CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF COOS, (2014)

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CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF COOS,

LOWER UMPQUA & SIUSLAW INDIANS

NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION

MANAGEMENT PLAN

VERSION 3.0

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE

COOS, LOWER UMPQUA, AND SIUSLAW INDIANS

1245 FULTON AVENUE

COOS BAY, OREGON 97420

(541) 888-9577

CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF

COOS, LOWER UMPQUA, AND SIUSLAW INDIANS

NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION MANAGEMENT PLAN

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION PLAN

1.1 INTRODUCTION

2.0 319 MANAGEMENT PLAN

2.1 INTRODUCTION

2.2 GENERAL MANAGEMENT PLAN

TABLE 1. 319 MANAGEMENT PROGRAM MILESTONES

2.2.1 ADMINISTRATION

2.2.2 ASSESSMENT

2.2.3 RESTORATION

2.2.4 MONITORING

2.2.5 EDUCATION

2.2.6 FUNDING NEEDS

2.3 SPECIFIC MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS FOR NONPOINT SOURCE

POLLUTION CATEGORIES

2.3.1 AGRICULTURAL MILESTONES

2.3.2 FORESTRY

2.3.3 HYDROMODIFICATION

2.3.4 MARINAS/BOATING

2.3.5 ROADS, HIGHWAYS, AND BRIDGES

2.3.6 RESIDENTIAL AND LIGHT COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT

3.0 EXSISTING AUTHORITIES AND PROGRAMS ADDRESSING

3.1 FEDERAL CLEAN WATER ACT

3.2 TRIBAL ORDINANCES

3.3 FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

3.3.1 FEDERAL

3.3.2 STATE

3.3.3 PRIVATE

3.4 ROLES OF AGENCIES/TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

3.4.1 FEDERAL

3.4.2 STATE

4.0 FORMULAION OF BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

5.0 CONCLUSION

1.0 NONPOINT SOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN

1.1 INTRODUCTION

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians seek to correct and prevent human

caused or linked nonpoint source water pollution. To pursue this objective, Section 319 of the Federal

Clean Water Act provides a method for the Confederated Tribes to follow as they work to improve water

quality. Section 319 outlines the process by requiring two documents. The first is a Nonpoint Source

Pollution Assessment of all reservation and tribal lands. The second document is a Nonpoint Source

Pollution Management Plan that identifies how the Confederated Tribes intend to address the problems

identified in the Assessment.

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians have completed and forwarded to

the EPA the 2014 revised Confederated Tribes’ Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment. This assessment,

referencing data compiled by the Confederated Tribes, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality,

the US Forest Service, the South Coast Watershed Coordinating Council, among others, identifies water

quality impairments to beneficial uses of Tribal waters, including culturally significant salmonid

production, lamprey production and shellfish gathering. This assessment synthesized information from

Tribal evaluations and various watershed assessments and offered conclusions on the primary causes of

the impairments. These conclusions direct the management of nonpoint sources of pollution of Tribal

waters and the Tribal Ancestral Watersheds toward maintenance and improvements in the quality of the

relatively healthy Tribal holdings, and to continued collaboration with other stakeholders in the Ancestral

Watersheds to address nonpoint sources beyond the slivers of Tribal lands.

The goal of the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians’ Nonpoint Source

Pollution Management Program is to eliminate contributions from Tribal holdings to the impairment of

water quality in the Confederated Tribes’ Ancestral Watersheds. The further goal of the Confederated

Tribes Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Plan is to reduce contributions originating beyond Tribal

holdings but which pertain to Tribal waters. The objectives of the Plan include the implementation of

BMPs for Tribal holdings and the continued collaboration with other stakeholders in the Ancestral

Watersheds to cooperatively implement projects to reduce nonpoint source pollution inputs.

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians Nonpoint Source Management

Plan identifies the tribal programs to address the problems, as well as the source of authority for creating

the mechanisms to act. In addition, this Nonpoint Management Plan identifies Best Management

Practices (BMPs) under consideration and suggests new programs or activities needed to improve water

quality on tribal lands. Among the suggestions are ways to improve coordination of the efforts of various

governmental agencies, private landowners, and other stakeholders to control nonpoint pollution sources,

along with support for restoration projects and broader adoption of BMPs throughout the Confederated

Tribes’ Ancestral Watersheds. Section 319 of the Clean Water Act requires six principal categories of

information to be included in the Tribes’ Nonpoint Source Management Plan. Each of these categories is

addressed in this document, and they consist of the following.

Best Management Practices which will be used to reduce pollution from each category or

subcategory of NPS pollution, taking into account the impact of the proposed practice on

groundwater quality. 1

Nonpoint Source Programs including regulatory and non-regulatory programs for

enforcement, technical assistance, financial assistance, education, training, technology

transfer, demonstration projects, and monitoring/evaluation to assist in the

implementation of BMPs. The lead and cooperating agencies for carrying out these

programs and their specific responsibilities should be clearly identified.

A schedule containing annual milestones for the four-year plan which can be used to

gauge the effectiveness of various programs. The schedule shall provide for utilization of

BMPs at the earliest practicable date.

A certification of adequacy of Tribal Ordinances by the Tribal Attorney that existing laws

and Ordinances provide adequate authority to implement the proposed management

program. If additional legal authority is needed, a schedule for seeking such authority

shall be adequately expeditious to allow implementation within the four year

Management Program.

Funding sources which are available to carry the Tribes program in each of the four fiscal

years, in addition to assistance, provided under section 319.

Federal consistency - The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw

Indians Management Program should identify federal financial assistance programs and

federal development projects which will be reviewed by the State for their consistency

with the proposed NPS Management Plan.

2.0 319 MANAGEMENT PLAN

2.1 INTRODUCTION

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians’ 319 Management Plan focuses on

mitigating and improving conditions that result in the migration of diffused pollutants into the waterways

on or near its land. Because most nonpoint source pollutants enter the waterways via runoff, the

management plan must address the effects of precipitation and runoff over the course of the year, rather

than on a specific point either in space or time.

