Click photo to enlarge
The calm river water reflects the red cliffs that are illuminated by the setting sun on the upper section of the Green River below the Flaming Gorge Dam.
THE GREEN RIVER, Daggett County - From wide, chocolate-colored rivers flowing through redrock deserts to pristine bubbling creeks in high-elevation meadows, Utah's moving waters provide thrills, spills and an ability to quench all kinds of thirsts.
    When it comes to wild and scenic settings, Utah rivers are second to none. Federal recognition and accompanying protection of those rivers is another story.
    More than 11,400 miles of rivers in the United States have been designated as part of the Wild and Scenic Rivers (WSR) system since an act of Congress in 1968, but not 1 inch of Utah water is on the list.
    That could change in the coming years.
    As as
Wild and Scenic Rivers by the numbers

    11,408.9 Total miles in the national Wild and Scenic Rivers System as of June
    204 Utah river segments under consideration for Wild and Scenic Rivers (WSR) designation: Forest Service (86) and Bureau of Land Management (118)
    1,127 Miles of river segments identified by the BLM in its Utah jurisdiction as eligible for a WSR designation. Notable rivers with eligible sections include Colorado, Dirty Devil, Fremont, Green, San Juan, San Rafael, Virgin and White.
    861.7 Miles of river segments in the Forest Service's Utah jurisdiction for possible WSR inclusion. Notable waters with eligible sections include Corn, Fish, Gooseberry, Huntington and Little Cottonwood creeks and American Fork, Green Logan, Ogden, Provo and Weber rivers.
    8 Number of government agencies and entities nationally involved in the WSR system: Army Corps of Engineers, BLM, Fish and Wildlife Service, Forest Service, National Park Service and Tribal Lands and local and state governments.
    Source: U.S. Forest Service, BLM and Wild and Scenic Rivers Coordinating Council
part of updating their management plans, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have identified more than 200 segments of Utah waterways for possible designation in the WSR system.
    Water is important in Utah - the second driest state in the nation - and that may partially explain why no waterways in the state have made the list during the 39 years since the act became law. Everyone from anglers and recreationalists to farmers and ranchers and local, state and federal governments have a vested interest in water.
    Response has been mixed and passionate. Comments range from support for complete protection for all of Utah's rivers to opposition over concerns the designations could
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overly restrict water use rights and the ability to utilize the resource, and the resources around the rivers, in the future.
    Amid the debate, the Utah Rivers Council (URC), a Salt Lake-based nonprofit conservation group, has stepped up its efforts to get the state its first Wild and Scenic Rivers System designations.
    The Rivers Council recently asked for volunteers to "adopt" and promote an eligible waterway in Utah, and organized a float on a 7-mile
Wild and Scenic River Designations

    Designated river segments are classified and administered under one of the following, as defined in the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968. Number of miles of rivers with the specified designation, as of June, included in parenthesis.
    Wild river areas (5,384.7 miles): Those rivers, or sections of rivers, that are free of impoundments, generally inaccessible except by trail (no roads), with watersheds or shorelines essentially primitive, and having unpolluted waters.
    Scenic river areas (2,505.3 miles): Those rivers, or sections of rivers, that are free of impoundments, having shorelines or watersheds largely primitive and shorelines largely undeveloped, but accessible in places by roads (i.e., roads may cross but generally not parallel the river). These rivers are usually more developed than wild and less developed than recreational.
    Recreational river areas (3,518.9 miles): Those rivers or sections of rivers that are readily accessible by road or railroad, may have some development along the shoreline, and may have had some impoundment or diversion in the past. This classification does not imply the segment must be managed or developed for recreational activities.
    Source: Wild and Scenic Rivers Coordinating Council
stretch of the Green River below Flaming Gorge Dam the group believes is an ideal candidate for the WSR system.
    "We aren't looking to change anything from the way it has been. We just want to keep everything status quo to protect the rivers we can with the designations they deserve," said Mark Danenhauer, river solutions coordinator for the URC, during the float. "All people have to do is experience the river to know why it should be designated."
    Allies in support of the designation on the Green below the dam include fishing guides, at least one Daggett County Commissioner and the Flaming Gorge District of the U.S. Forest Service, among others.
