Pacific Southwest Region 9
Water Division
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ater Pollution Control Program
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Table of Contents
Introduction 4
Water Pollution Control Program 5
Definition of Accomplishments 6
Snapshot of Accomplishments 7
Funding 8
Arizona 9
Hualapai Nation 10
Navajo Nation 12
White Mountain Apache 14
Gila River Indian Community 16
California 19
Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians 20
Coyote Valley Band of Porno Indians 22
Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation 24
Hoopa Valley Tribe 26
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Nevada 29
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe 30
Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of Duck Valley 32
Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California 34
Yerington Paiute Tribe 36
GLOSSARY 38
ACRONYMS 40
Internet Resources 41
Program Contacts 43
On Cover: Tule River at Tule River Indian Reservation, California
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Introduction
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) consists often regions
throughout the United States which include 50 states, 572 federally recognized
Indian Tribes and intertribal consortia, and U.S. territories. EPA's Region 9
works to protect public health and the environment in the southwestern
United States (Arizona, California, Nevada, and Hawaii), territories of the
South Pacific, and 146 federally recognized tribes in the Pacific Southwest.
The Tribal Office of the Region 9 Water Division administers Clean
Water Act (CWA) grants for over 90 tribes in the Pacific Southwest. These
grants are used for surface and groundwater monitoring, assessment, cleanup,
and protection, as well as assistance for wastewater infrastructure and for
prevention of polluted runoff. The purpose of this booklet is to inform the
public about Region 9's tribal CWA Section (§) 106 program and highlight
successful tribal CWA § 106 programs in the Pacific Southwest.
Summit Lake Tribe, Nevada
Yurok Tribe, California
Gila River Indian Community, Arizona
4
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Water Pollution Control Program
The Clean Water Act (CWA) § 106 Water Pollution Control Program assists
Federally-recognized Indian Tribes with achieving environmental results by
developing institutional capacity for administering water quality programs to
protect, improve, and enhance natural resources.
Eligible activities include (but are not limited to):
• Hiring qualified staff to identify and prioritize water quality issues
• Leasing/renting office space and purchasing equipment and supplies
• Developing a Nonpoint Source Assessment Report and Management
Program
• Performing water quality monitoring and assessments
• Conducting studies related to water pollution control
• Implementing and enforcing pollution control measures
• Developing and implementing ground water programs
• Developing Tribal Water Quality Standards (WQS)
• Training and Travel
Nonpoint Source Workshop, Agua Caliente Band
of Cahuilla Indians, California
Monitoring by Owens Valley Indian Water
Commission, California
Page 5
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Definition of Accomplishments
Definition of Accomplishments:
• Implementation of a water quality program
• Development of Water Quality Assessment and Inventory Reports
• Collaboration with other agencies and local communities
• Adoption of Tribal Water Ordinances
• Development of Water Quality Standards
• Implementation of other CWA grant programs including CWA Section
319 Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Program
Results of Successful Water Quality Programs Include:
• Improvements in water quality
• Protection of water bodies and water resources
• Community effort and involvement
• Knowledge of water quality conditions on Tribal lands
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Navajo Nation
Certificate of EPA Approval of Navajo Nation's
Program Authorization to administer the Water
Quality Standards Program, January 2006
Cover of Gila River Indian Community's NFS
Assessment Report
Page 6
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Snapshot of Accomplishments
CWA §106 Program Activities
As of 2006, 95 tribes in Region 9 have been determined eligible to receive
CWA Section 106 funding, the largest group nationwide. A large percentage
of these tribes have implemented their water quality programs through
monitoring the surface and ground waters on their reservations based on
their EPA approved QAPPs. About half of the tribes have done intensive
monitoring and submitted 305(b) Reports. More than half have identified
sources of polluted runoff and developed NFS Assessment Reports and
Management Plans to implement management measures to improve and
maintain water quality. Several tribes have matured to a level of developing
tribal approved WQS and EPA approved WQS.
Page?
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Funding
The Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 106, Water Pollution Control Program
(WPCP), began funding tribes in 1990 with 7 tribes and nearly $1 million.
Presently WPCP funds 95 of the 146 tribes in Region 9 with an annual allocation
of $7.5 million.
Historical CWA 106 Funding for Region 9
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1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Fiscal Year
-•- Eligible Tribes -•- Funding Level
$9,000,000
--$8,000,000
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Hualapai Yavapai- Apache
Yavapai-Prescott -Yavapai-Apache
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Indian Lands
Arizona
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Hualapai Nation
Introduction
The Hualapai Reservation encompasses approx-
imately one million acres of land on the southern rim
of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. It is bordered on
the north by a section of the Colorado River that
extends 108 miles, on the south by the lands of the
State of Arizona, on the east by the Cononino Pla-
teau, and on the west by the Lake Mead National Park.
There are two satellite areas of the Reservation which
are noncontiguous to the main body. One of these
satellite areas is located at the community of Valen-
tine, about fifteen miles west of Peach Springs, and
the other area is on the Big Sandy River, about fifty
miles southwest of Peach Springs. Approximately
2,300 tribal members live on the reservation.
Sampling basic water quality parameters just below Diamond
Spring by Anthony Raymond, Water Resources Technician.
Historically, the tribe has maintained a society
based on hunting, gathering, and farming. In recent
years, the economic base of the Tribe has shifted to
forestry, recreation, tourism, wildlife, and livestock.
Most of the business and infrastructure is located in
Peach Springs, the principal city of the Reservation.
Since 1995, the tribe has hosted approximately 14,000
visitors per month every summer at its Grand Can-
yon West river-raft launching and heliport facilities.
The tribe operates a river-rafting business that runs
on sixty miles of the Colorado River, from Diamond
Creek to Pierce Ferry.
The reservation's surface waterbodies consist of
small seeps, springs,and meandering creeks. The tribu-
taries drain three major watersheds — Diamond
Creek, Spencer Canyon, and Truxton Wash — which
supply water to the Colorado River. The Colorado
River contains human waste from numerous rafters
and power boat vacationers on the river, and the drain-
age from these tributaries contributes additional sedi-
ment and nutrient loadings from flash floods and runoff
into the river. As a result of all this pollution, the
Colorado River has become impaired for recreation
and freshwater habitat use.
Description of Program
The tribe's Water Pollution Control Program
began in 1991, when it received its first Clean Water
Act (CWA) Section §106 grant. Using CWA §106
funds, the tribe developed its first EPA-approved
Quality Assurance Program Plan (QAPP) and devel-
oped and implemented its water quality monitoring
program.
The Tribe's monitoring network currently con-
sists of three U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) stream-
flow-gauging stations, eleven miscellaneous surface-
water sites, and fifty-two springs. These sites have
been continually monitored for basic water quality
parameters, which include pH, total dissolved solids,
salinity, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, fecal
coliform, and temperature. In addition, the tributar-
ies on the reservation have been continually moni-
tored to ensure that they are not contributing to fur-
ther impairment of the Colorado River.
Students represent-
ing several tribes
participating in a
receni waier quality
monitoring class
cosponsored by the
Hualapai Tribe and
EPA Region 9 at
the Hualapai
Reservation.
Page 10
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The Music Mountain High School Science Class of the Hualapai
Reservation sampling for macro-invertebrates in Peach Spring
Canyon Creek.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
Many of the tribe's Nonpoint Source (NFS)
projects are targeted at springs, streams, and seeps
which were identified as impacted or potentially
impacted by NFS because they were water sources
for livestock and wildlife. This livestock and wildlife
watering resulted in sediment loading of the springs
and water quality problems caused by bacteria,
nitrogen, and phosphorus. Through the installation
of management measures, these impacted water-
bodies were either restored or protected from fur-
ther degradation. The removal of feral animals and
the construction of reservation boundary fencing to
exclude their access has significantly improved the
water quality on the reservation. In addition, the
removal of sagebrush and the fostering of native
grasses to reduce erosion and sediment loading have
also helped to improve the water quality. Coliform
counts indicate that these improvements have signifi-
cantly lowered the nutrient and total and fecal
coliform levels, as well as the ambient temperature
of the waterbodies.
The tribe developed its Water Quality Standards
and Certification Programs under the CWA§303 and
§401. It also developed its EPA Network Readiness
grant application and workplan. Funding from this
grant was used to develop the tribe's water quality
database. The system uses Microsoft Access applica-
tions for multivariate approaches to looking at data.
Currently, the system is used for entering and storing
all water quality data, including all applicable field pic-
tures which will be used to perform water quality
trend analysis.
In 1995, the tribe developed its Water Quality
Assessment Report in accordance with CWA §305(b).
This report was updated in 2005, and contains moni-
toring data which indicates significant environmental
improvement, with respect to use-support. This
improvement is the result of the implementation of
the NFS and wetlands restoration projects which
primarily focused upon feral animal exclusion from
primary wetland habitats. The data indicates that there
are decreased levels of fecal coliform, conductivity,
TDS.and turbidity, and soil erosion and increased wet-
land vegetation.
The tribe's Water Quality Assessment Report also
indicates that all 170 perennial river and stream miles
were assessed along with fifty-two springs, represent-
ing all of the perennial stream miles on the Reserva-
tion and approximately ninety-eight percent of all
springs. Since the implementation of the NFS and
wetland projects, these waters now support certain
types of recreation, wildlife, livestock, and municipal
and domestic uses.
Water Quality Technicians Anthony Raymond and Harry
Sahneyah, sampling basic water quality parameters in
Spencer Creek.
Page 11
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Navajo Nation
Introduction
The Navajo Nation encompasses 17,627,262 acres
and is situated in the Four Corners Region, with the
Reservation extending into the states of Arizona, New
Mexico, and Utah. The Navajo Nation has 255,543
enrolled members with approximately 180,000
residing on the Reservation. There are approximately
39,184 miles of streams, mostly intermittent or
ephemeral, 17,057 acres of lakes and ponds, and five
major drainage systems: San Juan River, Little Colo-
rado River, Lower Colorado River-Lake Mead, Upper
Colorado River-Dirty Devil, and Rio Grande-Elephant
Butte. These five systems are further divided into
thirty-three watersheds. Other water resources on
the Navajo Nation include groundwater (five major
hydrologic basins), wetlands, springs, and seepages.
Surface water on the Navajo Nation historically
served as the primary source of potable water.
Today, potable water comes primarily from ground-
water sources. Currently, surface water is used as a
dependable water source for farming and livestock
production and plays a significant role in Navajo
culture.
