water rights for the Wild and Scenic River shall be

8 deemed to be fully satisfied by deliveries under the water

9 service contract described in section 8(b) herein in any

10 year.

11 SEC. 5. GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN AND VISITOR CEN12 TER.

13 (a) PLAN.—Within three full fiscal years following

14 the fiscal year of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall

15 develop and transmit to the Committee on Energy and

16 Natural Resources of the United States Senate and to the

17 Committee on Natural Resources of the United States

18 House of Representatives a comprehensive plan for the

19 long-range protection and management of the conservation

20 area. The plan shall describe the appropriate uses and

21 management of the conservation area consistent with the

22 purposes of this Act. The plan shall incorporate appro23 priate decisions contained in the Uncompahgre Basin Re24 source Management Plan (completed in September 1988),

25 the Gunnison Gorge Recreation Area Management Plan
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1 (completed on July 24, 1985 and supplemented on July

2 21, 1988). The plan shall also incorporate wildlife habitat

3 management plans that have been prepared for the lands

4 within or adjacent to the conservation area, and shall be

5 prepared in close consultation with appropriate agencies

6 of the State of Colorado and shall utilize information de7 veloped in previous studies of the lands within or adjacent

8 to the conservation area.

9 (b) VISITORS CENTER.—The Secretary is authorized

10 and to the extent appropriated funds are made available

11 directed to establish a visitors center to provide informa12 tion and interpretation of both the Black Canyon National

13 Park and the conservation area.

14 (c) MANAGEMENT OF ACQUIRED LANDS.—Any lands

15 or interests within or contiguous to the boundaries of the

16 conservation area which after the date of enactment of this

17 Act may be acquired by the United States shall be incor18 porated into the conservation area, and shall be managed

19 in accordance with all the provisions of this Act and other

20 laws applicable to the conservation area.

21 (d) LIMITATIONS.—No federally owned lands located

22 within the boundaries of the conservation area shall be

23 transferred out of Federal ownership, or be placed in trust

24 by exchange or otherwise. Any lands within such bound25 aries which as of the date of enactment of this Act are
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1 managed pursuant to section 603 of the Federal Land

2 Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1782)

3 shall continue to be so managed until Congress determines

4 otherwise.

5 SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CURECANTI NATIONAL

6 RECREATION AREA.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to provide for the public

8 use and enjoyment of the lands withdrawn or acquired for

9 and the water areas created by the Wayne N. Aspinall

10 Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project, there is estab11 lished as a unit of the National Park System the Curecanti

12 National Recreation Area (hereafter in this Act referred

13 to as the ‘‘recreation area’’).

14 (b) AREA INCLUDED.—The recreation area shall be

15 comprised of the lands, waters and interests therein within

16 the area generally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Boundary

17 Map, Curecanti National Recreation Area,’’ numbered

18 , and dated . The map shall be on file and available

19 for public inspection in the offices of the Director of the

20 National Park Service, Department of the Interior, the of21 fice of the Rocky Mountain Region, National Park Service,

22 and the office of the Superintendent, Curecanti National

23 Recreation Area, Colorado. The Secretary may make

24 minor revisions in the boundary of the recreation area by
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1 publication in the Federal Register of a revised map or

2 other boundary description.

3 (c) WITHDRAWAL AND TRANSFER OF ADMINISTRA4 TIVE JURISDICTION.—

5 (1) Subject to valid existing rights, all Federal

6 lands and interests within the national recreation

7 area are withdrawn from disposition under the pub8 lic land laws, from location, entry, and patent under

9 the mining laws of the United States, from the oper10 ation of the mineral leasing laws of the United

11 States, and from operation of the Geothermal Steam

12 Act of 1970.

13 (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), ad14 ministrative jurisdiction of such lands is transferred

15 to the National Park Service.

