Water Crisis Issues: British Columbia Canada

Tribal Programs – Drinking Water

On this page

• Information for Tribal Public Water Suppliers
• Rule Monitoring Placards
• Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification
• Tribal Drinking Water Compliance Information
• Drinking Water Training for Tribes and Tribal Operators
• Tribal Drinking Water Needs
• Funding Opportunities
• Regional Information
• Links
• Tribal PWSS & UIC Programs
• Tribal Source Water Protection Program

Information for Tribal Public Water Suppliers

• Treatment in the Same Manner as a State for the Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) Program
  • An Overview (PDF) (12 pp, 50K)
  • Factsheet (PDF) (3 pp, 39K)
  • Frequent Questions (PDF) (3 pp, 30K)
• Building Water System Capacity: A Guide for Tribal Administrators (PDF) (6 pp, 3MB) EPA 816-K-01-006, July 2001
• Preventive Maintenance Tasks for Tribal Drinking Water Systems (booklet) (PDF) (35 pp, 78K) EPA 816-F-01-017, June 2001
• Preventive Maintenance Tasks for Tribal Drinking Water Systems (log sheets) (PDF) (96 pp, 99K) EPA 816-F-01-017, June 2001

• You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s PDF page to learn more.

• Total Coliform Monitoring Requirements
  • Community Water Systems Serving 1,001 – 10,000 People (PDF) (1 pp, 56K)
    EPA 816-F-08-004, January 2008
  • Community Water Systems Serving 25 – 1,000 People (PDF) (1 pp, 53K)
    EPA 816-F-08-005, January 2008
  • Noncommunity Water Systems Serving 1,001 – 10,000 People (PDF) (1 pp, 54K)
    EPA 816-F-08-006, January 2008
  • Noncommunity Water Systems Serving 25 – 1,000 People (PDF) (1 pp, 53K)
    EPA 816-F-08-007, January 2008
• Surface Water Treatment Rules Monitoring Requirements (SWTR/LT1ESWTR):
  • Systems Serving Less than 10,000 People Using Conventional or Direct Filtration (PDF) (1 pp, 40K)
    EPA 816-F-08-001, January 2008
  • Systems Serving Less Than 10,000 People Using Slow Sand, Diatomaceous Earth, or Alternative Filtration (PDF) (1 pp, 40K)
    EPA 816-F-08-002, January 2008
  • Unfiltered Systems Serving Less than 10,000 people (PDF) (1 pp, 40K)
    EPA 816-F-08-003, January 2008
• Nitrate Monitoring Requirements:
  • Community and Noncommunity Water Systems (PDF) ( pp, K)
    EPA 816-F-08-008, January 2008

Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program

• Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program Final Guidelines:
  • Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program Final Guidelines (PDF) (15 pp, 121K)
    EPA 816-R-05, May 2005
  • Federal Register Notice: Notice of Availability: Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program Final Guidelines
• Tribal Operator Certification Program Draft Guidelines: March 2000 Federal Register notice of availability of the draft guidelines | Public comment draft (PDF) (20 pp, 66K)
• Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program | PDF Version (1 pp, 46 K)
  This notice announces the program details of EPA’s voluntary Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program, effective October 1, 2010. The program enables qualified drinking water operators at public water systems in Indian country to be recognized as certified operators by EPA.

• Application (PDF) (15 pp, 149K)

• Tribal Drinking Water Operator Certification Program Document (PDF) (26 pp, 198K)
  EPA 816-B-09-002

Tribal Drinking Water Compliance Information

Each compliance report discusses the violations at public water systems on Indian reservations; EPA’s enforcement and compliance assistance activities with respect to Tribal PWSs; and the financial assistance EPA has provided to facilitate the provision of safe drinking water to Tribes.

• EPA Annual Compliance Reports

Drinking Water Training for Tribes and Tribal Operators

• This website presents a list of training opportunities that may be of interest to Tribes and Tribal operators nationwide.

Tribal Drinking Water Needs

• >Final 2001 Report to Congress on Drinking Water Needs for American Indian and Alaska Native Village Water Systems (PDF) (47 pp, 1MB) February, 2001, EPA 816-R-01-006 excerpted from main report
• >Fact Sheet on 2001 American Indian and Alaska Native Village Water System Survey (PDF) (4 pp, 298K)
• 1997 Needs Survey Report (PDF) (7 pp, 495K)

Funding Opportunities

Drinking Water Infrastructure Grants Tribal Set-Aside (DWIG TSA) Program Guidance PDF (34 pp, 98K)

Links

• The American Indian Environmental Office (AIEO) at EPA is responsible for overseeing many environmental programs that benefit Tribal populations.
• Native American Water Association
• The Indian Health Service also has programs that promote public health.

Tribal PWSS & UIC Programs

History of the Tribal PWSS and UIC Programs

In 1974 the United States Congress passed legislation, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), designed to maintain and improve the quality of the nation’s drinking waters. Two major regulatory programs were created in the SDWA: the Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) and the Underground Injection Control (UIC) programs.

