U.S. Geological Survey

Activities Related to

American Indians and Alaska Natives

Fiscal Year 2002

**Contents Page**

**List of Tribes or Tribal Governments Mentioned in the Report ii**

**Organizations or Events Related to American Indians or Alaska Natives
in the Report v**

**States Mentioned in the Report vi**

**Introduction 1**

**Highlights of Fiscal Year 2002 TK**

**Educational Activities TK**

**Resource and Environmental Activities TK**

**Technical Assistance TK**

**General Coordination and Policy Activities TK**

**Future Opportunities TK**

**Map of USGS FY2002 Activities on American Indian and Alaska Native
Lands TK**

**USGS Contacts inside back cover**

**This report is organized in the following manner: east to west, north
to south. General information is followed by information on work in the
northeastern United States; information about Alaska is at the end of
each section. To find a particular Tribal reference, or State, use the
indices on pages TK through TK.**

**List of Tribes or Tribal Governments**

**Mentioned in the Report**

**Tribal Name\*
\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\...\.....Page**

Akutan, Native Village of (AK)

Arikara Tribe (see Three Affiliated Tribes) (ND)

Aroostook Band of Micmacs (ME)

Atka, Native Village of (AK)

Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (WI)

Blackfeet Nation (MT)

Bristol Bay Borough (AK)

Burns Paiute Tribe (OR)

Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma (OK)

Campo Band of Mission Indians (CA)

Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska (AK)

Cheesh'Na Tribal Council (AK)

Chevak Native Village (AK)

Chickasaw Nation (OK)

Chistochina Village (AK)

Chippewa Cree Tribes of the Rocky Boy's Reservation (MT)

Citizen Potawatomi Nation (OK)

Cochiti Pueblo (NM)

Coeur d'Alene Tribe (ID)

Colorado River Indian Tribes (AZ, CA)

Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (MT)

Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (WA)

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (OR)

Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation (OR)

Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation (WA)

Crow Tribe of Indians (MT)

Douglas Indian Association (AK)

Eastern Shoshone Tribe (Wind River Reservation) (WY)

Fairbanks, City of (AK)

Fallon Paiute Shoshone Tribe (Fallon Colony) (NV)

False Pass, City of (AK)

Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe (SD)

Flathead Reservation (see Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes) (MT)

Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (MN)

Fort Apache (see White Mountain Apache Tribe) (AZ)

Fort Berthold Reservation (see Three Affiliated Tribes) (ND)

Fort Hall (see Shoshone-Bannock Tribes) (ID)

Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation (AZ)

Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes (MT)

Fort Totten (see Spirit Lake Tribe) (ND)

Gila River Indian Community (AZ)

Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (MN)

Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake (CA)

Haida Corporation (AK)

Hannahville Indian Community (MI)

Havasupai Tribe (AZ)

Hidatsa Tribe (see Three Affiliated Tribes) (ND)

Ho-Chunk Nation (WI)

Hoopa Valley Tribe (CA)

Hopi Tribe (AZ)

Houlton Band of the Maliseet Indians (ME)

Hualapai Tribe (AZ)

Isleta, Pueblo of (NM)

Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe (WA)

Jamul Indian Village (CA)

Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians (AZ)

Kalispel Tribe of Indians (WA)

Karuk Tribe of California (CA)

Keechi Tribe (see Wichita and Affiliated Tribes) (OK)

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (MI)

King Cove, City of (AK)

Klamath Tribes, The (OR)

Kootenai Tribe of Idaho (ID)

Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (WI)

Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (WI)

Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (MI)

Lake Traverse Reservation (see Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe) (ND, SD)

Lower Brule Sioux Tribe (SD)

Lower Elwha Tribal Community of the Lower Elwha Reservation (WA)

Lummi Nation (WA)

Makah Nation (WA)

Mandan Tribe (see Three Affiliated Tribes) (ND)

Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin (WI)

Mescalero Apache Tribe (AZ)

Minto Village (AK)

Mohican Nation, Stockbridge-Munsee Band (WI)

Mole Lake Reservation (see Sokaogon Chippewa Community) (WI)

Morongo Band of Mission Indians (CA)

Naknek Native Village (AK)

Nambe Pueblo (NM)

Navajo Nation (AZ, NM, UT)

Nelson Lagoon (AK)

Newhalen Village (AK)

Nez Perce (Ni Mii Pu) Tribe (ID)

Nisqually Indian Tribe (WA)

Nondalton Village (AK)

Nooksack Indian Tribe (WA)

Northern Arapaho Tribe (Wind River Reservation) (WY)

Northern Cheyenne Tribe (MT)

Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi (MI)

Oglala Sioux Tribe (Pine Ridge Reservation) (SD)

Omaha Tribe of Nebraska and Iowa (NE)

Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin (WI)

Onondaga Nation (NY)

Osage Nation (OK)

Pala Band of Mission Indians (CA)

Passamaquoddy Tribe (ME)

Pechanga Band of Mission Indians (CA)

Penobscot Nation (ME)

Perryville, Native Village of (AK)

Pine Ridge Reservation (see Oglala Sioux Tribe) (SD)

Pojoaque Pueblo (NM)

Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, The (MI, IN)

Port Alsworth Village (AK)

Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation (KS)

Prairie Island Indian Community (MN)

Puyallup Tribe of Indians (WA)

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (NV)

Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma (OK)

Quileute Tribe (WA)

Quinault Indian Nation (WA)

Rosebud Sioux Tribe (SD)

Rocky Boy's Reservation (see Chippewa Cree Tribes of the Rocky Boy's
Reservation) (MT)

Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan (MI)

St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, The (NY)

Salish and Kootenai Tribes (see Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes)

San Carlos Apache Tribe (AZ)

San Ildefonso, Pueblo of (NM)

San Juan Pueblo (NM)

San Juan Southern Paiute (AZ)

Santa Clara Pueblo (NM)

Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska (NE)

Seneca-Cayuga Tribe (OK)

Seminole Tribe of Florida (FL)

Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe (WA)

Shoshone-Bannock Tribes (ID)

Shoshone-Paiute Tribes (NV)

Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe (Lake Traverse Reservation) (SD, ND)

Sitka Tribe of Alaska (AK)

Skokomish Tribe of Indians (WA)

Sokaogon Chippewa Community (WI)

Spirit Lake Nation (ND)

Southern Ute Indian Tribe (CO)

Spokane Tribe of Indians (WA)

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (ND, SD)

Summit Lake Paiute Tribe (NV)

