Environmental Program
The Environmental Programs main responsibility is to assure that Red Lake Nation is in compliance with federal environmental regulations in order to protect Tribal members and resources. The program maintains a permanent staff of three; a program director, an air quality specialist, and a brownfields coordinator. Program staff works closely with other DNR programs to assure that Tribal resources are well protected. Some of the Environmental Programs goals and objectives include; develop and promote waste reduction, recycling, and household hazardous waste management, protect tribal groundwater and surface waters from contamination, develop an Underground Storage Tank (UST) Compliance Assistance Program and ensure all regulated USTs are in compliance with federal regulations, protect the health and safety of individuals and the environment from accidental chemical releases by maintaining and practicing our Tribal Emergency Response Plan, monitor dwellings and office buildings for lead, asbestos, and other contaminants, and develop and monitor Source Water Protection Areas for three tribal public water systems .
Currently, the Environmental Program is managing four projects:
- UST Compliance Assistance Project is a new project that is designed to provide compliance assistance to UST owners and operators on the Reservation as well as other reservations located within the State of Minnesota.
- Under the Emergency Response Planning and Community Right to Know project, we need to finalize our Tribal Emergency Response Plan and present it to the Tribal Council for adoption. Additionally, we need to have annual emergency response exercises and reviews of the plan. The Environmental Program also conducts Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) programs on the Reservation and provides information to tribal members.
- The Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) project includes two official sites that the Environmental Program monitors.
- Under the Hazardous Waste Collection project, the Tribe will develop and implement a Household Hazardous Waste Collection Plan to help reduce and manage hazardous wastes. We shall also study different hazardous waste disposal options.