Unfortunately, nonpoint source pollutants are much more difficult to identify, and their affects are only

felt over time, as there is almost never a single catastrophic event that triggers the problems.

Even more confounding is the fact that nonpoint pollutants often interact with one another and more than

one variable can contribute to the problem. Consequently, measures to correct problems may only be

partially effective. Another difficulty is that the impacts from BMPs take time to evaluate, just as the

impact from nonpoint source pollution is the result of long-lived and cumulative build-up over years or

decades.

The following requirements are taken from Fort Peck Reservation Nonpoint Source Management Plan,” available

at the EPA website: http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/fortpeck/fprnmp.html (.) The entire section is a direct quote

from this source.

Given the difficulties of measuring nonpoint pollution and pinpointing causes, along with the slow buildup of the problem, it is not surprising that attempts to control and remediate nonpoint source pollution

have been slow. Moreover, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians’ treaty

was never ratified, The Tribes had no reservation from 1875 until 1984 and the Tribes federal recognition

was terminated in 1954. Restoration in 1984 included no return of land to the Tribes, and recognized the

mere 7.4 acres of land held by the Tribes as the “reservation.” Only recently have the Tribes had the

resources to develop the Tribes’ Department of Natural Resources and to begin drafting BMPs.

The Tribes have approached the need to address nonpoint source pollution by identifying the primary

categories of nonpoint pollution affecting Tribal waters. These categories are agriculture, forestry, and

hydromodificaton. The small and dispersed nature of Tribal holdings result in the conditions of the

Tribes’ holdings contributing now or in the future little if any load to impaired waterbodies, and offering

limited opportunity for watershed improvement projects. The interconnectedness of a watershed

highlight another issue facing any entity wishing to mitigate nonpoint source pollution: in any given

watershed, there are several other agencies, organizations, individual landowners, and groups that have

control over managing and protecting environmental resources.

With the above challenges identified, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw

Indians Nonpoint Pollution Management Plan stresses prevention, restoration, and a high level of

coordination and cooperation with other land holders in the Confederated Tribes’ Ancestral Watersheds.

The development of BMPs discussed in the Assessment is also referenced in this Management Plan.

Education and enforcement capacity will contribute to prevention of contribution of pollutants by Tribal

land users and managers. In addition to BMPs, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Indians will establish standards and regulate nonpoint source pollution through its codes and

Ordinances. Moreover, the Tribes anticipate developing educational programs to encourage voluntary

compliance and participation from members and other land users.

2.2

GENERAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians’ Department of Natural

Resources, through the direction of the Tribal Council, is responsible for the administration of the Tribes’

Environmental Ordinances. The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians’

Nonpoint Source Management Plan is divided into two parts. The first part is the General Management

Program, while the second is the Specific Management Program. As the titles suggest, the General

Management Program focuses on the overall strategy and philosophy for managing and eliminating

nonpoint source pollution. The second part examines specific categories of nonpoint source pollution and

addresses the programs designed to ameliorate the harmful effects of agriculture, hydromodification,

forestry, etc. The Specific Management Program identifies BMPs, prioritizes impaired waterways and

proposes solutions for the existing problems. In addition, the Specific Management Program section

establishes milestones for the overall program and targets dates to help measure the Program’s

effectiveness. As part of the Water Quality Monitoring Program, the Tribes have a Water Quality

Monitoring Strategy that guides its water quality monitoring activities. Given the current fiscal

environment and availability of Tribal resources, implementation of the majority of 319 goals, milestones

and targets will depend on the availability of funding.

See Table 1.

TABLE 1. 319 MANAGEMENT PROGRAM MILESTONES.

ITEM

ACTIVITY

Complete Tribal review and submission to

Tribal Council of Surface Water Quality

Standards, Invasive Species Control,

Emergency Preparedness/hazardous waste,

Ordinances and BMPs

OUTPUT

DATE

BMPs and Ordinances

As time allows

Initiate and implement tribal water quality

monitoring program as per EPA approved

QAPP

Request 319 funding from EPA for

implementation of Management Plan

Data on temperature,

pH, conductivity,

dissolved oxygen,

turbidity, salinity,

nutrients, bacteria,

macro-invertebrates,

and habitat,

Successful application

leading to funding

Submit revised NPS Assessment and

Management Plan to EPA as necessary

2 Documents to the

EPA

Publish articles in Tribal Newsletter on the

Nonpoint Source Pollution Program

Implement improvements to the storm

resistance of roads and other road-related

turbidity and other nonpoint source control

projects

Implement riparian vegetation management

projects

Implement instream structure restoration

projects

Outreach and/or tours of nonpoint source

pollution management projects

Periodic Review of Watershed Assessment

Complete brochures on Tribal nonpoint

source pollution Ordinances and BMPs

Submit Quarterly Progress Reports to EPA

Incorporate priorities into work-plan for

Tribe's program and submit proposals to

funding sources (Tribes, EPA, BIA, Oregon

Watershed Enhancement Board, etc.)

Newsletter Articles

Decreased road-related

sediment and other

nonpoint source

pollution inputs

Diverse indigenous

riparian vegetation with

maximum erosion

control and shade

capability

Increase sorting and

storage of bedload to

pre-disturbance

hydrologic functions

Outreach and/or tours to

increase awareness and

understanding

Analysis of watershed

processes and

conditions

Ongoing

Next review

scheduled for

February 1st, 2020

At least one per

year

As funding allows

and pending on

restoration of forest

lands

Ongoing

As funding allows

Annually

At least annually

Brochures

Review annually

4/year

Quarterly

Work-plan proposals

Ongoing

2.2.1 ADMINISTRATION – Administration, including coordination of the General Management Program

and the Specific Management Programs, will be carried out by the Department of Natural Resources of

the Tribal Administration. The Director of the Department of Natural Resources is supervised directly by

the Tribal Administrator, who reports directly to and receives direction from the Tribal Council.

2.2.2 ASSESSMENT - Identifying the nonpoint source pollution problems on the holdings of the

Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians demands a comprehensive knowledge

of studies, reports, monitoring data, and professional judgment. Information and data regarding nonpoint

source pollution comes from sources including the Confederated Tribes Water Quality Program, Oregon

Department of Environmental Quality, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the US Forest Service,

and watershed associations.

