Brown and Caldwell Engineers EIS for Historic Colorado River Water Accord

WALNUT CREEK, Calif.--(Business Wire)--The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and seven Western states have
reached consensus on Colorado River water allocations during times of
drought. And at the center of this historic accord, which was signed
by the Secretary of the Interior yesterday in Las Vegas, is an
Environmental Impact Statement developed by national environmental
engineering firm Brown and Caldwell.

"The EIS included several alternatives for managing Colorado River
Water," says Ruben Zubia, Brown and Caldwell's project manager. "The
preferred alternative is a huge push forward to balancing the needs of
users in the Upper and Lower Colorado River basins for years to come."

In a release announcing the issuance of the final EIS in November,
Commissioner of Reclamation Robert Johnson said, "These proposed
operational guidelines will provide Colorado River water users and
managers in the U.S. a greater degree of certainty about how the two
large reservoirs on the Colorado River will be operated under low
water conditions, and when -- and by how much -- water deliveries will
be reduced in the Lower Basin in drought or other low reservoir
conditions."

Brown and Caldwell assisted the USBR in developing and evaluating
alternative operating strategies; as well as hydrologic and water
quality modeling; evaluation of potential environmental impacts;
public outreach; and coordination with stakeholders, cooperating
agencies and regulatory agencies. The company also prepared an
Environmental Impact Statement documenting study findings and a
Biological Assessment for Endangered Species Act consultation with the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The final EIS presented six alternatives -- Basin States,
Conservation Before Shortage, Water Supply, Reservoir Storage, No
Action, and the Preferred alternatives. The Preferred Alternative
included:

-- Discrete levels of shortage volumes associated with Lake Mead
elevations to conserve reservoir storage and provide water
users and managers in the Lower Basin with greater certainty
to know when, and by how much, water deliveries will be
reduced in drought and other low reservoir conditions

-- Coordinated operation of Lake Powell and Lake Mead determined
by specified reservoir conditions that would minimize
shortages in the Lower Basin and avoid the risk of
curtailments in the Upper Basin

-- A mechanism to encourage and account for augmentation and
conservation of water supplies, referred to as Intentionally
Created Surplus (ICS), that would minimize the likelihood and
severity of potential future shortages

-- Modification and extension of the Interim Surplus Guidelines
through 2026

Ratified by Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Arizona,
California and Nevada, the agreement was adopted by Interior Secretary
Dirk Kempthorne yesterday in Las Vegas. It will take effect in January
2008, and be used each year through 2026 to develop the Annual
Operating Plan for Colorado River reservoirs.

Established in 1947, Brown and Caldwell is a multi-disciplined
environmental engineering and consulting firm. The employee-owned
company is headquartered in Walnut Creek, Calif., and employs more
than 1,500 people in 45 offices nationwide. Engineering News-Record
ranks Brown and Caldwell 48th among the nation's top 500 engineering
firms, 36th among the Top 200 environmental firms, 21st largest in the
Water Supply market and 8th largest in the Sewer/Waste market.

Brown and Caldwell
Audrey Moore, 925-210-2423 (Marketing Manager)

Copyright Business Wire 2007