Tawakoni Tribe (see Wichita and Affiliated Tribes) (OK)

Tesuque, Pueblo of (NM)

Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation (ND)

Timbisha Shoshone Tribe (CA)

Tohono O'odham Nation (AZ)

Tule River Tribe (CA)

Tulalip Tribes, The (WA)

Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians (ND)

Unalaska, City of (AK)

Ute Mountain Ute Tribe (UT, CO, NM)

Waco Tribe (see Wichita and Affiliated Tribes) (OK)

Walker River Paiute Tribe (NV)

White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe (MN)

White Mountain Apache Tribe (AZ)

Wind River Reservation (Northern Arapaho Tribe or Eastern Shoshone
Tribe) (WY)

Wichita and Affiliated Tribes (OK)

Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska (NE)

Yakama Nation (see Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation)
(WA)

Yankton Sioux Tribe (SD)

Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe (AZ)

Yurok Tribe (CA)

Zuni, Pueblo of (NM)

\* Names in this report are the most accurate that could be readily
determined from several sources. Any inaccuracies are unintentional.
Corrections are welcome.

**Organizations or Events Related to**

**American Indians or Alaska Natives**

**Mentioned in the Report**

**Organization/Event\* Page**

1854 Authority

\'Ahakhav Tribal Preserve

Ahtna Incorporated

Akutan Corporation

Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation

Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Alaska Historical Commission

Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium

Aleut Corporation, The

American Fisheries Society

American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES)

Arizona Department of Water Resources

Arizona Geological Society

Arizona, State of

Army Corps of Engineers

Automated Geographic Reference Center

Becharof National Wildlife Refuge

Big Cypress National Preserve

Bonneville Power Administration

Bristol Bay Corporation (AK)

Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)

Bureau of Land Management (BLM)

Bureau of Reclamation

Calista Corporation

California Department of Fish and Game

Geodetic Survey Division (Canada, Natural Resources Canada)

Canyon De Chelly National Monument

Central Washington University

Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority

Chippewa Township (MI)

Colorado Plateau Data Coordination Group

Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission

Cook Inlet Region Incorporated (CIRI)

Death Valley National Park

Department of Agriculture (US)

Department of Energy (US)

Diné College

Doyon, Limited

Environmental Protection Agency (US)

Fallon Naval Air Station

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Fish and Wildlife Service (US)

Forest Service (US)

Grand Canyon National Park

Great Lakes Fishery Commission

Great Lakes Fishery Trust

Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission

Hanford Laboratory

Haskell Indian Nations University

Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Natural Resources

Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site

Indian Health Service

Indian Research Council

Interagency Area-Wide Technical Group

Intertribal GIS Council

Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan

Journal of Fish Diseases

Justice, U.S. Department of

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Environmental Department

Klamath River Fishery Restoration Program

La Crosse School District

Lake and Peninsula Borough

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve

Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Angeles Department of Water and Power

Maine Atlantic Salmon Committee

Maine Department of Environmental Protection

Mesa Verde National Park

Michigan, State of

Michigan Tribal Environmental Group

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

Model Institutions of Excellence

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

National Board on Geographic Names

National Congress of American Indians

National Geodetic Survey (a NOAA bureau)

National Indian Education Association

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

National Park Service

National Science Foundation

National States Geographic Information Council

National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program

Native American Fish and Wildlife Society

Navajo National Monument

Navajo Nation Data Resource Center

Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency

Navajo Nation Institutional Review Board

Navajo Nation Uranium Education Program

Navajo Nation Water Resources Department

Navajo Natural Heritage Program

Navy

New England Tribal Environmental Conference

New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Geology

New Mexico State University

Nevada Division of Water Resources

Nevada Indian Fish Commission

Northern Cheyenne Natural Resources Department

Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

Office of Response and Restoration (a NOAA bureau)

Oglala Lakota College

Oklahoma State University

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries

Oregon Water Resources Department

Osage Nation Environmental and Resource Department

Ounalashka Corporation

Owens Valley Indian Water Commission

Oyate Consortium

Peabody Western Coal Company

Penobscot Nation Department of Natural Resources

Pinon Elementary School

Pipe Spring National Monument

Portland General Electric

Prescott Active Management Area

Pribilof Islands

Rocky Ridge School

Rough Rock High School

Rural Geospatial Innovations in America (RGIS)

Saint George Island

Saint Paul Island

St. Regis Mohawk Tribe (The), Environmental Division

San Diego Science Alliance

San Diego State University

San Ildefonso Department of Environmental and Cultural Preservation

Santa Clara Department of Forestry

Science and Native Communities Conference

Seattle City Light

Selenium Working Group Advisory Committee

Sinte Gleska University

Skagit System Tribal Cooperative (composed of the Sauk-Suiattle,
Swinomish, and Upper Skagit Tribes) (WA)

South Dakota State University

South Florida Water Management District

Southern Paiute Consortium (composed of the Kaibab Paiute Tribe and the
Shivwits Band of the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah)

Southwest Strategy

Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI)

Summer of Applied Geophysics Experience

Tanana Chiefs Youth Opportunities Program

Tonalea Day School

Toppenish National Wildlife Refuge

University of Alaska Anchorage

University of Alaska Fairbanks

University of California at San Diego

University of Maine, Water Research Institute

University of New Mexico

University of Oklahoma

University of Tulsa

Upper Columbia River White Sturgeon Recovery Team

Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery

Washington Department of Ecology

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

Washington State Governor's Office of Indian Affairs

Water Survey of Canada

Western Social Science Association

White Salmon Watershed Management Council

Wind River Watershed Council

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Yakama Nation Department of Natural Resources

Yavapai County, Arizona

Yavapai County Water Advisory Committee

Yucca House National Monument

\* Names in this report are the most accurate that could be readily
determined from several sources. Any inaccuracies are unintentional.
Corrections are welcome.

**State Listing**

State Page

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

Florida

Idaho

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Maine

Michigan

Minnesota

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Mexico

New York

North Dakota

Oklahoma

Oregon

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Utah

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Virginia

U.S. Geological Survey Activities Related to American Indian and Alaska
Natives

Fiscal Year 2002

**Introduction**

Information is a resource for Native American governments, communities,
organizations, and people. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) provides
technical expertise, reports, and other impartial information sources
that benefit Native Americans interested in subsistence issues, water,
land use, and the health of many parts of the environment. Native
self-sufficiency, economic development, and conservation are cultivated
through Native decisions informed with USGS data and analyses.