2.2.3 RESTORATION – Based on the Assessment of Tribal holdings and the Ancestral Watersheds,

watersheds restoration projects will be implemented to address contributions of Tribal holdings to

nonpoint source pollution. Projects will prioritize pollutions which impair water quality to the extent that

the affected waterbody is on the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ) 303(d) list off

water quality limited waterbodies. Projects will generally rely on time-tested methods of restorations,

such as those described in the 1997 Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board Guide to Aquatic Habitats

Restoration; projects may also employ innovative and promising new methods of watershed restoration.

Restoration projects completed on Tribal holdings include riparian invasive species removal projects. The

Tribes have also advocated for similar projects, as well as livestock exclusion projects and projects to

improve the storm resistance of roads, through the Tribes Section 319 funded participation in watershed

associations and small grant review teams. The Tribes 2003 Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment and

Management Plan are two of the technical references used to support and review project funding requests

for the Mid-Coast Small Grant Review Team.

2.2.4

MONITORING - As the Tribes have implemented the Section 106 Clean Water Act Tribal Water

Quality Monitoring Program, more data has become available regarding Tribal waters. This data

collection has confirmed State 303d listings, while also providing a fuller dataset that is typically used to

document impairments to beneficial uses of water. Determining BMP effectiveness may prove difficult

due to the generally small size of Tribal holdings. Pending enactment of legislation which would restore a

significant acreage of forest land to the Confederated Tribes, the Tribes will implement the Tribal Water

Quality Monitoring Plan, which integrates the concepts of monitoring for nonpoint sources or pollution

such as elevated levels of temperature and turbidity, in the Tribal Forest. These efforts are intended to

improve the accuracy of the Confederated Tribes’ assessment, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of

the BMPs to the maximum extent possible.

2.2.5

EDUCATION - In the long run, no pollution reduction and prevention program can be successful

without voluntary cooperation and compliance from Tribal Members, leaseholders, and other landowners

in the watershed. Therefore, education to explain the benefits of compliance is essential for success.

Education efforts are accordingly designed to promote understanding of the problem and BMPs and to

promote compliance with all Ordinances. The Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program of the

Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians has developed and will continue to

develop educational materials designed for members, leaseholders and stakeholders. Outreach activities

have included and will include presentations to stakeholder groups and other affected parties and tours of

Tribal holdings to demonstrate BMPs and restoration projects. In particular, the Nonpoint Source

Pollution Management Program has utilized articles in the monthly Tribal Newsletter, and have found

these to be the most effective outreach tool to provide information to Tribal Members. Additionally, the

Confederated Tribes’ website has proven to be a useful outreach tool. The 2003 Nonpoint Source

Pollution Assessment and Management Plan have been posted on the website, and a neighboring Indian

tribe has used these documents as a foundation to develop and establish their own nonpoint source

pollution program. In addition to Tribal initiatives, the Confederated Tribes will work cooperatively with

other Tribal, federal, state, and local governments, and other stakeholder groups, and the Tribes will

continue to be actively involved in the watershed associations of the Ancestral Territory.

2.2.6 FUNDING NEEDS

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians anticipated annual funding at

$33,300 dollars. This funding currently supports the bare minimum functions of the Tribes

Nonpoint source Pollution Management Program; Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment and

Management Plan periodic review and revision, newsletter articles, participation in watershed

association meetings to advocate for projects to address nonpoint source pollution, and outreach

activities. This funding falls far short of what is required to fully and proactively address

nonpoint source pollution affecting waters of the reservation.

2.3 SPECIFIC MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS FOR NONPOINT POLLUTION CATEGORIES

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians are implementing the Tribal

Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program, Water Quality Monitoring Program, and Tribal

Response Program and have identified a suite of BMP sources from which to select or tailor BMPs for

Tribal holdings, and have secured funding, approved work plans to adopt BMPs, and propose Ordinances

intended to prevent nonpoint source pollution from originating from Tribal holdings. The management

decisions the Tribes have and will make are based on the best science available, professional judgment,

and site-specific considerations, and cultural priorities. Among the considerations the Tribes take into

account are the following variables.

1. Severity of pollution problem and extent to which tribal and other beneficial uses are

impaired;2

2. Potential for the Tribes to effectively address the pollution problem, given technical, financial,

and geographic/hydrologic constraints (i.e. optimizing environmental and economic benefits);

3. Potential for actions to be a component of a larger reach, watershed, Gene Conservation Group,

or Evolutionarily Significant Unit scale effort.

4. Cultural considerations addressed by the action.

As the Confederated Tribes develop and implement projects, the Tribes continually review and evaluate

the programs and activities. In addition, the Confederated Tribes may participate in projects when the

Tribes are not the sole or primary sponsor: the Tribes have teamed with watershed associations, soil and

water conservation districts, and other government agencies to work toward common goals. Regardless

of the specific arrangement, the goals shall remain the systematic enforcement of Ordinances on Tribal

holdings and application of BMPs to prevent nonpoint source pollution and to restore the processes which

maintain water quality and functioning aquatic habitats. This Nonpoint Source Management Plan and the

milestones in Table 1.of pertinent nonpoint source pollution category activities and outcomes will serve as

the Tribes’ Action Plan for achieving the goal of restoring water quality in the Ancestral Watersheds.