Description of Program
The Navajo Nation's Water Quality Program
began in October 1992, and its first Clean Water Act
(CWA) §106 grant was received in August 1993.
From 1993 to 1995, the program began assessing avail-
able Navajo Nation water quality data in the U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS) and EPA databases. It
established a water quality monitoring network
utilizing active USGS and Navajo Water Resources
stream-gauging sites, collected water quality samples
that were analyzed for conventional water quality
parameters, planned for the tribal water quality code
and standards, and drafted a Tribal Nonpoint Source
Assessment Report.
Melinda Deswood-Renst taking a turbidity measurement
from Lukachukai Creek
From 1996 to 1998, the program developed a
water quality database, drafted the initial Navajo
Nation Water Quality Assessment Report in accor-
dance with CWA §305(b), established an educational
outreach component, including the Adopt-A-Stream
program (a program that gives middle school and
high school students an opportunity to learn about
water quality monitoring), and prepared a Nonpoint
Source Assessment Report and Management Plan
(NFS A&MP).
In 1999, the nation implemented a new water qual-
ity monitoring strategy, drafted annual water quality
watershed monitoring reports, began collecting
benthic macroinvertebrate data, and implemented
extensive rulemaking and associated enforcement.
The nation also used other EPA grants including
Nonpoint Source (NFS) grants to implement the
management measures outlined in the (NFS A&MP),
and the recommendations from the wetlands grants
to further its water pollution control efforts on criti-
cal waterbodies. The management measures identi-
fied sediments and nutrients such as nitrogen and
phosphorous water quality parameters that they plan
to address. In addition, surface water quality assess-
ment reports have been developed for the Chinle
Creek Watershed (2001), Lower San Juan-Four
Corners Watershed (2003) and the Lower Lake
Powell Watershed (2005).
Page 12
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Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
In August 1999, the Navajo Nation Clean Water
Act (NNCWA) was signed into tribal law after pas-
sage by the Navajo Nation Council (NNC). In
November 1999 and July 2004, the Navajo Nation
Surface Water Quality Standards (NNSWQS) were
approved and amended by the NNC Resources Com-
mittee. Uses currently designated for surface waters
in the NNSWQS include primary human contact,
secondary human contact, domestic water supply,
agriculture water supply, fish consumption, aquatic
habitat, and livestock and wildlife watering. The
NNSWQS and associated program authorization
application are currently undergoing review for EPA
approval.
During the past six years, water quality assess-
ments have been conducted in over seventy water-
bodies in twenty-three watersheds. Long-term sur-
face water quality monitoring sites have been estab-
lished and are monitored at least yearly in order to
characterize the quality of Navajo Nation waters.
Long-term water quality monitoring consists of
obtaining samples of metals, nutrients, bacteria,
organics, and inorganics for analyses by a contract
laboratory. Program staff collects physical parameters
(pH, temperature, conductivity/TDS, reduction/
oxidation potential, dissolved oxygen, salinity) at each
monitoring site. All field and laboratory water qual-
ity data collected for surface waterbodies since 1995
are organized by watershed into a water quality
database. Queries within the database provide quick
determinations of compliance with the Nation's
Water Quality Standards.
Findings of the nation's water quality monitoring
program indicate numerous numeric NNSWQS
exceedances from mining operations including those
for mercury, aluminum, and other compounds. The
nation is in the process of creating a methodology to
determine if individual waterbodies are in attainment
of their designated uses based on Navajo's numeric
surface water quality standards. Once these deter-
minations are made, the waterbodies and watersheds
can be managed to protect the designated uses.
Biological assessments are also being conducted at
five reference sites to characterize base-line biologi-
cal conditions in surface waters. All water quality
monitoring and biological assessments are conducted
in accordance with EPA-approved Quality Assurance
Program Plans (QAPPs).
The NPS A&MP identified the following sources
of water quality impairment on tribal land: livestock
grazing and irrigated agriculture; hydromodification;
habitat modification; land disposal; resource extrac-
tion; construction projects;and land development. The
management measures developed to address these
sources of water quality impairment on tribal lands
include: diminishing the impact to upland areas;
intercepting tributary runoff and directing it onto field
plots using low-tech constructions; improving the han-
dling and disposal of pesticides and herbicides; work-
ing with EPA to identify, inspect, and assess poten-
tial pollution sites, manage cleanups and enforcement
activities, and participate in emergency re-
sponses; remediating abandoned mines; sequencing
clearing and grading activities; limiting vegetation re-
moval; using temporary fencing, buffers and additional
building setbacks; limiting land use; developing site
management plans; restoring the site; and reducing
streambank and channel erosion.
In addition, the nation implemented a NPS pro-
ject to address sediment loading from the Asaayi
(Bowl) Lake Watershed into the Asaayi Lake because
the lake is a major recreation area and irrigation
source. The main logging and fire access roads re-
ceived erosion mitigation treatments, minor roads
were closed, and
in some cases
recontoured, and
livestock controls
were installed. As
a result, there has
been a decrease in
sediment loading
that is benefiting
the flora and fauna
in the area.
An example of sediment deposition in
Bowl Creek.
Page 13
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White Mountain Apache
Introduction
The White Mountain Apache Tribe is located in
the east-central region of Arizona, 194 miles north-
east of Phoenix. It encompasses 1.7 million acres
(more than 2,600 square miles) in Gila, Apache, and
Navajo Counties on its ancestral homeland on the
Fort Apache Reservation. The Reservation ranges in
elevation from 2,600 feet above mean sea level, in the
Salt River Canyon on the southwest corner, to more
than I 1,400 feet at the top of Mount Baldy, one of
the tribe's sacred peaks. It includes oak woodlands
and an 800,000-acre Ponderosa pine forest, which sup-
ports a large stand of spruce and fir and is the re-
source base for a thriving tribal forest products
industry.
Within the reservation, there are twenty-six cold-
water lakes and more than 400 miles of streams. The
major water bodies are the East Fork River, North
Fork River, Cedar Creek, Carizo Creek, Cibecue
Creek, Canyon Creek, White River, Salt River, and
Black River. The streams are home to the Apache
trout, a species brought back from the brink of ex-
tinction through the efforts of the Tribe and its many
partners. The primary source of groundwater used
for drinking water is the Coconino aquifer. The Res-
ervation also provides some of the richest wildlife
habitats in the state for elk, deer, sheep, bears, tur-
keys, and eagles.
Description of Program
The White Mountain Apache Tribe began its
Water Quality Program in 1994, when it developed
its Watershed Department and received its first Clean
Water Act (CWA) §106 grant. Its Quality Assurance
Program Plan (QAPP) was completed and approved
by EPA in 1996, and an addendum FishTissue Analysis
was approved by EPA in 2003. The use of water bod-
ies by free range cattle, and the occurrence of
droughts, which cause water levels to drop and
water temperatures to rise, were identified as areas
of concern in previous assessments. As a result, in
accordance with the tribe's EPA-approved QAPP the
environmental staff has continuously monitored
fecal coliform and temperature in priority water-
bodies. These water bodies are used for swimming,
camping, and other recreational purposes, and it is
important to the Tribe to keep them safe and clean.
Soliders Spring - cross section monitoring.
The Watershed Department is also conducting
cross section monitoring to assess the changes in
channel shapes and pebble counts to determine the
size of the sediments in streams at specific locations
on the reservation. A multi-parameter probe is used
to monitor pH, temperature, turbidity, and specific
conductivity. In addition, stream morphology studies,
which examine rock and channel type, are conduct-
ed in order to compare the number of pools formed
in different streams at the same elevation and in dif-
ferent streams at different elevations.
Page 14
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The tribe's Watershed Department has also been
developing a tribal water quality database to ensure
reliable, easy, and secure access to all of the water
quality data that has been collected over the years by
environmental staff, including information on pH,
temperature, fecal coliform, metals, fish tissue, and
nutrients. The Datasight software program is used to
store and analyze the data.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
In 1997, the White Mountain Apache Tribe's
Watershed Department developed a Nonpoint
Source Assessment and Management Plan (NPS
A&MP) which was approved by EPA in 1998. The
Tribe also became eligible for funding under the
CWA §319 Nonpoint Source Pollution Control
Program. Since then, the tribe has been awarded mul-
tiple Nonpoint Source (NPS) competitive grants to
implement its NPS control program and help protect
and restore watershed health through integrated land
management planning and the Tribal project review
process.
One of the tribe's ongoing NPS restoration
projects is at Lofer Cienega, where an eight-foot-tall
fence is being constructed to keep elk from entering
and trampling the stream, destroying wetland spring-
heads, and causing increased sedimentation and tur-
bidity in the water. Another ongoing NPS project is
at Sunrise Ski Resort, where a stream runs through
the parking lot of the resort. In the spring, when the
plowed snow melts and water flow is high, the
resort's parking lot becomes flooded with water that
is sediment loaded and high in turbidity. To correct
this problem, the tribe is replanting wetland
springheads that will help reduce erosion and reroute
the stream so it will no longer run through the
parking lot.
Using CWA § 106 funds, White Mountain Apache
Tribe developed their Water Quality Protection
Ordinance, which requires that tribal waters be free
of toxic substances, such as metals, for the protec-
tion of human health and wildlife. The tribe also
developed and adopted Water Quality Standards,
approved by EPA on September 27,2001. As required
by the CWA the Tribe initiated a tri-annual review of
its Water Quality Standards in 2005.
In June 2002, the Rodeo-Chediski Fire marked
a big change in watershed conditions in the Cibecue
and Carrizo watersheds, which are located upstream
of two White Mountain Apache Tribe communities.
About 470,000 acres were destroyed in the fire, mak-
ing it the largest fire that ever occurred in the South-
west. Nearly 275,000 acres of the reservation were
destroyed, including vast areas of the Ponderosa pine
forest.
The White Mountain Apache Tribe's Water Qual-
ity Department has been monitoring and document-
ing changes in water quality resulting from the fire.
Their findings show that, as a result of the fire, stream
flow levels, which used to be 10 to 15 cfs during the
winter, are now about 3000 to 4000 cfs. These high
levels are causing increased flooding and turbidity,
resulting in a scouring effect which wipes out wet-
land vegetation. As a result, replanting of spring-heads,
revegetation, and bank stabilization has been imple-
mented to help prevent additional erosion.
Water quality sampling of watersheds.
Page 15
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Gila River Indian Community
Introduction
The Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) encom-
passes approximately 580 square miles in central Ari-
zona, adjacent to the Phoenix metropolitan area.