The USGS works in cooperation with American Indian and Alaska Native
governments, conducting research on water and mineral resources, animals
and plants of environmental, economic, or subsistence importance,
natural hazards, and geologic resources. Digital data on cartography,
mineral resources, streamflow, biota, and other topics are available to
American Indian and Alaska Native individuals and institutions. The USGS
recognizes the need to learn from and share knowledge with Native
peoples. This report describes most of the activities that the USGS
conducted with American Indian and Alaska Native governments,
educational institutions, and individuals during Federal fiscal year
2002. Some of these USGS activities were carried out in concert with the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Others were conducted by Tribes, Tribal
organizations, professional societies, and the USGS.

A growing number of Tribal governments, educational institutions, and
other Tribal organizations have begun using geographic information
systems and other digital technologies in recent years. As Tribes become
more interested in and more adept at managing digital information, they
are seeking relevant data from the USGS more frequently. Using digital
technologies provides Tribal governments with additional means of
managing lands and resources for the benefit of current and future
generations. The USGS recognizes the need to make its information
available to Tribal governments, and to work with those governments and
other institutions to advance data management capabilities. The USGS
also recognizes that Tribal institutions have varying needs, interests,
and capacities. The USGS strives to be sensitive to the unique
circumstances of each of these institutions while supporting their
self-driven evolution.

The USGS is responding to these needs by increasing the transfer of
scientific information to American Indian and Alaska Native governments
and by training employees of those governments to conduct scientific
studies and improve scientific data management. The USGS is also
encouraging American Indians and Alaska Natives to pursue careers in
science and seeking ways to hire Indian and Native students. By
identifying, improving, and disseminating information about available
hiring mechanisms, the USGS is working to make hiring such students
easier, and, therefore, more likely, for USGS managers.

The U.S. Geological Survey is the Federal science bureau within the
Department of the Interior (DOI). The USGS is non-regulatory and is not
a significant manager of Federal or Trust lands or assets. However, as
described in this report, there are several types of USGS activities
that involve American Indians, Alaska Natives, and their lands.

One type of activity is the course of formal studies, conducted through
existing USGS programs, that involves collection of specific types of
data as well as investigative and research projects. These projects
typically last 2 or 3 years, although a few are parts of longer-term
activities. Some projects are funded through cooperative agreements,
from monies provided to the USGS by individual Tribal governments, or by
the BIA. The USGS provides matching funds for cooperative projects.
These formal projects may also receive funding from the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, the Indian Health Service (part of the
Department of Health and Human Services), or other Federal agencies. The
USGS routinely works with its sister bureaus in the Department of the
Interior to provide the scientific information and expertise needed to
meet the Department's science priorities. Within this context, the USGS
and the BIA are cooperating to use USGS information resources to benefit
American Indian and Alaska Native peoples and their lands.

The second type of USGS activity is less formal, based on initiatives
designed and conducted by USGS employees. Frequently involving
educational activities, these endeavors are prompted by employee
interests, often as collateral issues, that result from one or more USGS
employees identifying and responding to an observed need. In these
activities, USGS employees help fulfill a mission of the USGS---to prove
scientific relevance---while helping their fellow citizens.
Increasingly, some of the educational activities are becoming parts of
formal USGS projects.

USGS employees have also taken the initiative in assisting American
Indians and Alaska Natives through participation in several
organizations that were created to foster awareness of science among
Native peoples and to help build support and communication networks. One
such group is the American Indian Science and Engineering Society
(AISES). This group sponsors an annual national meeting in which USGS
employees participate. USGS employees join this organization on a
voluntary basis, bringing the benefits of this expanded network to the
USGS, as many employees do with other professional organizations.

Each part of the USGS has identified an American Indian/Alaska Native
liaison. The USGS has a regional organizational structure, with Western,
Central, and Eastern Regions. The regions work in concert with specific
scientific disciplines to conduct the scientific mission of the USGS.
The regional structure is intended to bring us closer to our customers;
we hope that Native Americans and Alaska Natives will use the contacts
listed at the end of this report.

[How to use this report:]{.underline} In the following pages, diverse
USGS activities related to American Indians and Native Alaskans are
grouped into several categories: Highlights of Fiscal Year 2002;
Educational Activities; Resource Activities; Technical Assistance;
General Coordination, and; Future Opportunities. If you find an
interesting activity that you think might be appropriate to undertake in
your area, contact the person(s) listed to learn how the activity was
carried out. Ask for suggestions as to who in the USGS could assist you
in setting up a similar activity in your area. If in doubt as to how to
proceed, contact the USGS employees listed on the inside of the back
cover. Within the USGS, this report will help staff develop outreach,
educational, and program documents for future use. It is hoped that USGS
employees, American Indians, and Alaska Natives will adapt these
activities in new settings and will use the USGS contacts to expand the
relevance of the USGS to more Americans.

![](media/image1.wmf){width="6.55in" height="6.805555555555555e-2in"}

This document was prepared compiled by Susan Marcus, USGS American
Indian/Alaska Native Liaison in cooperation with the Regional and
Discipline Liaisons:

> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Gayle Sisler,
> Eastern Region
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Gene Napier,
> Central Region and Geography Discipline
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Elaine
> Padovani, Western Region
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Bonnie
> Gallahan, Geographic Information Discipline
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Hardy Pearce,
> Biological Resources Discipline
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Lynne Sendejo,
> Office of Equal Opportunity
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Sharon
> Swanson, Geologic Discipline
>
> ![](media/image2.png){width="0.125in" height="0.125in"} Tom
> Zembrzuski, Water Resources Discipline

XXSharon Cline designed and created the graphic layout of the report.

