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Beyond providing each tribe with minimum water quality infrastructure. Stage D also 

 sets the stage for each tribe to begin to integrate its approaches to particular water 

 quality problems into the overall tribal water quality program. Under Stage n devel- 

 opment, tribes began to intensify participation in: 



Cooperative resource management progrcuns involving water qucility; 



Statewide coordination of water quality goals, objectives and methods; 



Addressing multi-media issues dealing with water quality; 



Coordinating off- £md on-reservation activities and programs; and 



Exploration of alterr\ative cooperative tribal mechanisms for 

 developing and administering on-reservation environmental 

 protection programs. 



Stage n also has increased the tribes' ability to participate in water quality processes 

 conducted by federtil, state and local governments. 



SUge III: The Coordinated Tribal Water Quality Program 



Development Of Initial Tribal And Statewide Programs: 



Timeline: FY 93 



Funding: $6,000,000 Per Year 



Tribeil policymakers determined that an initial water quality program for each tribe 

 deonands funding for the equivalent of two full-time staff. Stage n would provide a 

 basic water quality program for each tribe that could include: 



• Continuing the inventorying, monitoring and assessment of waters 

 within its waters of concern; 



• Attending technical meetings of water resource staff; 



• Having water quality staff and tribal policymakers participate in 

 deliberations of the Environmental Policy Committee; and 



• Implementing controls, on a watershed level when possible, on water 

 quality problems. 



In addition, individual and neighboring tribes also would undertake with each other 

 and with the EPA, state, municipal and other entities the development of new strate- 

 gies and agreements to prevent and control nonpoint source and other water pollu- 

 tion on a watershed or regional basis. 



These initiatives would include: 



• Implementing feasibility studies to develop regional and statewide 

 cooperative water testing laboratories to reduce testing costs and 

 maintain standardized testing methodologies; 



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