2.3.1 AGRICULTURAL

Ibid

Agricultural practices are believed to be a significant if not the primary contributor to the impairment of

Tribal holdings in the Coos Estuary. Fecal coliform bacteria, believed to mostly originate from cattle

ranches and dairies, contribute to the impairment of the Coos Estuary and may contribute directly or

indirectly to impairment of the Siuslaw Estuary. Elevated turbidity and temperature impairs the water

quality of the North Fork Siuslaw River/Estuary and many other fish-bearing streams of the ancestral

watersheds. Depressed dissolved oxygen concentration impairs the water quality of the Sixes River,

located in a small coastal watershed with a large amount of nutrient input from livestock instream

watering. The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians do not currently nor

will in the foreseeable future hold land in agricultural use. The Confederated Tribes will none-the-less

develop the regulatory capacity to prevent non-point source pollution from agricultural lands through the

enactment of an Agricultural Ordinance which will include components to address nonpoint source

pollution. Utilization of agricultural BMPs for nonpoint source pollution control on Confederated Tribes

of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians land is voluntary, but compliance with Water Quality

Standards is not. These BMPs and Ordinances will rely heavily on Natural Resource Conservation

Service guidance, as well as local Agricultural Water Quality Management Plans. The Confederated

Tribes will use the Tribes traditional knowledge, political influence, and available financial resources to

assist agricultural landowners in the Ancestral Watersheds to eliminate nonpoint sources of agricultural

pollution.

2.3.2 FORESTRY

Forestry activities have a profound effect on the water quality of Tribal waters. While forestry is not the

sole contributor to the impairments, elevated turbidity and temperature levels impair the water quality of

the Tribal holding at the site of the Ancestral Siuslaw Village on the North Fork Siuslaw Estuary.

Elevated temperature impairs the water quality of the Sixes River, and when A-grade data on turbidity is

collected, evaluation indicates that the Sixes River will likely be listed for sediment as well. Much of the

Tribal land holdings are forested, however, the Tribes do not actively manage forested Tribal holdings due

to cultural, historical, environmental, or silvicultural reasons, depending on the tract. As with agricultural

practices, the forestry practices that do impact tribal water quality tend to be upstream (or tidally

downstream) operations, largely on private lands.

While the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians currently do not engage in

significant commercial forestry, the Tribes continue to pursue the legislative transfer of a significant

acreage of federal forest land to the Tribes. The opportunity and responsibility to manage the Tribal

Forest will dominate the Confederated Tribes’ Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program. The

Tribal Forest will be managed according to the provision of the National Indian Forest Resources

Management Act, as well as the enabling legislation which currently and in all probability will continue to

direct the management of the Tribal Forest to achieve the management and restoration goals for nearby

and adjacent Federal land, currently managed under the Northwest Forest Plan. Under the legislation, the

Bureau of Indian Affairs, with the assistance of the land management agency which currently manages the

federal land, will develop a management plan for the Tribal Forest. Within this Tribal Forest

Management Plan will be incorporated the goals and objectives of the Confederated Tribes Nonpoint

Source Pollution Management Plan, including Tribal BMPs and Ordinances. While the language of the

legislation will largely determine these Tribal BMPs and Ordinances, the Confederated Tribes will

consider all sources of forestry BMPs which can contribute to the minimization of nonpoint source

pollution related to forestry activities, including the Northwest Forest Plan Record of Decision, including

the Aquatic Conservation Strategies, the (in progress) Management and Habitat Conservation Plans for

the Northwest State Forests and the Elliott State Forest, the Oregon Department of Forestry 2002 Forest

Roads Manual, and references available from the US EPA.

With or without the restoration of forest land to the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Indians, the Confederated Tribes will implement forest watershed restoration projects in Tribal

holdings, and the Confederated Tribes will use the Tribes’ traditional knowledge, political influence, and

available financial resources to assist forest landowners in the Ancestral Watersheds to eliminate nonpoint

sources of silvicultural pollution.

2.3.3 Hydromodification

Hydromodification is a process that can relate to several other categories of nonpoint source pollution.

For example, any activity which increases erosion can result in hydromodification. Consequently, the

best management practices for hydrologic and habitat modification often relate directly to other categories

of nonpoint source pollution. As discussed in the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Indians’ Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment, hydromodification in the combined form of

large pulses of sediment, riparian vegetation removal, and instream structure removal, indirectly related to

forestry and agricultural practices, has resulted in water quality (elevated temperature and sediment)

impairments due to losses of stream bank stability and shade, and due to shallower base flows,

particularly in stream channels downcut to bedrock. While many activities that result in

hydromodification are regulated and permitted under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and other

regulatory pathways, many other activities are not jurisdictional to this regulation, thus BMPs and

voluntary cooperation in restoration projects are a main avenue in addressing water quality impairment

resulting from hydromodification in the Confederated Tribes’ Ancestral Watersheds. Where incidental

hydromodifications are presumed to potentially arise from nonpoint source activity categories, BMPs and

Ordinances for those activities are presumed to minimize or prevent adverse hydromodification. Where

hydromodification is the intended outcome, the Terms and Conditions attached to Section 404 Clean

Water Act permits are presumed to minimize, prevent, or mitigate adverse hydromodification. The

Confederated Tribes will use the Tribes traditional knowledge, political influence, and available financial

resources to assist landowners in the Ancestral Watersheds to eliminate nonpoint sources pollution arising

from hydromodifications.

2.3.4 Marinas/Boating

Neither marinas nor boating have been found to contribute to impairments of Tribal water quality.

Marinas and boating can contribute to water quality impairments through release of petrochemicals, other

fuel exhaust pollutants, and pathogens and nutrients from human waste or fish cleaning stations. The

Confederated Tribes currently hold a large proportion of the shoreline of Munsel Lake. The Tribes will

keep this holding in “pristine” condition and protect the area from future non-point source pollutants from

recreational boating. The Tribes recently have attained 14 acres around Ten Mile Lake within the Coos

Watershed, this property, Camp Easter Seals, is in the process of being developed into a culture and kids

camp for the Tribes. The known impacts of Non-point source pollutants from boating on the lake and its’

tributaries is limited, and will require further research by the Tribes. Any boating facilities, on all tribally

held lands will be operated consistently with the guidance provided by the ODEQ manual on marinas.

Due to the limited level of anticipated activity in this category, and due to the limited concern over the

potential level of impacts of Tribal boating, the development of BMPs and Ordinances will likely be a low

priority until such time as significant activity is expected to occur.

2.3.5 Roads, Highways, and Bridges

Roads have a major effect on watershed hydrology through their location and tendency to modify

drainage patterns. Roads associated with forest management are a significant contributor of fine

sediment, have the potential to result in hydromodification through contributions large pulses of sediment

(fill failures) or through construction in and consequent disconnection of floodplains. Impermeable road

surfaces (including bridges) and associated drainage structures tend to collect leaking vehicle fluids and

route these substances to waterbodies: while no Tribal waters are listed as impaired by any of these

pollutants, they of course are a concern.