USGS has a website dedicated to Native American contacts, activities,
and information. Please visit this site at:
<http://www.usgs.gov/indian/>

Contact information is also provided on the inside of the back cover of
this report. A general point of contact is Susan Marcus, Director's
Office, 703-648-4437; smarcus@usgs.gov

# Highlights of Fiscal Year 2002

**Wildlife Mortality: Chronic Wasting Disease, West Nile Virus, and
Other Diseases.** The USGS National Wildlife Health Center in Madison,
Wisconsin, has responsibility for disease prevention, detection, and
control in free-ranging wildlife. Species under Federal stewardship,
such as migratory birds, endangered species and animals on Federal
lands, are the focus of field investigations, diagnostic work, and
research. Avian, mammalian, and amphibian wildlife carcasses from all
over the country are submitted to the Center for diagnostic evaluation.
When a wildlife mortality event is reported, potential responses include
on-site assistance to contain the outbreak, diagnostic services to
determine the cause, and research to better understand the ecology of
the disease. Services are available to bureaus within the Department of
the Interior and to Tribal organizations. During 2002, Center staff
conducted two wildlife disease workshops with several tribes. In early
June, the first workshop, entitled "Wildlife Disease: A Symposium for
Tribal Biologists and Managers," was held in Brookings, South Dakota.
South Dakota State University, the BIA, the USGS, and the Native
American Fish and Wildlife Society sponsored the workshop, which was
attended by representatives from the following Tribes: Oglala Sioux,
Rosebud Sioux, Chippewa Cree, Coeur d\'Alene, Mescalero Apache,
Assiniboine, and Southern Ute. Since this symposium, the National
Wildlife Health Center has received requests for information from
several Tribal participants on testing for Chronic Wasting Disease in
ungulates and West Nile virus in birds, and on developing disease
contingency plans. Contact: Scott Wright, 608-270-2460,
<swright@usgs.gov> or Kathryn Converse, 608-270-2445,
<Kathy_converse@usgs.gov>

**Tribal Colleges Convene in Sioux Falls.** On October 15-16, 2002, 25
of the 33 Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUsin the United States met
at the USGS EROS Data Center (EDC) near Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The
Tribal College Forum was co-hosted by the USGS and Sinte Gleska
University (SGU) of the Rosebud Sioux Reservation. The Forum addressed
how information and technologies from USGS can assist TCUs in providing
economic opportunities to their students and communities. An outcome of
the Forum was the creation of a consortium of TCUs that seek to share
technologies and capabilities to improve career prospects for their
students and service to their Tribes. The 57 participants included
several tribal college presidents, their technical specialists, Federal
and State agency representatives, non-profit and private groups. USGS
Director Charles \"Chip\" Groat gave the keynote address. Vice
Presidents of SGU, Albert White Hat, Leland Bordeaux, and Steve Emery
provided presentations while James Rattling Leaf and Jhon Goes In Center
facilitated the Forum. Senator Johnson and Congressman Thune, both of
South Dakota, also sent representatives. Contact: Gene Napier,
605-594-6088, <enapier@usgs.gov>; SGU contact: James Rattling Leaf,
605-856-4262, <jamesrl@sinte.edu>

**Horse Looking Fire (Saint Francis Fire).** The USGS EROS Data Center,
working with Sinte Gleska University, provided a Landsat 7 image to the
Rosebud Tribe to support a fire damage assessment of the Horse Looking
Fire on lands of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. This Landsat 7 image of the
fire damage helped the Tribe in obtaining a grant from the Wildland
Urban Fire Interface (WUFI). The grant will provide employment for 80
Rosebud tribal members. Lightening started the fire, originally called
the St. Francis Fire, on July 29, 2002. The fire spread quickly due to
drought conditions, destroying valuable timber resources of the Rosebud
Tribe and causing the evacuation of 500 people. Tribal, BIA, State, and
U.S. Forest Service sources deployed an estimated five hundred
firefighters. The fire was contained on August 3 after burning roughly
3,032 acres. The satellite image of the Horse Looking fire was also used
at the Indian Economic Summit in Phoenix, Arizona in September 2002, to
demonstrate how USGS information can benefit Tribal communities.
Contact: Gene Napier, 605-594-6088, <enapier@usgs.gov>

![](media/image3.jpeg){width="4.983333333333333in"
height="5.176388888888889in"}

**In-Situ Determination of Depth and Temperature Selection by Great Lake
Fishes.** Scientists at the USGS Great Lakes Science Center, Hammond Bay
Biological Station (HBBS), are conducting a study of the daily and
seasonal temperature and depth preferences of various types of Great
Lakes fish. The data from these studies will greatly increase the
understanding of seasonal species overlap and will benefit management
and restoration programs in Tribal agencies, eight States, Canadian
provinces, and other Federal agencies throughout the Great Lakes basin.
USGS scientists obtained the fish for the study with assistance from the
Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority (CORA). The fish were tagged during
2002 with archival tags that record both depth and temperature,
producing daily and seasonal records of the habitats occupied by each
fish. USGS scientists also assisted the Great Lakes Indian Fish &
Wildlife Commission in implanting the same type of tags in lean lake
trout in Lake Superior in October 2002. During 2002, USGS staff tagged
198 lake trout (160 in spring, obtained from tribal trap nets; and 38 in
the fall, obtained from CORA assessment gill nets). Twenty of the lake
trout (13%) tagged in spring 2002 were subsequently caught. Three were
caught shortly after release and were re-released by tribal fishers.
Data files were recovered from 16 trout (10%). Forty-three lake
whitefish (from tribal trap nets) were tagged; none were recovered,
possibly due to the effect of transporting the fish to the HBBS for
tagging. In spring 2003, USGS and CORA scientists will work with tribal
trap netters to tag whitefish on the water, a technique that has worked
well with hook-and-line-caught chinook salmon. Fifty sea lampreys were
also tagged. In related studies, USGS scientists tagged 91 chinook
salmon caught with hook-and-line; seven (8%) were recovered in 2002.
Only about a third of these were of a size expected to mature and run
the streams. The recovery pattern suggests an eventual recovery of 25%
or more. Twenty lake sturgeon, obtained from Canadian commercial trap
nets, were tagged; two (10%) were recovered. Similar or greater numbers
of fish are expected to be tagged in 2003. The results of an earlier
archival tag study describing temperatures occupied by two strains of
lake trout will be published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research.
Contact: Roger Bergstedt, 989-734-4768, <roger_bergstedt@usgs.gov>

***Wildlife Health Alerts* and Other Information on Wildlife Diseases.**
The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) in Madison, Wisconsin
distributes *Wildlife Health Alerts* to Federal and State natural
resource and conservation agencies, including the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA). *Wildlife Health Alerts* provide and promote an exchange
of information on important threats to wildlife health. They are issued
for specific wildlife diseases, not for human health issues. There were
no *Wildlife Health Alerts* issued in 2002. A complete list of *Wildlife
Health Alerts* and copies of each are available at
[www.nwhc.usgs.gov](http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/). Tribal governments are
encouraged to contact the USGS to be added to the automated announcement
list. Contact: Paul Slota, 608-270-2420, <paul_slota@usgs.gov>

