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EPA Awards Cooperative Grant to Nooksack Tribe to help cleanup the Northern bank of the Nooksack River

Release Date: 7/25/2005
Contact Information: Lewis McLeod
McLeod.lewis@epa.gov
(206) 553-0527

July 25, 2005



The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a $252,269 Cooperative Grant to the Nooksack Tribe to help cleanup the Northern bank of the Nooksack River in Whatcom County, WA. The Cooperative Grant engages the EPA, the Nooksack Tribe, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) as cooperative partners in the initial stage of the cleanup project.

The objectives of this project are to meet the statutory authority of the Indian Environmental General Assistance Program Act of 1992, by building tribal capacity to address solid waste cleanup activities and begin development of a strategic plan to stabilize a major river bank.

The project goals are:

• Relocate the solid waste that is within 150 feet of the active channel to an on-site storage area within the existing dump,
• Relocate the solid waste material that is located within 200 feet of the avulsion channel, the solid waste within it, and the solid waste between the avulsion channel and the active river channel to an on-site storage area within the existing dump,
• Remove or relocate the solid waste that is between 150 feet and 200 feet from the active channel of the river to an on-site storage area within the existing dump and the material from within 250feet of the active channel until funding is exhausted, prioritizing removal of waste closer to the river edge, and
• Design a short-term river stabilization project (3-5 year life-span) that is optimally neutral or beneficial for fish.

An additional objective is to construct a security fence between the road and the property to prevent any future use of this site as an illegal dump site and protect the property during the cleanup activities.

The Nooksack Tribe has contracted with Nooksack Tribal Public Works Office to complete the work. The Nooksack tribes Natural Resources Department Director will accomplish the day-to-day oversight of the contract.

EPA will have substantial evolvement with this project to ensure communications is facilitated and this phase of the project is accomplished according to the cooperative agreement.

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Related Links:

Region 10's Cleanup Website (yosemite.epa.gov/r10/cleanup.nsf/webpage/Cleaning+up+the+Pacific+Northwest+and+Alaska)

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