16 (3) The establishment of the recreation area

17 under subsection (a) shall not adversely affect the

18 validity of withdrawals made before the date of en19 actment of this Act for reclamation or power pur20 poses. Operation of improvements on and the man21 agement of the lands occupied by dams, structures,

22 or other facilities appurtenant to the Colorado River

23 Storage Project (42 U.S.C. 620 et seq.) shall be the

24 responsibility of the Bureau of Reclamation. Such

25 lands shall be delineated through a joint agreement
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1 between the Bureau of Reclamation, the National

2 Park Service, and all associated entities. Should the

3 agencies feel it desirable, additional agreements may

4 address sharing of jurisdiction and authorities on

5 the delineated lands. All lands within the recreation

6 area which have been withdrawn or acquired by the

7 United States for reclamation purposes shall remain

8 subject to the purposes and uses established under

9 the Colorado River Storage Project Act of 1956 (42

10 U.S.C. 620 et seq.). The Secretary may exclude any

11 area from the recreation area for reclamation or

12 power purposes upon determining that it is in the

13 national interest to do so.

14 (d) ADJUSTMENT OF BOUNDARY OF GUNNISON NA15 TIONAL FOREST.—The exterior boundary of the Gunnison

16 National Forest is modified to reflect the transfer of juris17 diction under subsection (c), as generally depicted on the

18 map referred to in subsection (b).

19 SEC. 7. ADMINISTRATION OF THE CURECANTI NATIONAL

20 RECREATION AREA.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall administer,

22 protect, and develop the recreation area in accordance

23 with this Act and with the provisions of law generally ap24 plicable to units of the national park system, including the

25 Act entitled ‘‘An Act to establish a National Park Service,
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1 and for other purposes’’, approved August 25, 1916 (16

2 U.S.C. 1–4).

3 (b) RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out

4 this Act, in addition to other related activities that may

5 be permitted pursuant to this Act, the Secretary shall pro6 vide for general recreation uses, including (but not limited

7 to) swimming, fishing, boating, hiking, horseback riding,

8 camping, and picnicking; grazing and the harvesting of

9 hay; the maintenance of roads, stock driveways, and utility

10 rights-of-way; off-road vehicle use below high water levels

11 on designated trails and in designated areas; snowmobile

12 use below high water levels, on frozen lake surfaces, and

13 on related designated access routes; and other such uses

14 as the Secretary may deem appropriate.

15 (c) HUNTING, FISHING, AND TRAPPING.—The Sec16 retary shall permit hunting, fishing, noncommercial taking

17 of fresh-water crustaceans, and trapping on the lands and

18 waters under the Secretary’s jurisdiction within the recre19 ation area in accordance with applicable laws and regula20 tions of the United States and the State of Colorado. The

21 Secretary, after consultation with the Colorado Division

22 of Wildlife, may issue regulations designating zones where

23 and establishing periods when such activities will not be

24 permitted for reasons of public safety, administration, fish

25 and wildlife management, or public use and enjoyment.
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1 (d) ACQUISITION AND DISPOSAL OF LAND.—

2 (1) The Secretary may acquire land or interests

3 in land within, or adjacent to, the boundaries of the

4 recreation area by donation, purchase with donated

5 or appropriated funds or exchange.

6 (2) The Secretary shall sell or exchange such

7 interests as he or she may have in real property and

8 improvements in parcels of 10 acres or less which

9 are encroached upon, as of the date of enactment of

10 this Act, by improvements occupied or used under

11 claim or color of title by persons to whom no ad12 vance notice was given that the improvements en13 croached or would encroach upon such parcels, and

14 who in good faith relied upon an erroneous survey,

15 title search, or other land description indicating that

16 there was not such encroachment to such persons so

17 encroaching. Such lands so conveyed shall be re18 moved from the recreation area.

19 (3) No such tract shall be sold or exchanged for

20 less than its appraised fair market value, except that

21 the purchaser shall not be required to pay for any

22 value the purchaser or the purchasers predecessors

23 in interest have added to the land. Nothing in this

24 Act shall relieve any person from liability to the
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1 United States for unauthorized use of the land prior

2 to conveyance of title by the United States.

3 (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

4 proceeds of any such conveyance shall be available to

5 offset the administrative expenses thereof.

6 (5) The authority granted by this section shall

7 expire at the end of the 10-year period beginning on

8 the date of enactment of this Act or the completion

9 of an approved boundary survey, whichever is later.

10 Sales for which an application has been made in ac11 cordance with this section prior to the expiration of

12 such 10-year period may be consummated after the

13 10-year period. Any encroachments not resolved

14 within this 10-year period may be considered tres15 pass and the Secretary will take such action as is

16 appropriate.