**Southwest Strategy.** The USGS is an active partner in the Southwest
Strategy, (SWS). SWS is an intergovernmental process that provides a
forum for diverse entities to collaborate and resolve natural resource
conservation, management, and community development issues affecting
Arizona and New Mexico. Through cooperative planning and improved
decision-making, SWS strives to maintain, restore, and enhance the
cultural, economic, and environmental quality of life for the people of
Arizona and New Mexico. SWS brings together Federal, Tribal, State, and
local governments, as well as private landowners and other stakeholders,
in a problem solving process. The USGS sponsors and chairs the Southwest
Strategy\'s Scientific Information Work Group; the group has developed a
database containing information acquired from research and natural
resource, social, and economic data that is critical to natural resource
management in the Arizona and New Mexico. The database will be available
on the Internet in 2003. The SWS sponsored a Tribal Gathering in April
2002 that focused on cultural resources, economic development, and
natural resources. The Gathering provided an opportunity for new
collaborations to develop meaningful products. Recommendations from the
Gathering will be addressed through FY 2003 Tribal Relations Work Group
Projects (see
[www.swstrategy.org/tribefed.html](http://www.swstrategy.org/tribefed.html)).
In July 2002, USGS scientists briefed Work Group members on
collaborative projects on Indian Lands in Arizona. Future projects
include joint sponsorship of the Annual Tribal Soil and Water
Conservation District Conference in Laughlin, Nevada in November 2002
and for a Tribal Relations Training workshop for mid-level managers in
May 2003. Contact: Elaine Padovani, 520-670-5506, <epadovan@usgs.gov>

**Human Health and Contamination in the Penobscot River.** The Bureau of
Indian Affairs brought together agencies including the USGS, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the University of Maine Water
Research Institute to collect information regarding the occurrence,
distribution, and ecological and human health risks associated with
dioxins, furans, and PCBs in fish and sediment in the Penobscot River.
The study area encompasses the Penobscot River main channel from the
Milford Dam impoundment in Old Town to Grindstone, Maine. Concentrations
of dioxins and furans in the riverbed sediment have been quantified to a
limited degree through a 1995 sampling study by the Penobscot Indian
Nation\'s Department of Natural Resources. In addition, the Maine
Department of Environmental Protection maintains several fish sampling
stations in the study area as part of their statewide dioxin-monitoring
program. The USGS Maine Water Resources District conducted a field
program in cooperation with EPA and the Penobscot Indian Nation's
Department of Natural Resources that included a geophysical survey of
sediments in the riverbed to identify areas of fine-grain sediment
deposition, and the subsequent collection of fish tissues and
fine-grained surficial sediment samples. These samples have been
analyzed for dioxins, furans, and PCBs at the University of Maine Water
Research Institute. EPA risk assessors are using the collected data to
produce a report assessing human health and ecological risk. Contact:
Robert Lent, 207-622-8201, <rmlent@usgs.gov>

**Hydrogeologic Analysis of Ground-Water Availability in Chippewa
Township, Michigan, Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe.** Chippewa Township
encompasses Tribal lands and buildings belonging to the Saginaw Chippewa
Indian Tribe of Michigan. The Tribe and neighboring communities have a
significant need for drinking water obtained exclusively from
ground-water wells. The hydrogeology in this area is complex and good
quality water can be difficult to obtain. In FY 2002, the USGS began a
2-year cooperative study with the Tribe and Chippewa Township to conduct
a hydrogeologic analysis of the area. In FY 2002, water quality samples
were collected to determine the feasibility of using a deep bedrock
aquifer as a ground-water resource, and surface geophysical methods were
employed to image glacial sediments that overlie bedrock. In FY 2003,
additional geophysical analyses will be made, and a ground-water flow
model will be constructed to aid in managing the area's ground-water
resources. The goal of the study is to determine current and future
ground-water availability so that the Tribe and the Township can use the
information for the benefit of their communities. Contact: Chris Hoard,
517-887-8949, <cjhoard@usgs.gov>

# Educational Activities

**National Indian Education Association.** The USGS expanded its
involvement in the annual conferences of the National Indian Education
Association (NIEA)by holding workshops for educators. USGS Rocky
Mountain Mapping Center staff presented a workshop on using geographic
information systems technology in the classroom, showing how this
technique can make a variety of subjects, including history, geography,
economics, and science, more relevant to Native students. USGS and Sinte
Gleska University jointly sponsored an exhibit booth at both the October
2001 conference in Billings, Montana and the November 2002 conference in
Albuquerque, New Mexico. Contact: Eugene Napier (exhibit), 605-594-6088,
<enapier@usgs.gov>; Joseph Kerski (workshop), 303-202-4315,
<jjkerski@usgs.gov>

**National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coastal GIS and
Metadata Training for American Indians.** National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the USGS, through its support of
the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), presented an annual
training session on GIS/metadata and coastal issues for American Indians
at the NOAA Coastal Services Center in Charleston, South Carolina.
Topics included the National Spatial Data Infrastructure, water quality,
and flora and fauna monitoring. The training session helped assure
Tribal investment in data collection and maintenance and provided Tribal
access to public data catalogs and clearinghouses. The course
accommodates 15 American Indian students at each annual session.
Contact: Bonnie Gallahan, 703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>

**Introduction to Metadata and GIS Courses for American Indian
Conservation Professionals.** The USGS, through its support of the
Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) continue offering training sessions, approximately
quarterly, to introduce American Indian students to the uses of GIS. The
Native American students include Tribal, State, and Federal employees.
Topics of the sessions include the National Spatial Data Infrastructure,
metadata, spatial data themes and layers, constructing queries, and
cartographic principles. The sessions offer best practices used and
describe the effect of scale on mapped data. Training is held at the FWS
National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia. Contact: Bonnie
Gallahan, 703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>