Nonpoint source pollution management of forest roads is addressed in the Forestry Activity section above.

The Confederate Tribes currently hold no “roads” other than driveways and parking lots. The

Confederated Tribes will none-the-less develop the regulatory capacity to prevent non-point source

pollution from roads through the enactment of BMPs and a Roads Nonpoint Source Pollution Control

Ordinance. The BMPs and Ordinance will rely on guidance available from the US EPA, ODEQ, Oregon

Department of Transportation 1999 Routine Road Maintenance Guide, and NOAA Fisheries Biological

Opinions. The Roads Management Program milestones are summarized in Table 1.

2.3.6 Residential and Light Commercial Development

Light development can affect hydrology and contribute nonpoint source pollution including elevated

temperature, sediment, vehicle fluids, yard chemicals, refuse, pet waste, etc. While the Confederated

Tribes own several residences and other small lots, with the possible exception of pet waste, nonpoint

source light development pollution from these sources has not been found to impair Tribal waters,

although it is of concern. Development and administrative and commercial operations of the Hatch Tract

has resulted in no nonpoint source pollution being detected. An Ordinance requiring all Tribal

construction to conform to the Universal Building Code has been adopted by the Tribes. The Light

Development Management Program milestones are summarized in Table 1.

3.0 EXISTING AUTHORITIES AND PROGRAMS ADDRESSING NONPOINT SOURCE

POLLUTION

3.1

Federal Clean Water Act3

Growing public awareness and concern for controlling water pollution led to enactment of the Federal

Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972: this law became commonly known as the Clean Water

Act (CWA). The Act established the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters

of the United States. It gave EPA the authority to implement pollution control programs such as setting

wastewater standards for industry. The Clean Water Act also contained requirements to set water quality

standards for all contaminants in surface waters. The Act made it unlawful for any person to discharge

any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters, unless a permit was obtained under its provisions.

It also funded the construction of sewage treatment plants under the construction grants program and

recognized the need for planning to address the critical problems posed by nonpoint source pollution.

The Clean Water Act has been amended several times. Those amendments include major revisions or

changes in 1977, 1981, 1987, 1995, and 2002.

Subsequent enactments modified some of the earlier Clean Water Act provisions. Revisions in 1981

streamlined the municipal construction grants process, improving the capabilities of treatment plants built

Federal laws and guidelines are quoted from EPA websites, including the Fort Peck document provided as a

template at: http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/fortpeck/fprnmp.html (.) Other sections of federal law come from other

EPA sites including: http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/sec319cwa.html ;

http://www.epa.gov/safewater/sdwa/sdwa.html & http://www.epa.gov/water/laws.html and the entire text of the

Clean Water Act is available at: http://www.epa.gov/r5water/cwa.htm

under the program.”4 “Amendments to the CWA added in 1981 provided for reservations to receive grants

to carry out water quality management planning activities. This allowed the Tribes to receive federal

funding to help carry out basic water quality management planning activities with 208 funds.”5 To date,

the Confederated Tribes have not undertaken Section 208.

Section 303. Section 303 of the CWA requires that EPA review and approve water quality standards to

assure those standards are consistent with the requirements of the CWA. Water quality standards are

provisions of local, state, or federal law which consists of a designated use or uses for the waters of the

United States, and water quality criteria to maintain and protect such uses. Water quality standards must

protect public health or welfare, enhance the quality of water and serve the purposes of the CWA.

Accordingly, water quality standards influence and affect all water pollution control programs.

EPA guidance indicates that the relationship between nonpoint source pollution control and water quality

standards should be based upon three basic principles:

Best management practices must be designed to meet water quality standards. Best management

practices are the primary mechanism to enable the achievement of water quality standards. The

Tribes expect that the proper implementation BMPs will achieve water quality standards. For

proposed nonpoint source activities, BMPs designed and implemented in accordance with a tribal

approved process will normally constitute compliance with the CWA. Once the Tribes have

approved BMPs, the BMPs become the primary mechanism for meeting water quality standards.

Proper installation, operation, and maintenance of tribal approved BMPs are presumed to meet a

landowner's or manager's obligation for compliance with applicable water quality standards.

2. The effectiveness of BMPs must be demonstrated. Once the BMPs have been installed/applied

and sufficient time has elapsed to establish the controls and monitor their effectiveness,

attainment or maintenance of water quality standards and other water quality goals should be

verified. If subsequent evaluation indicates that approved and properly implemented BMPs are

not achieving water quality standards, the Tribes should take steps to revise the BMPs, evaluate

the water quality standards for appropriateness, or both. Through the interactive process of

monitoring and adjustments of BMPs and/or water quality standards, it is anticipated and

expected that BMPs will lead to achievement of water quality standards.

3. If BMPs cannot adequately protect and maintain water quality standards, the Tribes must either

revise the BMPs to ensure protection and maintenance of water quality standards or revise the

standards or reevaluate the activity. If water quality standards are not being met, then the Tribe

may require that the NPS controls be modified or the practice causing the nonpoint source

pollution cease.

It should also be noted that EPA's regulations to implement Section 303 (40 CFR Part 131) require that

the Tribes adopt an antidegradation policy. Antidegradation policy requires that:

1. Existing instream water uses and the level of water quality necessary to protect the existing uses

shall be maintained and protected;

“Clean Water Act” available at: http://www.epa.gov/r5water/cwa.htm

Fort Peck Management Plan at: http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/fortpeck/fprnmp.html

2. Where the quality of the waters exceed levels necessary to support propagation of fish, shellfish,

and wildlife and recreation in and on the water, that quality shall be maintained and protected

unless the Tribes find that after full satisfaction of the intergovernmental coordination, that

allowing lower water quality is necessary to accommodate important economic or social

development in the area in which the waters are located. In allowing such degradation or lower

water quality, the Tribes shall assure water quality adequate to protect existing uses fully. Further,

the tribes shall assure that there shall be achieved the highest statutory and regulatory

requirements for all new and existing point sources and all cost effective and reasonable BMPs

for nonpoint source control;

3. Where high quality waters constitute an Outstanding National Resource, such as waters of

National and State parks, and wildlife refuges and waters of exceptional recreational or ecological

significance, that water quality shall be maintained and protected.