There are approximately 20,000 Pima and Maricopa
tribal members living in the community. The
community's water resources are influenced by seven
major watersheds. Within the community, there are
approximately 20 million acre-feet of groundwater,
which is used industrially and commercially, and is
the sole source of the community's drinking water.
The community has more than eight miles of peren-
nially flowing riverine habitat, including the Salt River
and the Lower Gila River, and I 16 miles of ephem-
eral surface waters, including the Upper Gila River,
the Santa Cruz River, and the Santa Rosa.Vekol, and
McClellan Washes that only flow in response to pre-
cipitation. It also has more than 1,500 acres of wet-
lands, including the Lower Gila River Wetlands and
the Pee Posh Wetlands, more than eighty miles of
canals, and twenty miles of spillage and riparian areas.
The current uses of the community's surface water
resources include recreation, wildlife habitat, fisher-
ies, livestock watering, and agriculture irrigation.
Description of Program
On March 30, 1990, the Gila River Indian Com-
munity was the first Region 9 tribe approved for
Financial Assistance Eligibility (FAE) under the Clean
Water Act (CWA) §106 grant program. Since then,
GRIC has been receiving CWA §106 grant funds to
conduct a variety of water quality activities, including
but not limited to: water quality monitoring in
accordance with its EPA-approved Quality Assurance
Program Plan and Sampling and Analysis Plan; devel-
opment of a water quality database for over 19,000
analyses; development of a Geographic Information
System (GIS) database for geospatial data, including
over twenty complex surface and groundwater map-
ping projects; assessments, characterizations, and
studies, including a Nonpoint Source Assessment
and Management Plan (NPS A&MP); water quality
ordinance development and implementation, includ-
ing a Groundwater Quality Management Ordinance,
associated protection strategy, inventory and map-
ping of all community water wells, and oversight of
groundwater remediation of a petroleum product
plume; providing water quality education to elemen-
tary schools; conducting water quality inspections
and providing compliance assistance at GRIC facili-
ties, and; conducting a Comprehensive Environmen-
tal Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA) type investigation of groundwater for an
approximately twelve-square-mile area for contami-
nants, including but not limited to the chemicals
TCE, PCE, PC A, DCE, DC A, carbon tetrachloride,
1,4-dioxane, benzene, and perchlorate. The objec-
tives of this investigation are to locate contaminant
source areas, identify responsible parties, and miti-
gate the source to protect three local drinking water
sources.
YSI sonde installation for continuous water quality
monitoring at the PeePosh Wetlands.
The tribe is also conducting a nitrate investiga-
tion that evaluates the magnitude of nitrate
contamination across the community, including an
evaluation of vertical distribution and stratification
of the contaminant in the drinking water aquifer. The
study compared nitrate in groundwater conditions
on the community with other groundwater basins
across the state to better understand the extent
of the problem and possible innovative solutions for
mitigation.
Page 16
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In addition, GRIC has developed Water Quality
Indicators that are used to evaluate support of Com-
munity Water Quality Goals and the effectiveness of
GRIC Department of Environmental Quality water
quality programs. For example, Aquatic Ecosystems
Protection is measuread by tracking stream channel
stability, changes in ambient stream chemistry (e.g.,
nutrients, pH, DO), and macroinvertebrate richness,
and Designated Uses Support is measured by track-
ing water bodies that have £ coli, nutrient, and metals
criteria exceedances.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
GRIC's ongoing water quality investigations
include surface water and groundwater sampling and
continuous monitoring and streambed sediment sam-
pling. Data from these investigations are entered into
their integrated water quality database, and are used
to advance water quality assessments, promote the
development and implementation of tribal Water
Quality Standards (WQS), help develop Nonpoint
Source (NFS) management programs with data to
support management decisions, and evaluate water
quality trends.
Surface water sampling is collected seasonally as
flow-weighted composites using the DH-81 Teflon?
sampler (basic ions and inorganics,total and dissolved
metals, and pesticides), along with manual streamflow
measurements and in-situ parameters (pH, tempera-
ture, conductance, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity).
Continuous surface water monitoring is conducted
at the Gila River wetlands with a data-logging water
quality sensor system to measure temperature, con-
ductivity, dissolved oxygen, pH, and turbidity, along
with two continuously recording streamflow gauges
to monitor stream base flows and stormwater dis-
charges. Sampling at the Gila River (1998 - 2004)
has shown a reduction in the average value of tur-
bidity from 99 NATU to 33 NATU (see graph below).
H
<
z
rt
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Average Turbidity Values
in the Gila River
76
Druft SmTiKP Wtuer Qualify Si muhi H 5U ms, L
35
26
o
33
o
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Page 17
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Groundwater sampling is conducted at drinking
water wells, agriculture production wells, and moni-
toring wells to measure the presence of pesticides,
TDS, nitrates, metals, and organic contaminants. Moni-
toring wells are sampled using the low-flow "micro-
purge" sampling technique. To conduct continuous
groundwater monitoring,GRIC installed continuously
recording water level sensors in four monitoring wells.
This data assists GRIC with understanding the
effects of land uses on the Community's ground-
water system, the dynamic hydrologic and water
quality nature of the Gila River Wetlands, and appro-
priate timing of future groundwater quality investiga-
tions, since monitoring wells are typically shallow and
are used as an early indicator of potential future
water quality problems at deeper depths.
An example of grab sampling (water) in the Gila River wetlands.
Using tribal funds, GRIC purchased a Mobile
Water Quality Processing Lab that provides a clean,
air-conditioned room in the field for sampling activi-
ties, including wet-sieve processing of streambed sedi-
ment samples, and "micro-purge" groundwater sam-
pling using plastic sample chambers to ensure no
sample contamination. In addition, a utility trailer
houses a generator, air compressor, pressure washer,
welding equipment, crane, and various tools for
convenience in the field.
In preparing the NFS A&MP, GRIC used moni-
tored data — 19,000 separate water quality analyses
for five key parameter groups of physiochemical,
pathogens, nutrients, metals, and toxics from
stormwater, rivers, canals, agricultural related spill-
age riparian areas, sumps and tailwater, groundwater,
sediment in river bottoms, fish tissue, and macro-
invertebrates — and evaluation techniques, includ-
ing best professional judgment. The assessment
identified the following NFS impacts to the Pee Posh
Wetlands: groundwater containing nitrates and
naturally occurring metals (arsenic and fluoride),
and surface water containing nutrients, pathogens,
TDS, turbidity, sedimentation, toxics, and trash in
the rivers and wetlands. The primary sources of
these NPS impacts include natural, industrial, open
space, rangeland, residential, commercial, agricultural,
and waste disposal sources and hydrological modi-
fication from both on and off of the Community.
To improve the water quality at the Pee Posh
Wetlands, GRIC will implement on-the-ground
management measures with NPS grant funds to miti-
gate the effects of nutrients, pathogens, sediment
and turbidity, toxics, trash, and salt cedar. Short-
term plans include removal of illegal trash dumps,
installation of signs, and other measures to prevent
future dump sites. Future activities will include the
installation of water quality improvement cells and
an inflowing trash reduction feature for both low
flows and larger stormwater flows, and the mitiga-
tion of salt cedar and replacement with native ri-
parian vegetation.
Macroinvertebrate sampling in the Gila River
wetlands.
Page 18
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Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians
Introduction
The Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians
has two noncontiguous land areas in Southern Cali-
fornia. The 250-acre Riverside County portion of
the Reservation, in the eastern Coachella Valley, is
approximately 30 miles east of Palm Springs and 13
miles west of the Salton Sea. The 150-acre San
Bernardino County portion is next to Joshua Tree
National Park in the City ofTwenty-Nine Palms. The
tribe's water quality efforts have focused primarily
on the Riverside County Reservation lands. The pri-
mary surface water on the Riverside portion of the
reservation is the Whitewater River, a perennial
water body which begins its flow near where it
bisects the reservation and, after exiting the Reser-
vation, flows toward the Salton Sea. Tribal monitor-
ing data has revealed that the surface water quality
on the reservation is directly related to the ground-
water and the impaired Whitewater River. In addi-
tion to the intermittent natural flows, the river
conveys wastewater plant discharge, agricultural, and
stormwater runoff through the lower Coachella
Valley.
Surface water sampling on the Whitewater River.
The Whitewater River poses a problem for the
reservation and for the lower watershed down to
the Salton Sea. There is intensive agriculture and
explosive population growth in the northern two-
thirds of the watershed. Impacts to the Whitewater
River stem from both point and nonpoint sources.
The State of California lists the Whitewater River on
the Clean Water Act (CWA) §303(d) list of impaired
surface waters because of exceedances of the bacte-
rial and chemical water quality objectives. Ground-
water is also a concern for the Tribe because there
are increasing water demands from agriculture,
recreation, and population growth on lands adjacent
to the reservation. This has resulted in chronic over-
draft of the tribe's groundwater basin. In addition,
groundwater recharge from the Colorado River
water is having an impact on further degradation of
the area's groundwater quality. This is because the
Colorado River water is of considerably lesser qual-
ity than area groundwater.
Drilling groundwater monitoring well.
Description of Program
Twenty-Nine Palms Band began receiving CWA
§106 funding in 1997. Since that time, long-term
sampling programs for surface water (Whitewater
River) and groundwater have been implemented.
Most laboratory analyses are performed in-house
using the Twenty-Nine Palms Laboratory. The lab
(owned, operated by the tribe, and funded by EPA's
General Assistance Program [GAP], Bureau of Indian
Affairs [BIA], and the tribe) provides laboratory
services to the Tribal EPA, other tribes, and non-tribal
entities. The lab is certified by the State of California
and EPA Region 9. The lab's capabilities include:
microbiology, wet chemistry, organic chemistry,
inorganic chemistry, and molecular biology.
