Environmental Flows Recommendation Report. Final Submission to the Environmental Flows Advisory Group Nueces River and Corpus Christi and Baffin Bays Basin and Bay Area Stakeholder Committee, and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality

The Environmental Flows Recommendations Report of the Nueces BBEST is comprised of eight major sections, plus supporting appendices. These eight major sections may be categorized into four broad subject areas described as follows. Sections 1 and 2 provide general overviews of the SB3 environmental flows process and the characteristics of the Nueces River Basin, the Nueces – Rio Grande Coastal Basin, and the associated bay systems. Environmental flow analyses performed by the Nueces BBEST in general accordance with SAC guidance are summarized in Sections 3, 4, and 5, focusing successively on instream habitats, estuarine habitats, and the integration of these analyses. Environmental flow regime recommendations of the Nueces BBEST are provided in Section 6. Finally, research, data collection, and monitoring activities identified as priorities by the Nueces BBEST for adaptive management are summarized in Section 7.

Readers simply seeking the environmental flow regime recommendations of the Nueces BBEST may proceed directly to Section 6. Readers seeking a deeper understanding of the scientific bases for the environmental flow regime recommendations, however, are encouraged to consider summary information in Sections 2, 3, 4, and 5, alphabetically listed references in Section 8, and comprehensive appendices. All appendices are available in electronic format on a compact disc included with this report.