Clean Water Act §106 Water Pollution Control Program
Water Quality Assessment Report Requirement

A Water Quality Assessment:

•	Is a narrative and graphical account of water quality within tribal boundaries1.

•	Includes the types of water sampled, sampling procedures, and resulting data summaries.

•	Includes the program's interpretation of the data collected and the assessment methodology
used.

•	Should vary amongst tribes due to differing program objectives, program capacity, and
resources available.

•	Will help EPA measure success toward improvement of water quality in tribal waters1.

•	Must be submitted annually.

San Luis Rey River at La Jolla Indian Campground

Components of a Water Quality Assessment Report:

•	An atlas table of tribal water resources1: An atlas should include the estimated number of
stream miles, lake acres, wetland acres, or estuarine square miles on the Tribe's reservation1.
This information will most likely stay the same from year to year unless the land base changes.

•	A narrative description of tribal water quality monitoring programs and assessment methods:

o Purpose of monitoring program

o Number of stream miles/lake or wetland acres/estuary square miles monitored

1 In some cases, a tribe might be monitoring off reservation if those waters influence reservation waters and the
tribe has permission from that parcel owner. Results from this monitoring should be included in a WQAR.

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o Parameters monitored
o Monitoring frequency

o Discussion of any applicable Water Quality Indicators (WQI), tribal goals, or standards
o Coordination or collaboration with other organizations
o Description of any lab support
o How data are interpreted and managed
This information will also most likely stay the same from year to year unless the land base
changes.

•	Narrative description of results of water quality monitoring within tribal boundaries1: This is
an interpretation and summary of the findings of tribal monitoring activities, including probable
causes and sources of impairment. Depending on program capacity, summary tables should be
included to show which water bodies meet tribal goals or designated uses.

•	Brief discussion of issues of tribal concern regarding water quality: This discussion should
identify any issues of concern or potential future impacts to the water bodies where the
monitoring program is occurring. Examples include: outbreaks of waterborne disease, fish kills,
flooding, cultural concerns, drought, fire, etc. As a program advances, tables should be
developed to summarize various sources of impairment by stream miles.

Available Resources to use while developing a Water Quality Assessment Report:

•	The Tribal Assessment Modules on EPA's Ambient Water Monitoring and Assessment website
have more information on Water Quality Assessments, including examples and technical
guidance.

•	Chapter 6 of the January 2023 CWA Section 106 Tribal Guidance includes information about all
three reporting requirements (Monitoring Strategy/QAPP, Water Quality Data, and a Water
Quality Assessment).

•	EPA Region 9 CWA Project Officers are available to help.

•	EPA Region 9 and tribal workgroup participants developed a WQAR template in excel to help
streamline the water quality assessment reporting process. The template and resources such as
interactive tutorials are available on our website: www.epa.gov/tribal-pacific-
sw/r9triball06#WQAR. Use of this template is not required, but it is strongly encouraged!

1 Clean Water Act Section 106 Tribal Water Quality Assessment Report Template (F 1

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