Nonpoint pollution activities are not exempt from the anti-degradation policy. Tribes are required to

assure that the highest statutory and regulatory requirements for all new and existing point sources and all

cost effective and reasonable BMPs for nonpoint source control shall be achieved. If a particular activity

will degrade water quality even after all these measures are applied, Tribes have to:

1. Identify proposed water quality degradation (where and to what degree water quality will be

lowered);

2. Determine that the degradation is necessary to accommodate important social or economic

development.

Section 314. Section 314 of the CWA requires the Tribes to submit a biennial report on water quality in

lakes on the reservation. These reports are to identify: eutrophic condition of tribal lakes; processes to

control sources of pollution in such lakes; procedures in conjunction with appropriate federal agencies, to

restore the quality of such lakes; methods to mitigate effects of high acidity; a list of tribal owned lakes

for which uses are impaired; and an assessment of the status and trends of water quality in lakes including

the nature and extent of pollution loading from point and nonpoint sources.

Funding is authorized to make grants to Tribes that have submitted satisfactory lake water quality reports

to control pollution and restore and protect lakes. It is not know at this time whether funding will

appropriated to address nonpoint pollution problems affecting lakes on the Confederated Tribes of Coos,

Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Reservation.

Section 319. The 1987 Water Quality Act passed by Congress on February 4, 1987 amended the CWA

to add a new Section 319, entitled "Management of Nonpoint Sources of Pollution." Section 319 requires

each Tribe to develop a comprehensive statewide nonpoint pollution assessment report, and to submit a

management program for control of nonpoint source pollution on the reservation.

The assessment report should identify reservation waters, which without additional action to control

nonpoint sources of pollution, cannot reasonably be expected to attain or maintain applicable water

quality standards or the goals or requirements of the CWA. The assessment report should also identify

categories and subcategories of nonpoint sources, as well as particular nonpoint sources that contribute

pollution to identified waters, and include descriptions of Tribal management processes and control

programs.

The nonpoint management programs are to include: best management practices to reduce pollutant

loadings from each category and subcategory of nonpoint source pollution identified in the Tribes'

Assessment report; specific management programs to achieve implementation of best management

practices; a schedule for program implementation; certification of necessary legal authorities; and sources

of funding to support implementation. The assessment report and the management program must be

submitted to EPA, which has 180 days to approve or disapprove the report and program.

Upon approval of the assessment report and management program, Tribes are eligible for Section 319

grants from EPA to assist in implementing the management program. The federal share of implementation

grants shall not exceed 75%. Eligible implementation cost include costs of implementing regulatory or

non-regulatory programs for enforcement, technical assistance, financial assistance, education, training,

technology transfer and demonstration projects. Monitoring which is done to support design of watershedlevel control programs or to evaluate a particular implementation project is eligible. General assessment

and planning activities as well as administrative costs are not considered implementation. Grants may also

be provided for protecting groundwater quality with the maximum federal share set at 75%.

EPA has been directed to give priority in making 319 implementation grants to nonpoint projects which

will control particularly difficult nonpoint source problems, implement innovative control methods or

practices, control interstate nonpoint source pollution, or carry out groundwater quality protection

activities.

Each tribe is required to submit an annual report to EPA and the Administrator of EPA is required to

report annually to Congress on the program.

Section 401. Section 401 of the Federal CWA requires that any applicant apply for a federal license or

permit for the conduct of any activity which results in a discharge into the navigable waters of the U.S.

The 401 certification authority is administered on the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Reservation by EPA. Section 401 provides the EPA with authority to assure that federally

permitted or licensed activities which can result in nonpoint source pollution, do not violate Tribal Water

Quality Standards (State water quality standards specify uses for the waters of the reservation, and the

water quality criteria necessary to protect those uses.

Section 401 provides the Tribe with a mechanism to modify potentially damaging federally permitted or

licensed projects. This authority is frequently applied toward dredge and fill permits issued by the U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers and licenses issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Section 404. Section 404 of the Federal CWA establishes a permit program for the discharge of dredged

or fill material into the waters of the U.S. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Portland District,

administers this program on the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Reservation.

Discharges of dredged or fill material are frequently associated with nonpoint source pollution-causing

activities occurring in or adjacent to streams and wetlands. The 404 permit program allows a mechanism

to require implementation of appropriate BMPs for the control of nonpoint source pollution by stipulation

of BMPs as a condition of the permit. The program also allows opportunity for consultation among the

COE, EPA, USFWS, and Conservation Districts regarding appropriate BMPs.

Discharges of dredged or fill material into wetlands are regulated under the 404 program. This serves as a

significant means for protecting of wetlands, thus preserving their important function in improving water

quality through assimilation of nutrients and retention of sediments.

3.2 Tribal Ordinances

Previously, the EPA, through the Indian General Assistance Program and Tribal Response Program,

provided funds and approved workplans for the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Indians to develop a suite of Environmental Ordinances. The Tribes, as time allows will continue

to develop Environmental Ordinances.

3.3

Financial Assistance

3.3.1 Federal

Natural Resources Conservation Service

The Natural Resources Conservation Service administers two major programs that provide financial

assistance to projects, which may reduce pollution from nonpoint sources, which are of interest to the

Tribes. These programs are Public Law 566 and the Resource Conservation and Development Program.