    "I too am suspicious of government programs that appear to regulate or over-regulate, but there is a need to protect these valuable resources," said Dennis Breer, who owns Trout Creek Flies, a fishing guide service on the Green River out of Dutch John. "Rivers are a precious commodity . . . they aren't making any more of them. I want my granddaughter's children and their grandchildren to have the same opportunity to experience the Green River like I have. A lot of people take rivers for granted and we just can't do that."
   The Process: In December 1994, the BLM, U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service signed an agreement to work together to determine eligibility and suitability of Utah rivers for inclusion in the Wild and Scenic
Rivers under review(.pdf)
Rivers system. The BLM and Forest Service have done so as part of an update of their land management plans. The Park Service has not yet been involved to the same level as its sister federal agencies.
    The WSR system includes three classifications: Wild, Scenic and Recreational. To be eligible, the river or segment must be free-flowing and demonstrate at least one Outstanding Remarkable Value, which includes scenic, recreation, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural or other similar attributes. Restrictions, such as a ban on dam building, are most strict for Wild designations.
    From a list of eligible waterways, agencies must then review the candidates for suitability. It will be up to
Wild and Scenic Green River
one of the state's federal legislators to carry a bill to Congress supporting final designations.
    The Forest Service recently released a list of 86 waterway segments, equaling more than 861 miles, as eligible for the various designations.
    The BLM, using a different approach, has identified 118 waterway segments and 1,127 miles for possible designation. It has moved ahead to determine suitable waterways as part of its the Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument, Dixie and Diamond Mountain resource management plans. Suitability consideration is underway as part of the BLM's Kanab, Moab, Monticello, Price, Richfield, San Juan, San Rafael and Vernal resource management plans.
    The state has also been involved in the process.
    "We want to make sure we go through a thorough process that will evaluate river segments that the agencies have found eligible and that we reach a reasonable determination regarding the suitability," said Val Payne, a spokesman from the Governors Office of Public Land Policy Coordination. "We want to determine the benefits or the detriments to local economies that might be associated with any designations. We hope to answer questions and alleviate fears on both sides."
    The Forest Service is working on a draft Environmental Impact Statement for its suitability review and plans to release it for public comment in November or December. The agency plans on having a final plan by March 1. Visit www.fs.fed.us/r4/rivers/ for more information.
    Public comments can be made on the Moab and Price management plans and others will be available for comment soon. Visit www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/prog/blm_special_areas/wild_and_scenic_rivers.html for more information on the BLM plans.
    Focus on the green: Other than a dam to control flows and release of colder water to allow for trout fisheries, the scenery has not changed much in the Red Canyon section of the Green River since John Wesley Powell explored it in 1869.
    The Green River corridor below the dam is full of wildlife and provides world-class fishing for trout in its 30 or so miles to the Colorado state line.
    Deer, moose, bighorn sheep, elk, bear, river otter and numerous waterfowl, raptors and song birds can all be seen in the corridor.
    Those scenic conditions draw as many as 2,000 people floating the river on a busy summer weekend.
    Daggett County Commissioner Hank Gutz says he frequently enjoys a summer float on the river with family and friends and he supports a Scenic designation on the Green.
    "This is a tremendous river for recreation. Rent a boat or bring a boat. You can't beat it. You feel like you are in the wild down here," Gutz said. "People have a place to come and realize the beauty of this piece of country. We don't want to see development along the banks."
    Rivers like the Green, where regulations have long been in effect, probably stand the best chance of earning a Wild and Scenic Rivers designation in Utah.
    Connie Blaine, a Salt Lake City resident, "adopted" the Green River below the Flaming Gorge dam as part of a URC program and plans on being a vocal supporter of a WSR designation.
    "I want to do whatever I can to make sure this river is protected and never spoiled," she said, sitting in her inflatable kayak on the Green. "I know a designation won't do any more than just keep it the way it is, but that's good enough for me. The river restores me and helps me remember what is important. I realize how lucky, how very lucky, I am to live in this state and have access to a place like this."
    -- Brett Prettyman can be contacted at brettp@sltrib.com or 801-257-8902.