Page 20
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The tribe uses seven groundwater monitoring
wells (four in the semi-perched aquifer, two in the
upper aquifer and one deep well in the lower aqui-
fer). Monitoring wells are sampled routinely for nu-
trients, microorganisms, organic contaminants such
as pesticides, petroleum products, MTBE and other
volatiles, toxic trace metals, and perchlorate. In addi-
tion, surface water samples are collected at four
locations on the Reservation, along the Whitewater
River where preliminary data indicates high
heterotrophic plate counts, total fecal coliform, and
fecal coliform.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
The tribe prepared a Preliminary Water Quality
Assessment Report in accordance with CWA§305(b)
in 1998 which identified contamination of both sur-
face and groundwater on the Reservation. Sampling
and analyses have been conducted for multiple years
along the Whitewater River and in various well loca-
tions under EPA-approved Quality Assurance Project
Plans (QAPPs) for water quality, National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), pesticides, and
nonpoint source. In 2000, the tribe developed and
received approval for the NPS Assessment and Man-
agement Program Plan (NPS A&MP) and became eli-
gible for CWA §319 funding. The Tribe has devel-
oped a multi-user geodatabase system to store moni-
toring data, which is then integrated with the Geo-
graphic Information System (GIS) and modeling
software. This sampling data is being used to identify
trends and changes in water quality on the Reserva-
tion and in the watershed as a whole, as well as to
update the Tribe's CWA §305(b) Report.
The tribe has been working with federal, state,
and local government entities including BIACoachella
Valley Water District, the Valley Sanitation District,
and State Water Quality Control Boards towards
developing Water Quality Standards and ultimately
Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) for the White-
water River. The Valley Sanitation District discharg-
es wastewater just upstream of the reservation.
Besides bacteria and nutrients, the wastewater may
contain endocrine disrupting chemicals which flow
through the Reservation and towards the Salton Sea.
Setting standards and developingTMDLs would ulti-
mately reduce pollutant loading of the Whitewater
River and the Salton Sea.
Groundwater sampling training exercise with various
tribes at Twenty-Nine Palms Reservation.
Surface water sampling training exercise at La Posta.
With the water quality monitoring efforts that
the tribe has conducted over the past several years,
it has been able to identify more specifically the sur-
face and groundwater quality problems on the Res-
ervation and is recognizing trends for both quantity
and quality. The tribe has noted seasonal and spatial
trends for bacteria, nitrates, and sulfates. It has also
found evidence of perchlorate. The data collected
enables the tribe to prevent further degradation of
water quality on the Reservation and engage in con-
structive dialogue with off-reservation jurisdictions
and parties who share an interest in the health of the
water resourcess.
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Coyote Valley Band of Porno Indians
Introduction
The Coyote Valley Reservation encompasses 76
acres located 10 miles north of Ukiah, in Mendocino
County in northwestern California. The Reservation
is bordered by the Russian River and one of its tribu-
taries, Forsythe Creek, and is also traversed by busy
U.S. Highway 101. A key beneficial use for these
waters is as a coldwater fishery, since both water
bodies are anadromous fish streams supporting Chi-
nook salmon and steelhead trout. The tribe has
depended upon these waters for food as well as for
its cultural and spiritual well being. However, over
the years, siltation from timber harvesting, agricul-
tural runoff, cattle grazing, gravel mining, and devel-
opment by upstream and off-reservation landowners
have contributed to the decline of this coldwater fish-
ery. There are 1.6 acres of wetlands on the Reser-
vation, and groundwater sources include three ac-
tive and two inactive wells.
Staff preparing to conduct a bioassessment (spawning survey)
on the Russian River.
Description of Program
Coyote Valley's water quality program began in
1991 as a summer program in water monitoring for
Staff conducting a spawning survey on Forsythe Creek.
tribal youth. This was in keeping with the current
mission of Coyote Valley Tribal EPA, which is to con-
duct environmental projects that spring from tradi-
tional tribal mores, and to educate tribal youth to
their full potential. Since then, tribal youth, under the
supervision of the tribal technical staff, have moni-
tored surface waters bordering the reservation
using an EPA-approved Quality Assurance Program
Plan (QAPP). The Tribal EPA has monitored Forsythe
Creek and the West Bank of the Russian River for
temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity.
Monitoring methods include sampling using tempera-
ture loggers, grab sampling, and rapid bioassessment.
Most of the sampling involves continuous field
measurements including Onset Hobo temps, although
a small number of grab samples are sent to a con-
tract lab. Rapid bioassessment is conducted to assist
with the determination of the health of the river for
fish and other aquatic life. Data is collected into
Boxcar® software which is used to graph hourly
temperatures on a 24-hour basis from May through
October, which is the period critical to juvenile salmo-
noid survival. Tribal EPA conducts winter and spring
spawning surveys and fish counts in its water quality
monitoring program in order to measure progress
in the tribe's restoration activities in and along the
Russian River and Forsythe Creek.
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Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
Coyote Valley's Clean Water Act (CWA) §106
program has been instrumental in identifying sites for
restoration in theTribe's CWA §319 Nonpoint Source
Pollution Control Program, which began in 2001.
After identifying areas of the Russian River and
Forsythe Creek most in need of restoration through
water quality monitoring, the Tribe began stream bank
restoration, using funds from EPA's Nonpoint Source
Program. Since the start of the restoration project,
the Tribe has prevented nearly 10,000 cubic yards of
sediment from entering Forsythe Creek by installing
stream way laybacks and using native plants as vegeta-
tive cover to stabilize the banks.
Improvement in water quality has been demon-
strated through field monitoring and spawning sur-
veys. These studies indicate that, as a result of using
bioengineering techniques to create more and deeper
pools of water, the summer habitat for juvenile salmo-
noids has become cooler. Late springtime surveys of
juvenile Chinook and steelhead populations, using a
snorkel survey protocol as standard operating pro-
cedure, are providing a baseline gauge of stream health
by which the tribe can judge the success of their
restoration efforts.
variables, such as year-to-year weather cycles (hot
years, cold years) and rainfall fluctuation. In the
meantime, three additional grant programs from
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife,
and California Fish and Game augment the tribe's
CWA § 106 grant program to help support an ongo-
ing assessment of the watershed through upstream
stakeholder outreach, education, and cooperation. The
assessment includes stream channel surveys, hydro-
logical flow models, road/culvert impacts, and a site-
by-site prescription for repairs. Now, landowners who
wish to repair stream banks have a comprehensive
framework to base restoration efforts on. These ef-
forts will ultimately benefit Coyote Valley tribal lands
as less silt will enter the channel from overburden. In
addition, planted trees in the riparian zone will help
to hold the banks and provide shade, which yield cool
temperatures for improved salmonoid conditions.
Youth staff counting juvenile Steelhead and Chinook Salmon
on Forsythe Creek.
Overall stream temperature improvement will
take time to demonstrate empirically due to many
Staff retrieving a Hobo temperature gauge on Forsythe Creek.
Data from the tribe's water quality CWA § 106
program have also been used to identify other
polluted runoff on the Reservation. Coyote Valley is
located adjacent to U.S. Highway 101 and has approxi-
mately 300-500 visitors per year. During storm events,
oil and other auto fluids enter the streams. In addi-
tion to water quality data, runoff was observable as
oil film disappeared into the drain and then into the
stream. In 2003, the tribe installed a riparian buffer
zone, the largest in Mendocino County, with a 100 ft.
setback from the high water mark, and native plants
and grasses were planted to act as a filter. As a result
of water quality program efforts, no oil film has been
observed entering the stream during storm events.
Page 23
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Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation
Introduction
The Manzanita Band of the Kumeyaay Nation
(Manzanita) is situated in southeastern San Diego
County, California within 10 miles of the Mexican
Border, and approximately 60 miles east of the
Pacific Ocean. The Manzanita Reservation occupies
approximately 3,580 acres and is comprised of high
chaparral and grazing lands, with elevations ranging
from 3,900 to 5,100 feet above mean sea level. Sur-
face water resources of the Manzanita Reservation
include 7.5 miles of Tule Creek and La Posta Creek
and their tributaries, 9.1 miles of intermittent streams,
21 acres of freshwater wetlands, 14 springs, and the
1.8 acre Manzanita Lake formed by the Manzanita
Dam. Groundwater from springs and wells is the
sole source of drinking water for the Manzanita Res-
ervation. Surface and groundwater uses include rec-
reation, cultural/traditional, agriculture, wildlife and
warm freshwater habitats,and groundwater recharge.
Coliform sampling at Manzanita Lake.
Description of Program
Manzanita's water pollution control program
began in 1998 in order to implement its water qual-
ity management program, including the following
activities: monitoring the quality of groundwater and
Coliform sampling at Manzanita Lake.
surface water in accordance with an EPA-approved
Quality Assurance Program Plan; issuing Water
Quality Assessment Reports in accordance with Clean
Water Act (CWA) §305(b); developing and imple-
menting a Nonpoint Source Assessment and Man-
agement Plan (NPS A&MP) in March of 2000; and
developing and implementing a source water protec-
tion program. Manzanita's surface water monitoring
activities have been severely limited due to several
years of drought in the region.
Manzanita determines its critical water quality
sampling needs using the information from previous
years' CWA §305(b) reports and conducts ground-
water monitoring at least twice a year. Tribal wells
are sampled and the analysis for nitrate-nitrogen is
performed in the Manzanita laboratory using its Hach
DREL-2000 spectrophotometer. For coliform analy-
sis, Colisure media, an incubator, and a UV lamp are
used to determine the presence or absence of total
and fecal coliform. Manzanita has recently purchased
supplies for the enumeration of £ Co// and Entercocci
bacteria for use in 2005. In addition, groundwater
samples are collected and sent to a laboratory to
measure the presence of pollutants, including
general minerals, dissolved metals, radionuclides,vola-
tile organic chemicals, pesticides, and bacteria.
Page 24
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Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
To ensure that its sole source of drinking water is
protected, Manzanita has developed and implemented
a Wellhead Protection Program. Using EPA's Well-
head Analytic Element Model (WhAEM2000) along
with the Calculated Fixed Radius Capture Zone
method, Manzanita delineated fourteen wellhead
protection areas (WHPAs), comprised of sixteen wells.
These methods used several input parameters, includ-
ing discharge (pumping rate), aquifer base
elevation, ravel time (pumping duration), aquifer
porosity, groundwater flow direction, hydraulic
gradient, transmissivity, and saturated aquifer thick-
ness. The WHPA delineations and well locations were
mapped on United States Geological Survery (USGS)
Digital Orthophoto Quarter Quadrangle (DOQQ)
infrared aerial photograph base maps, using Manzan-
ita's Geographic Information System (GIS). The GIS
system also facilitates the identification of potential
areas of contamination and well interference, and is
instrumental in the public education and outreach
activities of its Wellhead Protection Program.
Coliform sampling at Manzanita Lake.