Conservation Reserve Program6

The Conservation Reserve Program was authorized by the Food Security Act of 1985 and reauthorized by

the Food and Agricultural Trade Act of 1990. The Farm Service Agency administers the financial and

compliance provisions of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) through the Commodity Credit

Corporation. Under the CRP, producers enter a contract to place highly erodible cropland into a

conservation reserve for a ten to fifteen year period. The producer seeds the land to permanent cover to

control erosion. Producers agree not to harvest, graze or crop the land for ten years. A significant change

in the CRP program as of February 1988 allows the inclusion of areas dedicated to a vegetative filter strip

along streams and permanent waterways. This strip to be planted to grass, shrubs or trees will normally be

between 66 and 99 feet in width and should substantially increase streambank stability while substantially

reducing sediments and nutrients and other chemicals from reaching water courses. Areas under CRP

contract as filter strips must have previously been cropland and do not have to meet erodibility criteria of

other CRP lands.

Water & Environmental Program

The Water and Environmental Program (WEP) is operated by the USDA’s Rural Utility Service. The

WEP provides loans, grants and loan guarantees for drinking water, sanitary sewer, solid waste and storm

drainage facilities in rural areas and cities and towns of 10,000 or less. Public bodies, nonprofit

organizations and recognized Indian tribes may qualify for assistance. WEP also makes grants to

nonprofit organizations to provide technical assistance and training to assist rural communities with their

water, wastewater, and solid waste problems.”7

Water Bank Program8

The Water Bank Program, authorized in 1970, provides that persons having eligible wetlands in important

migratory waterfowl nesting, breeding, and feeding areas could enter into ten year agreements and receive

“Fort Peck Nonpoint Source Management Plan,” http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/fortpeck/fprnmp.html (.) and

USDA Conservation Reserve Program Website: http://www.fsa.usda.gov/dafp/cepd/crp.htm

Rural Utility Service, USDA, “Water and Environmental Home Page: ZZZZNote on the web page, Home Page is

two wordsZZZZZ http://www.usda.gov/rus/water/index.htm

“Fort Peck Nonpoint Source Management Plan,” http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/fortpeck/fprnmp.html (.)

annual payments for preventing the serious loss of wetlands and for preserving, restoring, and improving

inland fresh water and designated adjacent areas.

Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D)

According to the NRCS, “the purpose of the Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) program

is to accelerate the conservation, development and utilization of natural resources, improve the general

level of economic activity, and to enhance the environment and standard of living in designated RC&D

areas. It improves the capability of State, tribal and local units of government and local nonprofit

organizations in rural areas to plan, develop and carry out programs for resource conservation and

development. The program also establishes or improves coordination systems in rural areas. Current

program objectives focus on improvement of quality of life achieved through natural resources

conservation and community development which leads to sustainable communities, prudent use

(development), and the management and conservation of natural resources. RC&D areas are locally

sponsored areas designated by the Secretary of Agriculture for RC&D technical and financial assistance

program funds.”9

Soil and Water Conservation Assistance

“The Soil and Water Conservation Assistance (SWCA) provides cost share and incentive payments to

farmers and ranchers to voluntarily address threats to soil, water, and related natural resources, including

grazing land, wetlands, and wildlife habitat. SWCA will help landowners comply with Federal and state

environmental laws and make beneficial, cost-effective changes to cropping systems, grazing

management, nutrient management, and irrigation.”10

USDA Rural Development

The former Farmers Home Administration (FmHA) is now part of the Rural Development within the

USDA. Rural Development continues to make loans and grants in rural areas. Several of these below

market rate loans benefit water quality concerns. .

Environmental Protection Agency

The Environmental Protection Agency provides financial assistance to Tribes for activities related to

nonpoint source pollution control under several sections of the CWA. Under Section 319 of the CWA,

financial assistance can be provided to Tribes for the implementation of Tribal Nonpoint Source Pollution

Management Programs. Section 319 asks that Tribes prepare a comprehensive reservation wide nonpoint

pollution assessment report and a management program.

Upon approval of the assessment report and management program, Tribes are eligible for Section 319

grants from EPA to assist in implementing the management program. The federal share of implementation

grants shall not exceed 75 percent. Eligible implementation costs include costs of implementing

regulatory or non-regulatory programs for enforcement, technical assistance, financial assistance,

education, training, technology transfer, and demonstration projects. Monitoring which is done to support

design of watershed level control programs or to evaluate a particular implementation project is eligible.

Natural Resources Conservation Service, “Resource Conservation and Development Program,”

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/rcd/

Natural Resources Conservation Service, “Soil and Water Conservation Assistance,”

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/swca/

General assessment and planning activities as well as administrative costs are not considered

implementation. Grants may also be provided for protection ground water quality with the maximum

federal share set at 75%.

EPA has been directed to give priority in making 319 implementation grants to nonpoint projects which

will control particularly difficult nonpoint source problems, implement innovative control methods or

practices, control interstate nonpoint source pollution, or carry out groundwater quality protection

activities.

NOAA Fisheries

NOAA Fisheries provides funds for salmonid habitat restoration through its Pacific Coastal Salmon

Recovery Fund (PCSRF).

US Fish and Wildlife Service

The US Fish and Wildlife Service provides funds through the Partners for Wildlife program and through

programs dedicated to Tribal projects.

3.3.2 State

Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board

The Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB) provides funds for watershed restoration projects.

3.3.3 Private

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation provides support for fisheries and wildlife enhancement

projects

3.4 Roles of Agencies/Technical Assistance

3.4.1 State

Oregon Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Environmental Quality, Forestry, Agriculture..

These state agencies provide information and technical assistance for their respective resources.

3.4.2 Federal

US Environmental Protection Agency; US Department of the Interior Bureau of Indian

Affairs, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, US Geological Survey;

US Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, US Forest Service.

These federal agencies provide information and technical assistance for their respective resources.

4.0 FORMULATION OF BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

Categories, subcategories, and sources of nonpoint pollution have been discussed in the Confederated

Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians’ Nonpoint Source Pollution Assessment and in this

Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Plan. The example of a Tribal nonpoint source pollution

management plan provided by the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes 1993 Fort Peck Tribes

Nonpoint Source Management Plan states that “Section 319 of the Federal Clean Water Act requires each

tribe to describe its process for identifying the measures it will use to control these categories,

subcategories, and sources.” The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians

have developed BMPs for certain activities relevant to Tribal trust land and will continue to complete and

periodically review BMPs. EPA General Assistance Program (GAP) funds have been secured to develop

Ordinances which will provide specific guidance to minimize adverse effects on water quality by

activities including ground disturbing activities and stormwater runoff associated with site development;

riparian vegetation buffers in forested, agricultural, residential, and commercial landscapes; and road

construction and maintenance activities. A Tribal Forest Management Plan will be completed pending the

enactment of and as per the statutory provisions of legislation which proposes to restore a significant

acreage of federal forest land to the Confederated Tribes. The general process for the development of

BMPs for Tribal holdings is fairly uniform, although the details of the process will vary with the

particular holding.