Congress authorized EPA to delegate responsibilities to states for implementing and enforcing national standards within their jurisdiction. States must apply to EPA if they want this “primacy” responsibility and must develop PWSS or UIC programs that meet national requirements. EPA is still responsible for developing national regulations, overseeing state primacy programs and implementing programs in states without primacy.

Because of their unique status, Indian tribes were not eligible to assume primacy in the original Act. Instead EPA regions were responsible for primary enforcement authority of PWSS and UIC programs on Tribal lands. This changed in 1986 when the Amendments to the SDWA added provisions that allow federally recognized tribes to assume primacy for the PWSS and UIC programs. Section 1451 (“Indian Tribes”) of SDWA authorizes the EPA to treat Indian tribes in a manner similar to states and to assign primary enforcement responsibility (primacy) to qualified tribes.

The PWSS and UIC programs are very complex and costly to operate. For many tribes (especially those that do not have a large number of public water systems or underground injection wells), the costs and resources required to achieve and maintain a regulatory program may far exceed the benefits from achieving primacy. Due to such difficulties, currently the only tribe that has sought and obtained primacy for the PWSS program is the Navajo Nation. There are a few tribes that are pursuing primacy in the PWSS and UIC programs.

Today´s Tribal Direct Implementation Program

States and tribes that do not obtain PWSS and UIC program delegation continue to be directly implemented by the EPA region in which the State or reservation is located. All EPA regions, excluding Region III (which has no federally recognized tribes), operate tribal PWSS and UIC programs to manage public water systems or underground injection wells on Indian lands.

EPA’s 1997 inventory shows that there are nearly 1000 public water systems (740 community water systems, 90 nontransient noncommunity water systems and 130 transient noncommunity water systems) that the EPA regional offices manage on Indian lands serving a population of nearly 500,000. There are also over 5,300 injection wells (one Class I well, 4,300 Class II wells, 0 Class III wells and 1,042 Class V wells) on tribal lands that are managed by regional UIC staff.

As the primary enforcement authority for tribal public water systems, EPA regions are responsible for enforcing against those systems that do not comply with federal drinking water regulations. A formal enforcement action is taken as a last measure. EPA regions dedicate a great deal of resources to provide tribes with technical assistance to help their systems or wells comply with federal standards. Regional staff visit reservations as often as possible to provide compliance assistance on site. Many Regions also fund circuit rider programs which enable other qualified persons the opportunity to provide technical assistance and training directly to tribes.

For more information on the Tribal PWSS and UIC programs, please contact your program representative.

Source Water Assessment and Protection Programs

The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments of 1996 required states to develop and implement source water assessment programs (SWAPs) to analyze existing and potential threats to the quality of the public drinking water throughout the state. Using these programs, most states have completed source water assessments for every public water system — from major metropolitan areas to the smallest towns. Even schools, restaurants, and other public facilities that have wells or surface water supplies have been assessed. A source water assessment is a study and report, unique to a water system, that provides basic information about the water used to provide drinking water. States are working with local communities and public water systems to identify protection measures to address potential threats to sources of drinking water.

• Source Water Assessment page
• Source Water Regional Contacts
  

EPA publications and resources

• Source Water Assessment and Protection Programs Final Guidance (PDF) (160 pp, 486K)
  Describes the elements of an EPA-approved state Source Water Assessment Program (SWAP), as well as EPA’s recommendations for what should be included in a state Source Water Protection (SWP) Program. The document also provides an overview of how source water assessment and protection integrates with other Safe Drinking Water Act programs and efforts and how other EPA and other federal programs can assist states in developing and implementing assessment and protection programs, and vice versa.
  EPA 816-R-97-009
• Office of Inspector General Report: Source Water Assessment and Protection Programs Show Initial Promise, But Obstacles Remain (PDF) (56 pp, 625K)
• Source Water Protection Training through the Drinking Water Academy
• Delineation tools
• Potential contaminant source inventory tools
• Susceptibility determination tools
• Protection tools

Wellhead Protection Program

The Wellhead Protection Program (WHPP) is a pollution prevention and management program used to protect underground sources of drinking water. The national WHPP was established under section 1428 of the 1986 SDWA amendments. The law specified that certain program activities, such as delineation, contaminant source inventory, contingency planning and source management, be incorporated into state WHPPs, which are approved by EPA prior to implementation. All states have EPA-approved state WHPPs. Although section 1428 applies only to states, a number of tribes are implementing the program as well.

WHPPs provided the foundation for many of the state source water assessment programs required under the 1996 SDWA amendments. Most states also use the wellhead protection program as a foundation for assessing and protecting ground water systems. State WHPPs vary greatly. For example, some states require community water systems to develop management plans, while others rely on education and technical assistance to encourage voluntary action. Other states have mandatory requirements for wellhead protection at the local level. Guidance, publications and other resources are available on state source water web sites.