Initial review of the WHPA aerial maps identified
potential contaminant sources for each well, includ-
ing septic wastewater disposal systems, vehicular
activities, agricultural activities, and solid waste dis-
posal sites. The immediacy and degree of risk asso-
ciated with each potential contaminant source will
be evaluated after field inspection and monitoring,
which will be conducted regularly to ensure that in-
formation is updated and accurate. Manzanita's Well-
head Protection Program includes a management plan
for water supply protection and is comprised of the
following components: regular monitoring of water
supply wells and inspection of each wellhead and
surrounding area using a wellhead inspection form;
remediation of existing contamination pursuant to
an applicable remediation plan and a special monitor-
ing plan; prevention of future contamination by post-
ing signage denoting WHPAs; pollution prevention
education and outreach to residents and visitors
through literature and workshops; and implementa-
tion of management measures per its NPS A&MP.
In addition, Manzanita's NPS A&MP identified the
following priority categories of NPS pollution and
associated needs that contribute to diminished
water quality: unrestricted livestock grazing, land
disposal (septic systems, animal waste disposal),
construction (road grading and drainage), erosion and
sedimentation control, spring development and
rehabilitation, and wetlands restoration. During 2000
through 2004, Manzanita, with NPS grant funding and
with guidance from the National Resource Conser-
vation Service (NRCS), improved water quality by
implementing the following successful management
measures that focused on livestock control, erosion
control, revegetation, and stream bank restoration:
installation and inspection of livestock restriction fenc-
ing around the wetland areas and springs; establish-
ment of alternate water sources for livestock; use of
straw bale and sediment basins during grading activi-
ties; construction of check dams made of natural
materials to reduce bank scour by trapping sediment,
slowing water velocity, building up the bottom of the
creek bed, and filling the bank areas scoured by
erosion; and clearing of sagebrush and thinning of
willows to encourage willow growth and native plant
revegetation.
Stream near Hubble Road.
Page 25
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Hoopa Valley Tribe
Introduction
The Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation is the larg-
est in California, encompassing 89,572 acres. The
Reservation is located in the northeastern corner
of Humboldt County in Northern California, about
50 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean, and 300 miles
north of San Francisco. The reservation is nearly a
perfect square with each side 12 miles in length,
making it approximately 144 square miles, and it
encompasses roughly 50 percent of Hupa (Hoopa's
traditional name) aboriginal territory.
The reservation is bisected by the north flowing
Trinity River. The west flowing Klamath River flows
through a small portion of the far northeastern part
of the reservation. A number of smaller streams, with
watersheds less than 6,000 acres in size, flow into
the Trinity and Klamath Rivers within the reserva-
tion. The largest of these include: Mill Creek, Hos-
tler Creek,Tish-Tang Creek, Campbell Creek, Supply
Creek, Soctish Creek, and Pine Creek. Although these
streams are relatively small, each of them provides
habitat for anadromous fish.
The Hupa people's cultural integrity, along with
the physical health of the people is dependant on clean,
healthy water. Since time immemorial, the Hupa
people have inhabited the banks of the Trinity River,
dwelling in pit houses near the mouths ofTrinity River
tributaries. The Trinity River and its tributaries have
proven to be an abundant source of life for the Hupa,
providing fish, drinking water, bathing and many more
beneficial uses throughout the course of the year.
The hydrology of Hoopa Valley is characterized
by relatively wet, cool winters and dry summers. The
reservation is mountainous, ranging in elevation from
320 feet to 5000 feet above mean sea level. The
Valley floor consists of a sequence of prominent
stream terrace benches carved out by the meander-
ing channel of the Trinity River. The terraces repre-
sent ancient to modern flood plain levels. Along the
ancient floodplains, the topography is relatively flat.
These areas are suitable for habitation and have been
designated into "fields" throughout the reservation.
During the rainy season, surface water on the Res-
ervation is abundant. In contrast, groundwater aqui-
fers are quite limited. The total amount of wetlands
on the reservation is estimated at 3,200 acres with
over 98 percent categorized as riparian or wet brush
field. The groundwater basin in the Hoopa Valley is
restricted to alluvial fans which encompass the area
where streams deposit sediment and enter into the
Trinity River.
Lower Tish Tang Creek Continuous Data Recorders (CDRs) site.
Description of Program
Hoopa Valley's water quality program began in
1990 when it received its Financial Assistance Eligi-
bility (FAE) approval for a Clean Water Act (CWA)
§106 Water Pollution Control grant. This grant was
used to assist with the development of the Tribal
Environmental Protection Agency (TEPA) to conduct
water quality planning and management programs on
the Reservation.
Since 1990, the tribe has continuously monitored
its streams for water level, conductivity, pH, tempera-
ture, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and fecal coliform.
Hoopa Valley's Water Quality Standards (WQS),
approved by EPA in 2002, contain water quality crite-
ria that are monitored by environmental staff and are
Page 26
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designed to protect the uses of the reservation's
surface waters. Two of these criteria, temperature
and turbidity, are the keys to the Tribe's efforts to
maintain and restore the natural populations of
migratory salmon and steelhead.
In September of 2002, the Trinity and Klamath
Rivers experienced a massive fish kill, where an esti-
mated 34,000 salmon were killed. The Fish Kill of
2002 was caused by a number of factors in combina-
tion with one another. Increased in-river tempera-
tures and decreased flow, coupled with a large run
size, created stress on returning salmon, which led to
wide spread pathogen infection. Increased water tem-
peratures are closely associated with and probably
caused by decreased flows, which are ultimately con-
trolled by upstream dams. The tribe's temperature
criterion is based on temperature-flow relationships,
and is designed to protect the holding and spawning
of adult salmon in the Trinity River and its tributaries.
Logging is the main economic industry on the Res-
ervation. The Tribe has been concerned about the
soil runoff into streams from logging, which affects
salmon spawning as well as other aquatic life. TEPA
has established, under its WQS, turbidity criteria for
2002 Trinity and Klamath Rivers fish kill.
the Trinity River. TEPA has fifty stations on the reser-
vation where probes record the temperature in the
Trinity River and its tributaries. TEPA also has 13
locations where Continuous Data Recorders moni-
tor temperature, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen
(DO) along with other parameters (see chart below.)
All monitoring data is collected and added toTEPA's
database for analysis.
Trinity River Dissolved Oxygen Levels Over a 5-year Period (2000-2005)
16th
Year
Page 27
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The data is then analyzed for trends and noticeable
violations of existing water quality standards in the
ordinances that are stated in the tribe's Water Qual-
ity Control Plan (WQCP). The tribe can enforce these
ordinances against violators both on and off the
Reservation for degrading, through point source or
nonpoint source pollution, the Reservation's water
bodies.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
Since 1990, the Hoopa Valley Tribe has been suc-
cessful in monitoring and investigating water quality
on the Reservation, based on its EPA-approved Quality
Assurance Program Plan (QAPP). Other water qual-
ity accomplishments include the completion and
approval of its Nonpoint Source Assessment Report
and Management Program (N PS A&MP), which made
it eligible for CWA §319 NPS funding. The tribe uses
its NPS funding to address other pollutants such as
dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, conductivity, phosphates,
nitrates, and soil runoff from logging into the streams
within the reservation. An example of an NPS project
is theAbandonedAutomobile Clean-up Project,where
over 180 abandoned autos were removed from the
banks of nearby creeks/streams, wells, and other
water sources on the reservation. These vehicles were
leaking brake fluid, antifreeze, and hydrocarbons
including diesel and gasoline into the creeks and
streams that could be seen with the naked eye. This
leakage was harmful to the aquatic life and posed a
threat to groundwater quality. As a result of the
cleanup, the number of abandoned vehicle in these
areas has been reduced, and auto fluids are no longer
seen in the water.
The Hoopa Valley Tribe has completed a Water
Quality Assessment Report in accordance with CWA
§305(b) and developed EPA-approved Tribal Water
Quality Standards. The tribe has also developed a
database to store monitoring data, ordinances, and
reports related to water quality. The database stores
all the environmental data in its raw form and all analy-
sis files. The analysis files contain all the information
that has been compiled and graphed so that it can be
easily disseminated to the public. The database also
contains standard operating procedures and the soft-
ware necessary to carry out the functions of the wa-
ter quality program.
CWA §106 funding has also enabled the Hoopa
Valley Tribe to foster relationships with various fed-
eral, state, and tribal agencies to promote and fur-
ther protect the waters of the Hoopa Indian Reser-
vation. It now has cooperative agreements with inte-
gral agencies such as the US Fish & Wildlife Service
(USFWS), North CoastWater Quality Control Board
(NCWQCB).and all of the Klamath BasinTribes. The
working relationships are intended to protect the
long-term beneficial uses and anadromous fisheries
of the Trinity and Klamath Rivers. Through inter-
agency cooperation, the tribe has been able to
accomplish several things including recognizing and
incorporating tribal cultural beneficial uses into the
NCWQCB Basin Plan, and working with USFWS
personnel to develop dissolved oxygen (DO) water
quality criteria for theTrinity River.
Water quality sampling.
Page 28
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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe
Introduction
The Pyramid Lake Paiute Indian Reservation is
located in western Nevada, about 30 miles northeast
of Reno, and encompasses about 474,000 acres.
Pyramid Lake, a slightly saline terminal desert lake,
is located entirely within the reservation. The lake
covers approximately I 14,000 acres and is the focal
point of the reservation. The Truckee River, which
originates in Lake Tahoe, flows through the reserva-
tion for 3 I miles and terminates in Pyramid Lake. The
beneficial uses of Pyramid Lake and Truckee River
include provision of a cold freshwater habitat,
protection of threatened or endangered species,
preservation of indigenous aquatic life, and the
protection of aquaculture. Other water resources at
Pyramid Lake include groundwater, streams, creeks,
wetlands, springs, and seepages. The beneficial uses
of groundwater and wetlands include cultural, indig-
enous aquatic life, livestock watering, and water
quality enhancement. The tribe has depended upon
Pyramid Lake and Truckee River for food, clothing
and shelter materials, and cultural and spiritual health
for time immemorial.
Description of Program
The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe has been investi-
gating its water quality since 1975 and, in 1989,
received its first Clean Water Act (CWA) § 106 grant.
Since that time, the Pyramid Lake Fisheries Depart-
ment staff (from 1989 - 1997) and the Environmen-
tal Department staff (from 1997 - present) have
continuously monitored the water quality of creeks,
Truckee River, and Pyramid Lake on the Reservation,
sampling water for nitrates + nitrites, total ammonia,
total phosphorus, and dissolved reactive phosphorus.
