Monitoring to Protect High Quality Waters and Advance Tribal Sovereignty

The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa holds delegated regulatory (water quality standards, 401 certification) and non-regulatory authorities (monitoring, nonpoint source management) under the Clean Water Act. The tribe’s investment in water resource protection is grounded in both a cultural worldview (water is sacred; we are in relationship with the natural world) and a clear focus on protecting the high quality water resources of the reservation and ceded territories of the upper Great Lakes. Our water quality monitoring program has amassed a 25-year comprehensive database of physical, chemical and biological data, used to inform the development of new approved water quality criteria. Our monitoring data also provides the underlying justification for conditions we impose through 401 certification of federal permits. As the foundation for our water quality program, monitoring has directly and indirectly affected critical decision-making, including during emergency response and industrial permitting actions.