The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe has received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to oversee the Clean Water Act’s quality control and certification efforts on reservation and trust lands.
W. Ron Allen, tribal chairman and CEO of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe in Washington state, said in an EPA news release that ensuring quality water is key to the tribe and the health of its citizens. Dan Opalski, director of EPA’s Water Division in Seattle, said in the news release that the EPA is looking forward to working with the tribe as it takes on its new role.
“The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe has long maintained strong environmental programs, and their commitment to a strong water quality program was evident in their application for treatment in a similar manner as a state,” Opalski said in the EPA news release.
The EPA news release notes that its approval enables the tribe to take on Clean Water Act powers to manage surface waters situated on its reservation and trust lands, which include properties outside of the reservation held in trust by the federal government for the tribe.
The tribe will be able to establish water quality standards and goals, keys to protecting water quality.
According to the release, the tribe’s reservation and trust lands in Washington include nearly 645 acres near the Dungeness River and Sequim Bay on the Olympic Peninsula.