Water is monitored, using a YSI sonde, for water
temperature, pH, total dissolved solids, salinity,
conductivity, and dissolved oxygen. All water quality
monitoring data are kept in the Tribe's water quality
database and used for trend analysis.
The Environmental Department staff has
conducted Rapid Bioassessment to help evaluate the
biological conditions at multiple sites on the Lower
Truckee River. This involves the collection of aquatic
insects, riparian/bank/vegetation/river substrate
assessments, and the collection of water samples at
each site. The data helps the tribe track the health of
the river for the benefit of aquatic life, wildlife, and
the fish of Pyramid Lake. A multi-year Pyramid Lake
Bioaccumulation Mercury Study is underway on Pyra-
mid Lake to address concerns that elevated mercury
loading and bioaccumulation in theTruckee River may
affect the fisheries in downstream Pyramid Lake. This
study includes the collection offish to determine the
extent and causes of mercury in the lake. Recent
findings show that mercury came from the upstream
Truckee RiverWatershed.
Members of the Environmental Department have
been active in stakeholder efforts with state and
local officials, water quality coordination meetings,and
Truckee River Implementation Team meetings for
ongoing Truckee River water quality monitoring and
restoration efforts.
Monitoring with a YSI sonde on the Truckee River.
Page 30
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Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
Since 1989, the Pyramid Lake Fisheries Depart-
ment and the Pyramid Lake Environmental Depart-
ment have been successful in investigating the water
quality on the reservation, based on the tribe's 1992
EPA-approved Quality Assurance Program Plan, in
order to better protect Tribal waters. In 1994, the
tribe's Nonpoint Source Assessment Report and
Management Program Plan (NPSA&MP) was approved
by EPA and the tribe became eligible for funding un-
der CWA §319 Nonpoint Source (NPS) Pollution
Control Program. The tribe has been awarded mul-
tiple competitive NPS grants to carry out its NPS
pollution control program to address pollutants found
through its water quality monitoring program. Spe-
cifically, the NPS program mitigated and prevented
the effects of uncontrolled grazing by cattle that led
to turbidity from soil erosion, nutrient loads, loss of
native vegetation, and destabilized streambanks. This
was accomplished through the implementation of
management measures such as fencing and providing
alternate water sources.
During 1999 to 2004, water quality monitoring
and sampling on the Lower Truckee River has shown
that riparian habitat has improved as a direct result
of the implementation of NPS on-the-ground projects
including the fencing out of livestock and improved
water flow management for cottonwood and willow
trees. The environmental results of the NPS projects
show reduction in velocity and sedimentation and
increased bank stability in the Truckee River. Specifi-
cally, nitrate and nitrite levels have declined from 0.17
mgll in May 2000 to about 0.01 mgll in July 2004 (see
chart below). The riparian areas restored under the
NPS grant program will continue to recover through
the intensive management of cattle grazing, which will
allow the water level to rise back to support native
vegetation and become properly functioning systems.
The water quality monitoring conducted over the
past several years has enabled the tribe to identify
water quality trends, particularly for drought seasons
versus wet seasons. With macro-invertebrate and
fish data collected during the drought years, the envi-
ronmental staff has found that increased nutrients have
resulted in increased algal blooms and higher tem-
peratures in the river which have taken their toll on
water quality and aquatic life. In contrast, during wet
years, water quality monitoring during high river flows
has shown improved water quality and increased
abundant species richness values.
Recently, the tribe developed Water Quality Stan-
dards (WQS) to protect tribal waters. In 2004, the
Tribal Council approved the WQS and a"Water Qual-
ity Enabling Ordinance," which implements the WQS
within the Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation. As of
2006, the Tribe's WQS and program authorization
application are undergoing review for EPA approval.
Nitrate & Nitrite: 1999 - 2004
Lower Truckee River
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Data
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Wadsworth
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Linear (Wadsworth)
Linear (Nixon)
Sample Data
Page 31
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Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of Duck Valley
Introduction
The Shoshone-PaiuteTribes of DuckValley reside
on the DuckValley Indian Reservation located in
southwestern Idaho and northeastern Nevada. The
reservation encompasses approximately 289,820
acres, and has two major terrain types according to
elevation. The first is the basin where the developed
resources are located (community of Owyhee, rural
residences and productive farmlands), and the sec-
ond is the upper elevations on the east and west sides
of the reservation, consisting of rim-rock from
ancient volcanic flows. The Owyhee River system,
which is made up of the Upper (East Fork and South
Fork), Middle (Middle and North Forks) and Lower
Forks of the Owyhee River, is on the southern end of
the Columbia River Basin and flows into the Snake
River. The East Fork Owyhee River provides water
to the Billy Shaw, Sheep Creek and Mountain View
Reservoirs, which are used primarily for fishing. The
river itself is used mainly for irrigation and livestock
watering. The streams flowing from the high eleva-
tions provide recharge water to the East Fork all year.
The primary land uses on the reservation are agri-
culture and livestock grazing. Other water resources
at DuckValley include groundwater, wetlands, springs,
and seeps.
Description of Program
The Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of Duck Valley's
water quality program began in 1997, when the tribes
received their first Clean Water Act (CWA) §106
funds. Since that time, the tribes have continuously
monitored the water quality of creeks, the Owyhee
River, reservoirs, and groundwater on the Reserva-
tion in accordance with its EPA-approved Quality
Assurance Management Program (QAPP). The tribes'
monitoring program includes water quality param-
eters for nutrients,temperature,turbidity, pathogens,
pesticides, and petroleum hydrocarbons.
Mary's Creek - section of a 100-meter measuring tape is visible
on the upper right of the photo. This site is a bioassessment and
a water quality monitoring site.
Before 2003, water quality monitoring occurred
annually, and aquatic insects were collected from three
sites in 2001 and seven sites in 2002. In 2003, water
quality monitoring was increased to allow for sea-
sonal characterization of the water quality and
included Rapid Bioassessment. Rapid Bioassessment
includes collecting aquatic insects and physical habi-
tat such as epifaunal substrate assessment data, bank
stability information, and riparian vegetation assess-
ment. Rapid Bioassessment is conducted on the East
Fork Owyhee River and five of its major tributaries.
It is used to help the Tribes evaluate the health of the
Owyhee River system for aquatic life and wildlife.
The tribes have also completed a well monitor-
ing program. An agreement with the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation resulted in the collection of ground-
water depth measurements of seven monitoring wells
dispersed on the reservation and located mostly on
agricultural land. Water samples were analyzed for
nutrients, trace metals, and pesticides. When com-
paring the results with National Drinking Water Stan-
dards, it was found that one of the seven wells has
exceedance above secondary standards for iron, but
no pesticides were detected. The interpretation of
these monitoring results on well depth trends and
possible contamination from iron and pesticides will
be submitted to Tribal Resource Management.
Page 32
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The confluence of the Mill Creek Tributary/East
Fork of the Owyhee River is located approximately
three miles southeast of the Duck Valley Indian
Reservation boundary, and the Rio Tinto Mine is
located about a mile and a half west of the confluence.
In 2000, in support of EPA efforts to close Rio Tinto
Mine, the tribes' water quality program began water
quality monitoring of Mill Creek and found that it is
impaired by metals, temperature, pH.TDS, turbidity,
andTSS. In addition, acid mine drainage continues to
move from the tailings at the closed mine into the
creek. Data from the tribes' water quality monitor-
ing of Mill Creek are being used to design the
remediation plan for the Rio Tinto Mine site. All
water quality monitoring data are kept in the tribes'
EPA water quality database. The tribes will be work-
ing with a contractor to input the data into EPA
Storage Retrieval Database (STORET). Data entry is
scheduled to begin in early 2006.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
Since 1997, the tribes have been successfully moni-
toring water quality on the Reservation. They have
learned that as a result of the seasonal effects of live-
stock grazing, bacteria counts at some locations
increase substantially from midsummer to Novem-
ber. For this reason, beginning in 2003, three sites
are monitored in December, January and February,
and sixteen sites are monitored from March through
November. Physical habitat data are also collected at
this time.
The tribes drafted their Water Quality Standards
in 2001, but the water quality criteria did not reflect
the seasonal effects of livestock grazing. With the
monthly data that is now being collected, the numeri-
cal criteria in the Water Quality Standards will be
reviewed and modified as necessary. In addition, the
tribes' comprehensive monitoring program will
provide information that is needed for the Water
Quality Assessment Report in accordance with CWA
§305(b) and for interpretive reports that the tribal
government will use for management purposes.
The water quality data collected by the tribes
were used to develop the tribe's Nonpoint Source
Assessment Report and Management Plan (NPS
A&MP) which indicated that nonpoint source pollu-
tion is the primary source of water pollution on the
Reservation. As a result, the tribes became eligible
for funding under the CWA §319 Nonpoint Source
Pollution Control Program in 2000, and received
several competitive NPS grants to carry out its NPS
pollution control program.
Through the NPS grants, the tribes have mitigated
NPS pollution from poorly maintained roads and re-
cent wildfires on the reservation, worked to in-
stall alternative livestock watering, restored springs
previously used for watering, and completed bank res-
toration along the Owyhee River. As a result of man-
agement measures implemented on the Reservation,
the tribes hope to realize water quality improvement
by showing decreases in temperature, turbidity, and
nutrients found in the streams and tributaries of the
Owyhee River. The recent change from annual to
monthly water quality monitoring collection should
allow the tribes to show water quality trends and
improvements. This information will then allow the
tribes to make adjustments to future management
measures implementation to ensure the effectiveness
of their projects. In addition, the tribes are planning
to integrate the biological monitoring data and the
water quality data to give a better picture of the health
of the reservation waters.
Owyhee River at the Tribal Ranch, a bioassessment sampling site.
Page 33
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Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California
Introduction
Carson River Watershed, surface water sampling
upstream ofNonpoint Source Stewart Ranch Project.
The Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California is
comprised of four communities located in western
Nevada and eastern California. Carson, Stewart, and
Dresslerville Communities are located in Nevada
while Woodfords Community is located in Alpine
County, California. The tribe also has at least ten
additional uninhabited parcels and holds interests in
about 61,000 acres of allotment land. These lands
are located in the southeastern region of traditional
Washoe territory, which encompasses both the east
and west slopes of the Sierra Nevada and adjoining
valleys centered around LakeTahoe.