In general, the Tribal Administration will draft BMPs based on research of pertinent existing local,

county, state, federal, and other Tribal BMPs and statutes. Through the Tribal newspaper and through

Tribal Council meetings, the Tribal Membership will be informed of the progress of BMP development

and will be encouraged to provide input. After this scoping and public comment period is complete, the

BMPs will be submitted in Ordinance form to the Tribal Council. The Confederated Tribes requires that

proposed Ordinances have a first reading and be subject to comment for thirty days prior to a second

reading and potential adoption at a Tribal Council meeting. Pending Tribal Council approval, the BMPs

will be adopted as Tribal Ordinances.

Silvicultural BMPs associated with the proposed Tribal Forest will be required to be consistent with the

enabling legislation which leads to the enactment of the Tribal Forest. Such BMPs will be developed in a

process similar to Tribal Ordinances and will be included in a Tribal Forest Resource Management Plan

developed under the provisions of the legislation restoration federal forest land to the Tribes, the National

Indian Forest Resources Management Act, and Bureau of Indian Affairs policies and procedures. This

Plan will be developed with input in a manner similar to the process for input on Tribal Ordinances. This

Plan will be drafted by Tribal and BIA staff with the assistance of the federal agency currently managing

the forest land, and will be subject to the provisions of NEPA.

There is a wide selection of excellent sources for BMPs for the Confederated Tribes to consider as the

Tribes’ BMPs are developed for the various types of Tribal land uses. These sources, including referrals,

include:

US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);

Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS);

US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS);

NOAA Fisheries;

US Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE);

US Forest Service (USFS);

Bureau of Land Management (BLM);

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ);

Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (OLCDC);

Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB);

Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA);

Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF);

The proposed Oregon Division of State Lands (ODSL) State Programmatic General Permit

(SPGP).

Many of these agencies, directly or through local Watershed Associations, provide technical and financial

assistance for a variety of programs including nonpoint source pollution control. Given the (currently)

small and dispersed nature of Tribal holdings, the Confederated Tribes have identified cooperation and

coordination with these entities, especially watershed associations, in addition to the development of our

own Tribal Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program, as the most promising path to reversing

impairments of Tribal water quality.

Categories of nonpoint sources of pollution identified by the EPA include agriculture; forestry;

hydromodification / habitat alteration; marinas / boating; roads, highways, and bridges; urban

environments, including low-impact development; and wetland / riparian management. Of these

categories, the following are the Tribal land uses which may contribute to water quality impairments:

Forestry;

Roads;

Urban/low-impact development;

Wetland/riparian management;

Boating.

As discussed above, current Tribal land uses are considered to have little or no actual or potential adverse

effect on water quality. And as discussed above, agriculture, forestry, hydromodification, roads, and lowimpact development are considered to be the primary contributors throughout the watersheds to water

quality impairment. The Tribal BMP development process will prioritize those current or likely Tribal

land uses which have the potential to contribute to water quality impairments, such as site development

and forestry. The Tribal BMP development process will then prioritize those categories which contribute

to impairment of Tribal water quality but which are not currently found on Tribal lands but which may in

the future as land is acquired, such as agriculture.

5.0 CONCLUSION

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians have struggled at least as hard as

any federally-recognized Tribe in Oregon to retain their identity, culture, and sovereignty. Since

restoration of federal recognition in 1984, the Confederated Tribes have expended the Tribes’ scarce

resources to meet the barest needs of the Tribal Government and the Tribal members. The Confederated

Tribes have slowly, carefully, and steadily built their administrative capacity with the goal of achieving

self-governance and economic self-sufficiency. To this end, in the late 1990’s, the Confederated Tribes

established the Tribes’ Environmental Program, which later expanded into the Department of Natural

Resources.

The Tribal holdings consist of several small and widely dispersed tracts. Limited current and potential

land use also limits the current or potential contribution to nonpoint sources of pollution. Within the

watersheds in which the Tribal holdings are located, water quality is impaired by significant, widespread,

and difficult to manage sources of nonpoint source pollution, i.e. elevated levels of temperature, sediment,

and fecal coliform bacteria, and depressed dissolved oxygen concentrations. Forest and agricultural

practices are considered to be the primary categories of land uses contributing to these impairments.

Funds have been secured and workplans have been adopted to develop new and complete periodic review

of existing BMPs addressing ground disturbing activities and stormwater runoff associated with site

development; riparian vegetation buffers in forested, agricultural, residential, and commercial landscapes;

road construction and maintenance activities; silvicultural activities, and other environmental

considerations. The Confederated Tribes have engaged with other stakeholders in the Ancestral

Watersheds, primarily through Watershed Associations, to seek solutions to impairments of water quality

arising from Tribal and non-Tribally held lands and the consequent degradation of other aquatic resources,

particularly the culturally significant resources of salmon, lamprey, and shellfish.

This Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Plan will be used by the Confederated Tribes of Coos,

Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians to build on the administrative capacity already established by the

Confederated Tribes and the Tribes’ Department of Natural Resources, and to build on the collaborative

relationships between the Tribes and other stakeholders in the Ancestral Watersheds, so as to integrate

Tribal technical, financial, and land resources with the technical expertise and stewardship commitment of

our partners in these watersheds and their Watershed Associations. This direction provided by this report

will continue to guide and prioritize the implementation of BMPs for controlling Tribal nonpoint sources

of pollution and to minimize and reverse impairments of water quality from conditions on Tribal holdings.

This Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Plan will also continue to be used as a tool in our

collaboration with other stakeholders to address nonpoint sources of pollution in the Ancestral

Watersheds.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.