Washington, D.C. – The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today issued guidelines for the Water Conference to be held on April 5 from 2:15 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Hart 216. The guidelines are below. These guidelines will be posted on the committee website. The deadline for submissions is March 9 at 12:00 p.m. EST. Submissions must be submitted electronically to Water_Conference@Energy.Senate.Gov. Directions for Submittals: The six topics below delineate the expected areas of discussion. The question under each topic heading is provided only to help frame responses. Proposals may be for near or long-term solutions and may be directed at federal, state or private actions. Address any one or more of the listed topics. Do not renumber or rearrange the order of the topics. If you wish to address an issue that is not listed, please add that topic to the end of the designated list as a separate Word document. The Six Topics for Discussion: 1. Water Supply and Resource Management Coordination Is there a need for improved coordination of water supply activities and water resources management at the local, state and/or national levels, and if so, what form should this coordination take and how should it function? What has been the experience with regional, river basin and watershed-based planning efforts and conflict resolution? What lessons can be learned from these and other models for water supply coordination and water resources management? What role should the federal government play in this area? 2. Role of the Bureau of Reclamation in the 21st Century What should the future role of the Bureau of Reclamation be in the West? Should the Bureau undertake water supply or supply augmentation activities which are designed primarily for municipal and industrial purposes, such as the Title XVI Program? Please also include comments on potential financing mechanisms such as grants or loan guarantees. What role should the Bureau play with respect to addressing: the West’s future water needs; drought and flood planning and response; water infrastructure, including dam safety and site security; facility operation and maintenance; rural water needs, including in Indian country; hydroelectric power; recreation; watershed restoration; and water use efficiency? 3. Indian and Federal Reserved Water Rights What effort should be made by the federal government to encourage the adjudication or settlement of Indian water rights claims? Should a similar effort be made to quantify other federal reserved rights? Are adjudications an appropriate means to quantify those rights? 4. Conservation and Technological Developments What potential exists and what should be the federal government’s role in enhancing the available water supply through the development of new technologies, conservation, metering, more efficient storage, water banking and other water transfers? 5. Knowledge of Water Resources Given the fundamental role that water plays in dictating the quality of life and economic opportunities in our communities, do we have the level of scientific understanding needed to assess accurately the sustainability of the surface and groundwater resources upon which we depend? Do we have an adequate scientific understanding to address potential water use conflicts? What initiatives should be undertaken to improve our scientific understanding in these areas? 6. Drought What role can the federal government play in helping states anticipate and manage responses to drought or other extreme hydrological changes? Are there new projections on the scope and the length of the current drought? What are the impacts on water and power generation in the West? What range of ideas and/or policies should be encompassed in a comprehensive National Drought Strategy? Conference Submittal Rules: ! Limit your response to no more than 5 single-spaced pages per question topic. ! Submit your response to each question topic as a separate Word document. (Separating your responses into single Word documents will make review and web posting of selected proposals much less difficult.) ! Include your name and association at the top of each page of your responses. ! Use 12-point Times New Roman font. Please provide a one-page executive summary of your entire submission as a separate Word Document with the following contact information at the top of the page: Submitter’s Name/Association:__________________________ Contact:___________________________________________ Email:_____________________________________________ Phone:_____________________________________________ Additional charts, graphics, or specific legislative language are also welcome and may be attached as a separate appendix (beyond the 5-page limit) to the responses. All submitted proposals must adhere to the above rules. Submittals that do not will be returned to senders. These rules are necessary to facilitate the review of the submittals by the senators and staff and to allow for posting of selected answers to the Committee website. Staff contacts for the conference Kellie Donnelly, Nate Gentry, Patty Beneke, and Michael Connor. All submittals will be reviewed; however, only a limited number of participants can be invited to participate in the conference. The limitation is necessary to manage the meeting and permit a useful exchange of ideas. All efforts will be made to ensure that a variety of stakeholders and recommendations are represented. Those whose submissions are selected for discussion at the conference will be notified by March 18th. All proposals to be discussed at the meeting will be posted in advance on the Committee website at www.energy.senate.gov. Chairman Domenici will lead and moderate the conference. Other members of the Senate Energy Committee may be in attendance. The meeting will be open to the public and media.