The tribe has employed a Watershed Protection
Approach (WRA) as the framework for meeting the
Tribe's water resources challenges. The WPA coor-
dinates any point source, nonpoint source, wetland
area, surface water, groundwater, and drinking water
programs in support of the watershed approach. The
tribe's Unified Watershed Assessment identified six
hydraulic areas, prioritized based on water quality:
Doud Springs, Bryant Creek, Jacks Valley Creek,
Indian Creek, and James Canyon Creek in the Carson
Watershed; and Upper and Lower Clear Creek in
the Clear Creek Watershed. The designated benefi-
cial uses of all surface water include, at a minimum,
the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and
wildlife, and recreation in and on the water. The
traditional, spiritual, and physical life of Washoe
Tribal members is focused around Lake Tahoe, the
numerous springs/hot springs, and the Carson, West
Walker, and Truckee Rivers.
Description of Program
Washoe Tribe's water quality program began in
1998 when it received its first CleanWaterAct (CWA)
§106 grant. Since then, the Washoe Environmental
Protection Department (WEPD) staff has put in place
a regimented routine water quality monitoring
program, based on their EPA-approved Quality
Assurance Program Plan (QAPP), defining the water
quality conditions that will allow the tribe to better
understand their surface water resources. The pro-
gram will also help to ensure that tribal natural
resources are used in a traditional and customary
manner to better promote the health and well being
of the tribe and members of the tribal communities.
Surface water sampling during spring runoff (first time this
ephemeral stream has had flows in over 7 years), Pine Nut
Mountains.
The WEPD monitors surface water at fourteen
sites, primarily in the Carson River and Clear Creek
Watersheds, for physical, inorganic, biological, and
metals parameters including total phosphorus, color,
temperature, turbidity, total suspended solids, total
coliform, nitrate, and iron. In addition, during spring
and fall runoff periods, the tribe monitors for organic
parameters and pesticides. Clear Creek at Stewart
Community has been monitored closely for total
phosphorus, temperature, and turbidity due to
historical conditions, including a high flooding event
Page 34
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in 1997, which caused negative impacts such as
degradation of the creek channel and the floodplain;
loss of riparian vegetation; and surrounding
development pressure.
For several years, WEPD has been conducting
aquifer characterization studies to investigate the
quality of the tribe's groundwater resources and iden-
tify potential impacts for future management. Washoe
Tribe is developing their own water quality labora-
tory to increase institutional capacity and provide
faster turnaround time in receiving water quality
analytic results. WEPD staff conducts community
outreach and education programs including "Washoe
on the River Day," which allows staff to discuss
water quantity and quality issues with their local tribal
youth and community members. WEPD staff
participation at meetings on local, state, and federal
levels for water quality protection on tribal lands
has provided the WEPD staff the ability to bring
issues to the forefront and build partnerships.
Washoe On The River Day: Education and Outreach
for water protection.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
The WEPD staff has been successful in investigat-
ing the water quality on tribal lands in order to bet-
ter protect their waters. In 1999, the Tribal Council
approved a water code which protects the quality of
Washoe's water resources for present and future
generations. WEPD developed a water quality data-
base in 2003 to track water quality and surface water
data trends over time. The tribe is in the process of
developing and revising its Water Quality Standards
for approval by the Washoe Tribal Council.
The tribe developed an approved Nonpoint
Source Assessment Report and Management Program
Plan (NPS A&MP) and became eligible for funding
under the CWA §319 Nonpoint Source Pollution
Control Program in 2000. The tribe carried out a
multi-year project funded by the Nonpoint Source
(NPS) program on the Carson River. The program
addressed temperature and turbidity water quality
concerns, as identified in the water quality monitor-
ing program, by stabilizing and revegetating the
riverbanks within the boundaries of the reservation.
Carson River Watershed, surface water sampling down-
stream of Nonpoint Source Stewart Ranch Project.
Over time, Washoe Tribe's water quality moni-
toring results have shown seasonal trends in
parameters such as high turbidity, temperature, and
bacterial levels in the Carson River and the Clear
Creek water systems. The tribe's EPA-approved
Sampling and Analysis Program (SAP) and QAPP pro-
vide a systematic means to obtain and evaluate data
that will allow the tribe to more effectively manage
its surface water resources. WEPD plans to con-
tinue its monitoring program to determine the causes
of these water quality pollutants.
Water quality monitoring on Clear Creek at
Stewart Community has enabled WEPD staff to iden-
tify water quality pollutants that are negatively
impacting the riparian area such as heavy sediment
loading, turbidity, high fecal coliform, low dissolved
oxygen, and physical (high sediment loading) param-
eter trends. In 2004 and 2005, the tribe was awarded
NPS grants to begin restoration work on Lower Clear
Creek including streambank restoration. Long-term
results will reduce turbidity and sediment, and
correct temperature impairments.
Page 35
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Yerington Paiute Tribe
Introduction
TheYerington Paiute Tribe is located in western
Nevada, approximately 85 miles southeast of Reno,
nearYerington, Nevada. The reservation has two non-
contiguous land areas: a 22-acre parcel located within
the City of Yerington's boundaries, and a larger
reservation of 1,631 acres located 10 miles north of
the City of Yerington.
The Yerington Paiute Tribe recognizes that protec-
tion of groundwater is vital to the subsistence of its
tribal members because groundwater is the only
source of drinking water on the reservation. The
tribe owns and operates a municipal water system
that serves ninety homes and provides water to
multiple administrative buildings including the Tribal
Administration building,Tribal Health Clinic, and Social
Services/Education building. The remainder of the
residents on the reservation get their drinking water
from private domestic wells.
There are two surface water conveyances on the
reservation. The Campbell Canal is a partially un-
lined irrigation water delivery canal that originates
from the diversion of water from the Walker River,
just southeast of the Yerington Anaconda Mine site,
and flows north through the Reservation. The
Wabuska Drain is an irrigation return-flow drain that
originates immediately north of the Yerington
Anaconda Mine site and flows north through the
reservation to the Walker River. The Wabuska Drain
operates primarily by collecting return flows from
crop irrigation and by intercepting shallow ground-
water (see map of the area above right)
In response to concerns expressed by local resi-
dents, U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) offi-
cials investigated and determined that the Yerington
Anaconda Mine site exhibits radiation levels 200 times
above probable naturally occurring levels in soils.
Although elemental uranium occurs naturally in the
area, in addition to past Vat Leach extraction pro-
cessing (mining activities), appear to have resulted in
a significant increase in uranium concentrations at
Yerington,
Nevada area.
the mine site. Currently, the mine site includes a large
pit containing groundwater and numerous unlined
evaporation ponds containing primarily storm water.
Groundwater is also being pumped and stored in lined
evaporation ponds on the site to prevent contami-
nated groundwater from migrating to the north
toward the Reservation.
Description of Program
The Yerington Paiute Tribe's water quality pro-
gram began in 2000, when the tribe received its first
Clean Water Act (CWA) §106 grant and established
a Water Quality Monitoring Program. Since May
2002, the Yerington Paiute Environmental Office has
been monitoring water quality on the Reservation
under an EPA-approved Sampling and Analysis Plan
(SAP). The Environmental Office conducts quarterly
sampling on the reservation to evaluate potential
impacts from the Yerington Anaconda Mine site and
other potential nonpoint sources, such as naturally
occurring mineral deposits and agricultural runoff.
The tribe collects groundwater samples from a
network of municipal supply and monitoring wells.
In addition, when surface water is present, samples
are collected from three locations in the Campbell
Canal, and two locations in the Wabuska Drain. The
Page 36
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tribe's water quality technicians measure and record
field parameters, using aYSI 600 XL Sonde and aYSI
500. Field parameters include water levels, pH,
temperature, conductivity, and dissolved oxygen.
Groundwater and quality control samples, which are
collected using a submersible pump, are submitted to
a contract laboratory for analysis of contaminants of
concern. Current site investigations being conducted
at the site by the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO)
as a result of a Unilateral Administrative Order for
Initial Response Activities (UAO 0-2005-2011) at the
Yerington Anaconda Mine site have identified con-
taminants of concern including uranium, thorium, ra-
dium, gross alpha and gross beta. As a result, the
tribe added uranium analysis to the monitoring pro-
gram in August 2002. The tribe will also add radium
226/228, gross alpha, and gross beta to the list of field
parameters to be analyzed during the 2005 - 2006
quarterly monitoring period.
Water Quality Accomplishments
and Environmental Results
The Yerington Paiute Tribe has identified arsenic
and uranium as contaminants of concern in
groundwater on the reservation. Arsenic concen-
trations, which may be naturally occurring, routinely
exceed the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) in
the municipal wells. Uranium, which may be naturally
0.100 -
0.090 --
0.080 --
go,4
E 0.060
o
'
a
u
§
U
0.050
0.040 --
This graph represents multiple
sampling events for uranium on
the reservation. Notice that
there were six samples over the
MCL taken from private resi-
dential wells.
0.030
0.020 --
0.010 --
0.000
Q1
occuring, has been detected above the MCL in one
monitoring well (MW-7 [see figure below]) on the
reservation. In October 2004, EPA sampled private
residential drinking water wells on the reservation
and uranium was detected in several residential wells
at concentrations up to three times the current MCL
(0.030 mg/L). As a result, ARCO, the potentially
responsble party for the Yerington Anaconda Mine, is
voluntarily supplying bottled drinking water to
residents and administrative buildings on the
reservation. The tribe continues to routinely monitor
these contaminants to ensure safe drinking water for
tribal members.
In an effort to protect water quality on the reser-
vation, the Yerington Paiute Tribe has also developed
and implemented a Source Water Assessment and
Protection Plan and prepared an EPA-approved
Nonpoint Source Assessment and Management Plan
(NPS A&MP). In addition, it conducts ongoing over-
sight and monitoring of the progress on the Yerington
Anaconda Mine site, and provides community
outreach and environmental education. The tribe is
also in the process of developing a water quality
database to store data collected from the tribe's
Water Quality Monitoring Program and from other
monitoring activities conducted on or near the
reservation, and will use this data for historical
reference.
Uranium
-»- DW-4/5
-•-MW-10
-X- MW-7*
o Private Residential Wall
MCL
Q2 Q3
Quarterly Sampling (2000-2005)
Page 37
Q4
MW-7* not sampled in Q4.
-------
GLOSSARY
Algal Blooms: Simple rootless plants that grow in sunlit warm waters in proportion to the amount of available
nutrients. They can affect water quality adversely by lowering the dissolved oxygen in the water.