**Water-Quality Workshop for Maine Tribes.** The USGS Maine Water
Resources District conducted a two-day introductory water-quality
workshop, held at the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians Tribal
headquarters in Houlton, Maine during July 2002. The Aroostook Band of
Micmacs, Passamaquoddy, and Houlton Band of Maliseet Tribes were
represented. Day 1 included an introduction and overview of the
environmental database developed for the Penobscot Indian Nation,
discussion of the purpose and site-selection criteria for water-quality
data collection, discussion of quality-control and quality-assurance
criteria, and discussion of field forms and the requisite information
they should contain. Day 2 included discussions of basic water-quality
instrumentation (dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, pH and
temperature), the merits of Winkler titrations versus dissolved oxygen
sensors for dissolved oxygen determinations, and demonstrations of
Winkler and alkalinity titrations. Day 2 also included a field trip to a
site on the Meduxnekeag River for instruction in calibrating and using
water-quality sensors and multi-probes, protocol for measuring field
parameters, and filling out field forms. Upon returning from the field
trip, workshop participants were instructed on how to enter
water-quality data into the environmental database developed for the
Penobscot Indian Nation (workshop participants were provided with copies
of and the instruction manual for the database, with concurrence of the
Penobscots). The workshop concluded with a question-and-discussion
period followed by a course evaluation questionnaire. Given the
responses in the questionnaire, next year plans are to expand the course
to include standard colorimetric methods for nutrient determinations and
chlorophyll-a measurements. Contact: Robert Lent, 207-622-8201,
[rmlent@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**La Crosse, Wisconsin, Native American Students.** A representative of
the USGS' Upper Midwest Environmental Science Center (UMESC) has
contacted the coordinator of liaisons for Native American, Asian, and
African American students for the School District of La Crosse
(Wisconsin) to arrange a meeting with the liaisons, two of whom are new
to the program. Discussions will be held to showcase the Center's
educational resources and how these resources could benefit Native
American and other diverse students. Contact: Mike Dewey, 608-781-6206,
<Michael_Dewey@usgs.gov>

**Coordinating with Haskell Indian Nations University.** The USGS,
through the Kansas Water Resources District Office, established and
maintained a GIS lab at Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell).
This program reached a successful conclusion in FY2002, when the GIS
equipment was transferred to Haskell that has the capability to use and
maintain it. Contact: Walt Aucott, 785-832-3505, <waucott@usgs.gov>

**Water-Resources Training for Chippewa Cree.** The USGS Montana Water
resource Disctrict conducted a 3-day workshop for water-resources
technicians of the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Indian
Reservation. The seven technicians who attended were introduced to the
principles of hydrologic data collection and computation techniques.
Contact: Norman Midtlyng, 406-457-5900, <nmidtlyn@usgs.gov>

**Water Technician Training Course.** The Bureau of Indian Affairs
sponsored its annual Water Technician Training Course sessions at New
Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico, at Central Washington
University in Ellensburg, Washington, and at the University of Alaska in
Fairbanks, Alaska. Tribal representatives from throughout Indian
Country, including Alaska, participated in the course with about 30
students participating in the New Mexico session. The 5-week earth
sciences course utilized instructors from several Federal agencies and
academia. USGS personnel taught a 4-day module titled, "Introduction to
Hydrologic Data Collection Techniques." USGS instructors were provided
by the Alaska and New Mexico Water Resources Districts, along with
active and retired USGS scientists from the Washington Water Resources
Science Center. Instruction included classroom and field activities on
ground-water concepts and data collection, surface-water data
collection, and water-quality data collection. The New Mexico session is
coordinated by New Mexico State University. Contact: Edward (Nick)
Nickerson (New Mexico), 505-646-7618, <nickerso@usgs.gov>; Robert
Kimbrough (Washington and Alaska), 253-428-3600 ext.2608,
<rakimbro@usgs.gov>

**National States GIS Council (NSGIC).** In cooperation with the Federal
Geographic Data Committee, the National States GIS Council (NSGIC) plans
and develops regional Tribal-State workshops with the USGS, Bureau of
Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Intertribal GIS Council
(IGC), and other Tribal entities. The workshops teach GIS and metadata
usage for the governing bodies to use in their planning processes. In
August 2002, the Bureau of Land Management hosted a NSGIC Tribal-State
Federal meeting in Billings, Montana. Workshops and discussions were
held on the availability of metadata, who is using what data and
methods, how to partner to share data and GIS expertise, solutions to
developing effective partnerships to better communicate data
requirements, opportunities for more cost sharing, and strategies for
building stable, effective GIS programs. Eleven American Indian Tribal
governments and the States of Montana and Washington participated along
with the Federal representatives. Contact: Bonnie Gallahan,
703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>; Gene Napier, 605-594-6088,
<enapier@usgs.gov>

**Sinte Gleska GIS Lab.** USGS personnel are working with Sinte Gleska
University (SGU) to develop a sustained SGU laboratory for geographic
information systems research and applications. The effort has two
primary components: programmatic development and infrastructure
development. Programmatic development involves identifying spatial
analysis needs within the Rosebud Sioux community and defining pilot
projects with groups such as the Rosebud Sioux Tribal housing authority,
the Tribal Land Enterprise, and University constituents. The second
component, infrastructure development, addresses the physical
infrastructure such as computers and networking, data needs, and human
resource development (training, internships, staff exchanges, and
workshops). Significant accomplishments in FY 2002 include developing a
work plan, conducting training sessions in the use of global positioning
systems (GPS) methods for field data collection and organization, and
conducting ESRI-certified ArcView training. Contact: Gene Napier,
605-594-6088, <enapier@usgs.gov>

**Geographic Information Systems Workshop for Sinte Gleska University
Students Training to Become Geography Teachers.** In August 2002, a USGS
geographer, conducted a 2-day GIS workshop at Sinte Gleska University
for educators who were taking a geography-teaching course. Through the
use of GIS, teachers and students had the opportunity to investigate
real-world data in a problem-solving environment, utilizing the same
tools and techniques that Tribal planners, wildlife biologists, and
other professionals use on the job. Contact: Joseph Kerski,
303-202-4315, <jjkerski@usgs.gov>

**Oglala Lakota College Advisory Board.** Oglala Lakota College (OLC) is
an accredited 4-year college offering baccalaureate and master's degrees
on the Pine Ridge Reservation of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. It is a member
of the Oyate Consortium, a group of five colleges and universities in
the Dakotas that share educational goals, some faculty and staff, and
technologies. OLC has about 1,400 students enrolled in courses at nine
locations on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Oglala Lakota College is
participating in the National Science Foundation's Model Institutions of
Excellence (MIE) program to build curricula to train an increasing
number of students in mathematics, science, engineering, and technology
(MSET). As a member of the OLC-MIE advisory board, the USGS has been
invited to help identify courses and faculty for the curricula, and
internship and job possibilities for the students. OLC has a special
interest in developing curricula to teach the analytical chemistry of
water samples because the Oglala Sioux Tribe is planning a new facility
at Pine Ridge to process several thousand water samples collected on
reservations each year. Offering students the option of staying on the
Reservation while continuing their formal education makes it likely that
more students will choose to stay in college. Once they complete their
formal education, they may apply the skills learned on the Reservation
to enhance Native American economic development, health, and culture.
The USGS is working with OLC to develop internships with the National
Water Quality Laboratory, Fort Collins Science Center, and other offices
to provide training, mentoring and on-the-job experience for OLC
students in scientific fields. USGS contacts: Douglas Posson,
970-226-9398, [dposson@usgs.gov;]{.underline} Dan Fitzpatrick,
605-355-4560, ext. 220, <djfitzpa@usgs.gov>; Greg Mohrman, 303-236-7500,
<gmohrman@usgs.gov>; OLC contact: Stacy Phelps, 605-455-6001
[sphelps@olc.edu]{.underline}

**Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute.** Southwestern Indian
Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) and the USGS, through its support of the
Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), are conducting quarterly
satellite broadcasts from SIPI for participating Tribal colleges and
universities. The broadcasts, entitled "GIS in Indian Country," have
been popular with students and faculty. They provide a good connection
to the Indian community, a means of including field work in the
curriculum, and an excellent school-to-career opportunity. These
broadcasts are dedicated to promoting Tribal self-sufficiency by
improving management of geographic information and building intertribal
communication networks while maintaining national standards of data
quality through the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. Contact:
Bonnie Gallahan, 703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>

**Endangered Species Training for Tribes and BIA**. In May 2002, an
ecologist at the USGS Southwest Biological Science Center assisted the
Bureau of Indian Affairs with a training session on techniques for
surveying the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher. The training
session, held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, included biologists from more
than a dozen southwestern Tribes and Pueblos. Lectures were presented on
the status, distribution, ecology, and habitat use of the flycatcher.
The USGS scientist also lead a field trip to known flycatcher breeding
sites along the Rio Grande. Contact: Mark Sogge, 928-556-7466 ext.232,
<mark_k_sogge@usgs.gov>

**Developing a Curriculum for Ute and Navajo Students.** Soil crusts are
important features of arid and semiarid ecosystems throughout the
Southwest. In addition to stabilizing surfaces and increasing water
absorption, living organisms in soil crusts contribute nitrogen and
organic matter to ecosystems, functions that are especially important in
desert ecosystems. As is the case with the general public, many Native
Americans are not aware of the relationship of soil crust to an
ecosystem. In addition, soil crusts on lands of the Ute Mountain Ute
Tribe and the Navajo Nation have suffered significant damage from
grazing animals. In 2002, USGS scientists completed and distributed a
curriculum that integrates biological and earth sciences for Ute and
Navajo grade school students. The curriculum is focused on teaching
students about biological soil crusts and the crucial roles they play in
the ecosystems of the Four Corners region. Government scientists hope to
pass along knowledge that is being gained through USGS research on soil
crusts to the next generation of land stewards. The curriculum for
Indian students will engage them in the workings of basic scientific
concepts. Through this study of biology and earth science as it relates
to their local environment, students will be encouraged to further their
education in these disciplines and to consider careers in resource
management. This project of the USGS Canyonlands Field Station is
intended to inspire students to bring their expertise to the community
as resource managers, ranchers, and better-informed community members.
Contact: Jayne Belnap, 435-719-2333, <jayne_belnap@usgs.gov>; Tim
Graham, 435-719-2339, <tim_graham@usgs.gov>

**Educational Outreach to Native American Children.** The USGS Flagstaff
Field Center provided several educational presentations on geology to
school groups visiting Flagstaff primarily from the Navajo Nation. The
Solar System program was presented to students from Pinon Elementary and
Tonalea Day School. A maps and mapping program was presented to students
from Rocky Ridge School. The rocks and minerals program was presented to
students from Rough Rock High School. Students from Tonalea Day School
also learned about volcanoes. Contact: Sue Priest, 928-556-7148,
<spriest@usgs.gov>

**Coordination with the Navajo Nation.** USGS staff from the Arizona
District held outreach meetings with the Navajo Nation on educational
assistance in support of the Nation's energy programs. They also
cooperated with the Navajo Water Resources Department and the University
of Arizona in support of graduate students. Contact: Christopher Smith,
520-670-6671 ext.251, <cfsmith@usgs.gov>

**Explorer's Club---Outdoor Science Education Outreach on San Diego
County Reservations.** A retired USGS scientist has channeled her
enthusiasm for earth science education into an outreach project for
Indian Tribes in southern California. Working in partnership with the
Tribes, the USGS, San Diego State University, the University of
California at San Diego, and the San Diego Science Alliance, she has
expanded a series of successful outdoor science activities originally
developed under USGS auspices into a set of "Explorer's Club" programs
for children age 6 to 12. The format of each program can be adapted to
suit the needs of the Education Director of each Tribe. Tribal elders
participate as program instructors. The programs include activities such
as panning for gold and magnetite, collecting rocks, coring soil, and
learning outdoor photographic techniques. Water-related activities are
particularly important to help the students understand water issues in
their semi-arid area that has suffered four years of drought. For Earth
Science/National Water Monitoring Week, a scientist from the USGS Water
Resources Discipline's California District, San Diego Office joined the
team to teach Native American children how to measure parameters such as
pH, temperature, water clarity, and oxygen content. Equipment from prior
USGS funding was shared with children from the Campo Band and the Pala
Band of Mission Indians, and from the Jamul Indian Village. Contact:
Eleanora I. (Norrie) Robbins, 619-303-9095, <norrierobbins@cox.net>

**Alaska Native Internship Program.** The USGS Alaska Science Center
collaborates with other Department of the Interior bureaus in Alaska and
the University of Alaska Anchorage to maintain the "Internship for
Native Student Training and Education Program" (INSTEP) for Alaska
Natives. The program gives interns six college credits and 10 weeks of
work experience in DOI bureaus. The USGS hosted one intern during the
summer of 2002. Contact: Steven Frenzel, 907-786-7100,
<sfrenzel@usgs.gov>

**Marine Science Opportunities.** The USGS Alaska Science Center Glacier
Bay Field Station continued a student internship (Student Career
Education Program) in 2002 with a member of the Sitka Tribe of Alaska.
She hopes that her experiences conducting natural resource research will
inspire other Alaska Natives to pursue science careers. This student has
been assisting scientists who are performing oceanographic research and
mapping the ocean floor. She has also been learning spatial analysis and
the use of geographic information systems. She will complete her
graduate education in 2003. Contact: Philip Hooge, 907-786-3512,
<philip_hooge@usgs.gov>