17 (e) CONVEYANCE OF RIVERWAY TRACT.—

18 (1) The Secretary shall convey to the city of

19 Gunnison, Colorado, or to such other public agency

20 as the Secretary deems appropriate, for an amount

21 not to exceed fair market appraised value, the land

22 known as the Riverway Tract in section 8, township

23 49 north, range 1 west, New Mexico principal merid24 ian.
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1 (2) Such conveyance shall be for recreational

2 purposes only, shall be subject to such assurances as

3 the Secretary may require, and shall be in accord

4 with the provisions of the Recreation and Public

5 Purposes Act (43 U.S.C. 869 et seq.).

6 (f) WATER RIGHTS.—The water requirements of the

7 Curecanti National Recreation Area shall be satisfied sole8 ly by the exercise, in accordance with existing law and Sec9 tion 8 of this Act, of water rights associated with the

10 Wayne N. Aspinall Unit.

11 SEC. 8. OPERATION OF FEDERAL WATER PROJECTS.

12 (a) OPERATION OF THE WAYNE N. ASPINALL

13 UNIT.—The Secretary is authorized until such time as the

14 contract referenced in section (b) is executed, to operate

15 the Wayne N. Aspinall Unit (Unit) of the Colorado River

16 Storage Project in a manner which complies with the re17 quirements of subsection (c) and enhances flow conditions

18 for existing water users, the national park, national con19 servation area and Wild and Scenic River designated by

20 this Act. In determining such operations, the Secretary

21 shall take into consideration existing water rights associ22 ated with the Unit, authorized project purposes and any

23 Unit contracts; and shall consult with the Bureau of Rec24 lamation, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land

25 Management, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Western
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1 Area Power Administration, the State of Colorado, local

2 water users agencies, contractors who purchase of federal

3 power from the Unit, and such other entities as the Sec4 retary may deem appropriate.

5 (b) OPERATION OF THE TAYLOR PARK RES6 ERVOIR.—The Secretary shall operate the facilities of the

7 Unit and the Uncompahgre project in a manner consistent

8 with the Taylor Park Reservoir Operation and Storage

9 Exchange Agreement dated August 28, 1975, by and be10 tween the United States of America, the Colorado River

11 Water Conservation District, the Upper Gunnison Water

12 Conservation District, and the Uncompahgre Valley Water

13 Users Association, as amended.

14 (c) WATER SERVICE CONTRACT.—The Secretary

15 shall execute a water service contract described in the no16 tice to the Federal Register of Wednesday, May 8, 1992,

17 (Vol. 57, No. 88) providing for the delivery of water to

18 the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and

19 Conservation Area. The water service contract shall fully

20 satisfy and fulfill the purposes of Sections 2, 3 and 4 of

21 this Act.

22 (d) COMPLIANCE WITH EXISTING LAW.—The Sec23 retary shall implement this Act in a manner fully consist24 ent with and subject to the Colorado River Compact, the

25 upper Colorado River Basin Compact, the Water Treaty
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1 of 1944 with Mexico, the Boulder Canyon Project Act, and

2 the Boulder County Project Adjustment Act. The Sec3 retary shall operate the Wayne N. Aspinall Unit for the

4 purposes specified in this Act and in the Colorado River

5 Storage Project Act of 1956, the Colorado River Project

6 Act, and any other applicable Federal reclamation law or

7 decree that governs the allocation, appropriation, develop8 ment and exportation of the waters of the Colorado River

9 Basin; provided that nothing in this section shall be con10 strued to affect in any way—

11 (1) the allocations of water secured to the Colo12 rado River Basin States by any compact or decree,

13 or

14 (2) any Federal environmental law, including

15 the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et

16 seq.).

17 (e) The Secretary is prohibited from using funds

18 from the sale of electric power and energy to carry out

19 the purposes of this Act. If the Secretary finds that in

20 any year that the enactment of this Act does cause a re21 duction in net offsetting receipts generated by all the pro22 visions of this Act, these costs shall be nonreimbursable.
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1 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 There are hereby authorized to be appropriated such

3 sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Æ

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