Nonpoint Source Program
The Nonpoint Source (NPS) program will begin in October of 2009. Funding is provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act.
The primary goal of the NPS program is to prevent and control nonpoint source pollution and protect or improve water quality on the Reservation. This will be accomplished through preventative education, implementing best management practices (BMPs), development of habitat protection policy and environmental ordinances, installation of detention/treatment ponds, rain gardens, sediment basins, etc. to treat storm water discharge, and by expanding baseline monitoring in areas of current or future NPS pollution.
Red Lake 319 Program
What is NPS?
Nonpoint Source Pollution comes from many sources. NPS is not like point sources that may come from industrial or sewage treatment plants. NPS pollution is caused by rainfall or snow melt that transports pollutants, contaminating ground and surface water. Examples of these pollutants include:
1) Fertilizers, herbicides, and insecticides from farming and residential areas.
2) Oil, grease, and chemicals from urban runoff and energy production.
3) Sediment from improperly managed construction sites, crop and forest lands, and eroding stream banks.
4) Road salt and salt from irrigation practices, and acid drainage from abandoned mines.
5) Bacteria and nutrients from failing septic systems. 6) Atmospheric deposition and hydro modification are also sources of NPS