Sec. 6. National Academy of Sciences study
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Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary shall enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to carry out a study on water and reservoir management and operation issues along the Rio Grande (including the Heron, El Vado, Abiquiu, Cochiti, Jemez Canyon, Elephant Butte, and Caballo Dams and Reservoirs), which shall include— an evaluation of existing Rio Grande reservoir authorizations and legal requirements; a summary of— the physical-hydrologic understanding of existing Rio Grande reservoir operations; and any potential constraints on the Rio Grande reservoir in light of climate change projections; an identification of opportunities to optimize water storage and management to benefit the Rio Grande ecosystem, irrigators and municipal users, and to promote water conservation through reauthorization of, reoperation of, regulation of, or physical improvements to the reservoirs; an evaluation of the physical-hydrologic feasibility of the identified future reservoir management scenarios; an identification of water use, supply, and accounting impacts to other stakeholders in the State and on the Rio Grande Compact water deliveries; consideration of operations such as— the storage of supplemental water acquired by and under the control of the Bureau of Reclamation; the carryover storage of San Juan-Chama Project contract water and Pueblo Prior and Paramount operation water; changes in timing of water released to offset municipal pumping; changes in the timing of storage and release of floodwaters; the reduction of evaporative losses from reservoirs; conservation of water resulting from irrigation operation changes by non-Indian and Pueblo irrigators; the impacts of deliveries of New Mexico Rio Grande Compact water; the impacts of management and operations on recreation and hydropower; the impacts of management and operations on the Rio Grande ecosystem and the habitats that support species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ); and any other factors the Academy determines to be necessary for purposes of fully evaluating opportunities to achieve greater water conservation, drought resiliency, and ecological health; and recommendations for future management scenarios and measures that Congress should take, consistent with section 8 of the Act of June 17, 1902 ( 43 U.S.C. 383 ), the Rio Grande Compact, and applicable State law pertaining to the acquisition and administration of water rights, to assist the agencies in establishing more flexible operating procedures to improve the performance of reservoir operations in accommodating multiple purposes.
The Secretary of the Army and the Secretary may solicit cosponsors for the study under subsection (a), as appropriate, including State or private organizations. On the date on which the National Academy of Sciences completes the study under this section, the National Academy of Sciences shall make available to the public the results of the study. Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the National Academy of Sciences shall submit to the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary a report that contains a summary of the results of the study conducted under this section.
The Secretary of the Army and the Secretary shall provide for due deference to the study and report prepared under this section in water management activities undertaken by the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary in the Rio Grande.
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