EPA publications and resources

• Citizen’s Guide To Ground Water Protection (PDF) (34 pp, 2M)
• 1995-1997 Wellhead Biennial Report (PDF) (111 pp, 231K)
• Private Wells
• Septic Systems and Source Water Protection
• Locate Wellhead Protection Case Studies from Across the Country
  

Non-EPA publications and resources

• Ground Water Foundation Workshop Guide:
  An Introduction to Drinking Water Source Assessment and Protection
• U.S. Department of Agriculture: Home*A*Syst/Farm*A*Syst

State Ground Water Protection Programs

Many states have also developed programs that are focused specifically on ground water protection. Several states developed formal Comprehensive State Ground Water Protection Programs (CSGWPP), which were designed as a management tool for states to use to integrate all programs that affect ground water quality, thus allowing better decisions to be made. Although most states are no longer pursuing formal approval of a CSGW pp, virtually all states are pursuing at least some of the individual elements necessary for comprehensive ground water protection. Within EPA, the source water protection program is working with the underground storage tank program to address potential threats to ground water posed by leaking tanks.

Publications and resources

• Protecting the Nation’s Ground Water: EPA Strategy for the 1990s (PDF) (11 pp, 1M)
• State 305(b) reports
• National Water Quality Inventory, 1998 Report to Congress, Ground Water and Drinking Water Chapters
  Report that is the primary vehicle for informing Congress and the public about general water quality conditions in the Untied States.

• Ground Water Protection Programs Chapter (PDF) (47 pp, 584K)
• Complete Report (PDF) (99 pp, 2M)
• Drinking Water Quality Programs Chapter (PDF) (11 pp, 196K)
• Ground Water Quality Chapter (PDF) (35 pp, 730K)

Sole Source Aquifer Protection Program

A sole source aquifer supplies 50 percent or more of the drinking water for a given aquifer service area for which there are no reasonably available alternative sources, should the aquifer become contaminated. Designation as a sole source aquifer protects an area’s ground water resources by requiring EPA to review any proposed projects within the designated area that are receiving federal financial assistance.

• Sole Source Aquifer page

Watershed-Based Protection Program

The goal of source water protection is to protect the drinking water resource by protecting and preserving the environmental quality of the watershed above the intake (or the aquifer around the well). The assessment is the first step in the process to protect the resource. Once a watershed has been assessed to determine its current condition and the extent of the threats to the system, a watershed plan can be developed and implemented.

EPA’s Office of Water has numerous programs that focus on watershed protection under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Act includes programs such as the Nonpoint Source Program, National Estuary Program, the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program, and the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program. Each of these programs encourage states to develop programs to promote watershed-based protection, and they have elements that support watershed-based planning and implementation. The federal programs are generally implemented at the state level.

• Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds
• Nonpoint Source Pollution
• National Estuary Program
• Total Maximum Daily Loads
• National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

EPA, Other Federal and Non-governmental Programs

There is no single federal program for implementing source water protection plans and activities. However, many federal, tribal, regional, and local programs have tools and resources that can be used to focus on protecting drinking water. Source water protection can benefit, and benefit from, other EPA programs, other federal programs and non-governmental programs:

• Other programs can use source water assessments and identified protection areas to set priorities for ongoing prevention efforts.
• Identifying source water protection areas increases federal, state and local managers’ awareness of other programs where participation might increase the protection of human health.
• Protecting sources of drinking water can help various federal programs, states, organizations and communities meet other environmental and social goals, such as green space conservation, stormwater planning, management of nonpoint source pollution and brownfields redevelopment.
• The benefits that EPA and other federal programs can provide to state and local source water assessment and protection efforts are potentially very large. These include information, technical and financial resources, and communication networks and enforcement authorities.

EPA program links

• EPA’s Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water
• • Public Drinking Water Systems Programs
  • Underground Injection Control Program
    
• EPA’s Office of Water
• • Office of Wastewater Management
  • Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds
  • Office of Science and Technology
    
• Non-Water Program Links
• • American Indian Environmental Office
  • Office of Underground Storage Tanks: Source Water Areas and Underground storage tanks
  • Office of Pesticides
  • Office of Pollution Prevention
  • Environmental Finance Program
  • Office of Smart Growth
    
• EPA program and regional offices

Other Federal Programs and Non-Governmenal Organizations

• Related links: Includes links to non-EPA organizations that are related to source water protection.
• • Federal government web sites
    
  • State drinking water web sites
  • Non-governmental web sites
  • Contacts for non-EPA organizations links
  • Publications by other organizations links

Tribal Programs

EPA is firmly committed to helping tribes to assess the rivers, lakes, springs and aquifers that serve as tribal public water supplies and to implement measures to protect against contamination of these water resources.

• Protecting Drinking Water: A Workbook for Tribes
  The Water Education Foundation recently completed this national water quality publication using a grant from EPA. The Workbook includes background information on the importance of protecting source water from pollution and includes a step-by-step work plan for tribes interested in developing a plan for protecting their drinking water.
• Source water protection fact sheet and EPA regional contacts for tribes (PDF) (4 pp, 80K)
  Provides more information on source water protection, how to get started, and funding available.
• Tribal drinking water programs and UIC program
  
• Other water pollution control funding sources
  Provides information on drinking water, wastewater and watershed protection funding sources.
• Nonpoint source pollution control grants to tribes
  Describes opportunities to fund projects to control polluted runoff.