Alluvial Fans: Sand deposited by flowing water, and when seen from a distance sometimes resembles a fan like
shape.
Aquifer: An underground geological formation, or group of formations, containing water. Aquifers are sources
of groundwater for wells and spring
Anadromous Fish: Fish that migrate from the sea up a river or stream to spawn.
Benthic Macro invertebrate Sampling: A method of determining water quality based on biologic characteristics
of an aggregate of invertebrate organisms living on or at the bottom of a body of water.
Benzine: A liquid mixture of various hydrocarbons.
Berm: An edge or shoulder running alongside a road, canal, etc.
Bioaccumulants: Substances that increase in concentration in living organisms as they take in contaminated air,
water, or food because the substances are very slowly metabolized or excreted.
Culvert: A drain or channel crossing under a road.
DCA: 1,2-Dichloroethane (1,2-DCA) is a colorless, oily, organic liquid with a sweet, chloroform-like odor. The
greatest use of 1,2-dichloroethane is in making chemicals involved in plastics, rubber and synthetic textile fibers.
Other uses include: as a solvent for resins and fats, photography, photocopying, cosmetics, drugs; and as a fumi-
gant for grains and orchards.
Dissolved Oxygen (DO): The oxygen freely available in water, vital to fish and other aquatic life.
DOQQ: USGS Digital Orthophoto Quarter Quadrangle is a computer-generated image of an aerial photograph in
which the image displacement caused by terrain relief and camera tilts has been removed. It combines the image
characteristics of a photograph with the geometic qualities of a map.
Ephemeral Streams: A stream lasting a very short time, usually lasting one day.
Epif aunal Substrate: The amount and variety of hard stable substrates available to benthic macro invertebrates
(i.e., substrates free of fine sediments).
Fecal Colif orm: Bacteria found in the intestinal tracts of mammals. Their presence in the water or sludge is an
indicator of pollution and possible contamination by pathogens.
Geographic Information System (GIS): A computer system designed for storing, manipulating, analyzing, and
displaying data in a geographic context, like a map.
Grab Sampling: Collecting a single sample at a particular time and place that represents the composition of the
water, air, or soil at that time and place.
Groundwater: The supply of fresh water down beneath the earth's surface, usually in aquifers, which supply
wells in spring.
Hydro modification: Alteration of the hydrologic characteristics of coastal and noncoastal waters, which in turn
could cause degradation of water resources.
Intermittent streams: Showing water only part of the year.
Page 38
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Management Measures: Formerly known as Best Management Practices. Methods that have been determined to
be the most effective, practical means of preventing or reducing pollution from nonpoint sources.
Nonpoint Source: A diffuse pollution source (i.e. without a single point of origin or from a specific outlet). Rain-
fall, snowmelt, or irrigation runs over land or through the ground, picks up pollutants, and deposits them into
rivers, lakes, or the ocean or introduces them into groundwater. Common nonpoint sources are agriculture,
forestry, construction, and mining.
PCE: Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) is a colorless organic liquid with a mild, chloroform-like odor. Its greatest use is
in the textile industry, and as a component of aerosol dry-cleaning products.
Perchlorate: Perchlorate is both a naturally occurring and man-made chemical. Most of the perchlorate manufac-
tured in the United States is used as the primary ingredient of solid rocket propellant. Wastes from the manufac-
ture and improper disposal of perchlorate-containing chemicals are increasingly being discovered in soil and
water.
Point Source: A stationary location or fixed facility from which pollutants are discharged; any single identifiable
source of pollution such as a pipe, and ditch, or a factory smokestack.
Potable: Water that is safe to drink.
Rapid Bioassessment: Biological assessment, or bioassessment, is an evaluation of the condition of a water-body
using biological surveys and other direct measurements of the resident biota in surface waters. Rapid
bioassesment is a synthe-sis of methods used in biological assessments. The basic information generated from
these methods would enhance the coverage of broad geographical assessments.
Recharge: Specifically in reference to groundwater, it is the process by which water is added to a zone of satura-
tion, usually by percolation from the soil surface.
Riparian Habitat: Areas adjacent to rivers and streams with the differing density, diversity, and productivity of
plant and animal species relative to nearby upland.
Riprap: Broken stone used as a foundation for embankments in streams to prevent further erosion.
River Basin: The land area drained by a river and its tributaries.
Riverine Habitat: Habitat in the area of a river.
Seeps: Same as seepage (see below).
Seepage: Percolation of water through the soil from unlined canals, ditches, laterals, watercourses, or water
storage facilities.
Silviculture: Management of forest land for timber.
Surface Water: All water naturally open to the atmosphere (rivers, lakes, reservoirs, ponds, streams, impound-
ments, seas, estuaries, etc.).
Turbidity: A cloudy condition in water to due to suspended silt or organic matter.
Wash: Depression or channel formed by flowing water.
Watershed: The land area that drains into a stream. The watershed for a major river may be made up of a num-
ber of small watersheds that ultimately combine at a common point.
Page 39
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ACRONYMS
BIA: Bureau of Indian Affairs
BLM: Bureau of Land Management
BMPs: Best Management Practices (also known as Management Measures)
CERCLA: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (1980)
CWA: Clean Water Act
CFR: Code of Federal Regulations
DCA: 1,2-Dichloroethane (1,2-DCA)
DO: Dissolved Oxygen
EPA: Environmental Protection Agency
FAE: Financial Assistance Eligibility (also known as TAS).
GAP: General Assistance Program
GIS: Geographic Information System
MCL: Maximum Contaminant Level
NPDES: National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
NFS: Nonpoint Source
NFS A&MP: Nonpoint Source Assessment and Management Plan
NRCS: Natural Resource Conservation Service
PCA: Principle Component Analysis
QAPP: Quality Assurance Program Plan
§: Section of the Clean Water Act
SAP: Sampling and Analysis Plan
STORET: Storage Retrieval Database
TAS: Treatment As a State (also known as FAE)
TCE: Trichloroethylene
TDS: Total Dissolved Solids
TSS: Total Suspended (non-filterable) Solids
TMDL: Total Maximum Daily Limit; Total Maximum Daily Load
USFWS: United States Fish and Wildlife Service
USGS: United States Geological Survey
WQS: Water Quality Standards
Page 40
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INTERNET RESOURCES
CLEAN WATER ACT
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act). Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/region5/water/cwa.htm.
U.S. EPA. Clean Water Act, Section 319. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/cwact.html.
WATER QUALITY DATA AND ANALYSIS
U.S. EPA. 2005. EPA Reach File References. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/waters/doc/rfindex.html.
U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset. Available online at
http://nhd.usgs.gov/.
U.S. EPA, 2002. Consolidated Assessment Listing Methodology (CALM) Guidance Document. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/calm.html.
U.S. EPA, 2000. Guidance for the Data Quality Objectives Process (EPA 600/R-96/055). Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/quality/qs-docs/g4-final.pdf.
U.S. EPA. Knowing Our Waters: Tribal Reporting under Section 305(b). Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/volunteer/305btribal.pdf.
U.S. EPA. Current National Recommended Water Quality Criteria. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/criteria/wqcriteria.html
WATER QUALITY POLLUTION AND NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION
U.S. EPA. Water Management Solutions: A Guide for Indian Tribes (EPA 908-K-93-001). 1993. Denver, CO.
Available online at
http://epa.gov/waterscience/tribes/wms.pdf.
U.S. EPA. Alterations to Hydrology. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/bioindicators/ aquatic/hydrology.html.
U.S. EPA. Chanelization and Chanel Modification. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/MMGI/Chapter6/ch6-2a.html.
U.S. EPA. Forestry. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/forestry.html.
U.S. EPA. How Excessive Water Use Affects Water Quality. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/ow/you/chap2.html.
U.S. EPA. Nonpoint Source Pollution From Agriculture. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/region08/water/nps/npsag.html.
U.S. EPA. Pollution. Available online at
http://www.epa.eov/bioindicators/aauatic/pollution.html.
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U.S. EPA. Sedimentation. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/bioindicators/aquatic/sediinent.htinl.
U.S. EPA. What is Acid Mine Drainage? Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/region3/acidification/what is amd.htm.
WATERSHED APPROACH
Reed, A. and Dates, G. 2003. Listening to Watersheds: A Community-based Approach to Watershed Protection. Portland,
OR. Available online at
http://www.rivernetwork.org/ltw/.
Center for Watershed Protection Web site. Available online at
http://www.cwp.org.
U.S. EPA, 2005. Community-based Watershed Management Handbook (EPA 842-B-05-003). Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/estuaries/nepprimer/handbook.htm.
U.S. EPA, 2000. Watershed Analysis and Management (WAM) Guide for Tribes. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/wacademy/wam/.
U.S. EPA. Watersheds. Available online at
http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/.
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES
U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Web site. Available online at
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/.
U.S. Geological Survey Web site. Available online at
http://www.usgs.gov/.
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EPA REGION 9 PROGRAM CONTACTS
TRIBAL OFFICE
WATER DIVISION
Water Pollution Control Program
Clean Water Act Sections 106, 319(h), 104(b)(3)
Kristin Gullatt, Program Manager
(415) 972-3432
PROJECT OFFICERS
Danielle Angeles
(415) 972-3441
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
angeles.danielle@epa.gov
Tiffany Eastman
(to contact this person,
you must dial 1-800-735-2922
for an operator to assist you
with your call)
(415) 972-3404
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
eastman.tiffany@epa.gov
Central CA Contact for
1st Time Applicants
Jenee Gavette
(415) 972-3439
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
gavette.jenee@epa.gov
Southern CA Contact for
1st Time Applicants
Janis Gomes
(415) 972-3517
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
gomes.janis@epa.gov
Northern CA Contact for
1st Time Applicants
Audrey L. Johnson
(415) 972-3431
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
johnson.audreyl@epa.gov
Wendell Smith
(415) 972-3421
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
smith.wendell@epa.gov
Loretta Vanegas
(415) 972-3433
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
vanegas.loretta@epa.gov
AZ Contact for
1st Time Applicants
Jared Vollmer
(415) 972-3447
(415) 947-3537 (fax)
vollmer.jared@epa.gov
NV Contact for
1st Time Applicants
Stephanie Wilson
(775) 885-6190
(775) 885-6147 (fax)
wilson.stephanie@epa.gov
Nevada Office
For more information, please go to:
http://www.epa.gov/region09/water/tribal/tribal-cwa.html
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