**Science Education Outreach.** A fisheries biologist from the USGS
Alaska Science Center, attended the April 2002 Career Day Fair in Minto
Village, a remote village about 100 miles west of Fairbanks, Alaska.
Tanana Chiefs Conference Youth Opportunities Program and the Minto
School District sponsored the event. Students learned about
opportunities and careers as fish and wildlife biologists with the USGS.
In addition, the USGS scientist met with upper class students (grades
9-12) at the Minto School to give a presentation on his USGS Yukon River
salmon research program and on other scientific studies at the USGS
Alaska Science Center. Contact: Jim Finn, USGS Alaska Science Center,
907-786-3450, <jim_finn@usgs.gov>

**Native Alaskan Internship Program.** A USGS fisheries biologist
continued an internship program in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska
during the summer of 2002 to recruit Native Alaskans into the field of
fisheries science. Six students from Newhalen, Nondalton, and Port
Alsworth, Alaska, learned what it was like to be a fish biologist. Three
of the students were also part of the 2001 intern program. The students
learned how to count migrating adult salmon, capture, anaesthetize and
radio-tag salmon, track them to their final spawning destinations, and
collect, measure, and record data. The USGS coordinated this internship
program in partnership with the National Park Service at Lake Clark
National Park and Preserve. Plans are being developed to recruit more
teens into the program as a way of encouraging Native Alaskans to pursue
a college degree and to consider a career in science. Contact: Carol
Woody, 907-786-3512, [carol_woody@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Alaskan Natives Learn the Science of Ecosystems.** In September 2002,
students from Native Alaskan villages on the Alaska Peninsula attended a
science field camp at Becharof National Wildlife Refuge. The U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, the Bristol Bay Borough, and the Lake and
Peninsula Borough sponsor the camp. The students were introduced to
principles of ecosystem science and participated in a unique field
experience. A USGS scientist instructed students in bear and caribou
ecology, plant community mapping, animal tracking, and nature
observation skills, and demonstrated lithic knapping (stone tool
making), primitive fire-starting techniques, and the traditional uses of
native plants. The Native community has strongly supported this outreach
effort, which has stimulated considerable interest in the natural
sciences among Alaskan Native students. Contact: Tom Smith,
907-786-3512, <tom_smith@usgs.gov>

**Yupik Students Assist in Biological Research.** USGS scientists in
Alaska are continuing to enhance communication between government
researchers and Native Alaskans. To demonstrate the kind of research
being conducted, the USGS recruited 22 Yupik Eskimo students in 2002 to
assist in a waterfowl study on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The students
captured geese and swans and fitted them with leg bands and neck
collars. Movements of these waterfowl are being monitored as part of a
large, multi-year study to determine annual survival rates, migration
pathways, and important staging and winter habitats. The year 2002 marks
the 17th consecutive year of involvement by Alaska Native students from
the Native village of Chevak in this project: More than 160 Native
youths have participated in this program since 1986. This effort
supports a regional need for information on the population biology of a
species of interest to indigenous people, wildlife enthusiasts, and
sport hunters. Contact: Craig Ely, 907-786-3512,
[craig_ely@usgs.gov]{.underline}

## Resource and Environmental Activities

**Real-Time, Water-Quality and Quantity Data-Collection Network for the
Maliseet Indians.** The USGS Maine Water Resources District is working
closely with the Houlton Band of the Maliseet Indians to develop a
real-time data-collection and data-dissemination network on the
Meduxnekeag River in northeastern Maine. The Meduxnekeag River is an
integral cultural resource for the Maliseet Indians as well as an
important source of irrigation water for farmers in the predominantly
agricultural watershed. In particular, the Tribe is concerned about the
quality of the water and condition of riparian plants that are harvested
on the riverbanks. Point and non-point sources of nutrients to the river
appear to be contributing to algal blooms that have degraded the quality
of the river, adversely affecting the habitat for aquatic and riparian
organisms. The USGS is working with the Maliseet Indians to identify
funding for the proposed work. Contact: Robert Lent, 207-622-8201,
<rmlent@usgs.gov>

**Support for Passamaquoddy Water Management Plan.** The USGS Maine
Water Resources District is working with the Passamaquoddy Indians to
collect real-time streamflow information critical to the development of
a water management plan for Tribal land in southeastern Maine. The
watershed includes important blueberry barrens and Atlantic salmon
habitat. Careful stewardship of the land requires accurate streamflow
information. The USGS operated two streamflow gages in FY 2000-01 and is
committed to long-term operation of one gage. Contact: Robert Lent,
207-622-8201, <rmlent@usgs.gov>

**Environmental Database for the Penobscot Nation.** As part of the
contaminant study of the Penobscot River, the USGS Maine Water Resources
District has developed an environmental database for use by the
Penobscot Nation\'s Department of Natural Resources (PIN DNR). The PIN
DNR conducts a variety of ongoing biological and water-chemistry studies
on Tribal lands and the Penobscot River. The database will provide a
systematic method of data storage, enabling the PIN DNR to consolidate
their existing data and manage new data as they are collected. The
database is capable of storing data on a variety of sample media and
constituents. The database\'s open-ended design allows for future
modification and additions as new constituents, agencies, and study
areas are included in future studies. The database was presented at the
Fifth Annual New England Tribal Environmental Conference, May 21-23,
2002, in Misquamicut, Rhode Island, and has been made publicly
available. Several Maine Tribes (Maliseet, Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot)
are currently using the database. Contact: Robert Lent, 207-622-8201,
<rmlent@usgs.gov>

**Penobscot Indian Nation.** The USGS Conte Andadromous Fish Lab began
an adult Atlantic salmon migration project on the Penobscot River in
cooperation with the Penobscot Indian Nation (PIN) and the Maine
Atlantic Salmon Commission. The PIN has treaty-reserved sustenance
fishing rights in a large part of the watershed. Thus, the PIN has great
interest in the ongoing efforts to restore Atlantic salmon to the
Penobscot River, including improving understanding of the current
migration success of adult salmon through the multiple fish ladder
system. This project was driven by a document produced by the Maine
Atlantic Salmon Commission's Technical Advisory Committee and reflects
the PIN's input to that document. The Penobscot's interest in the
passage rates, behavior, and performance of other migratory species such
as alewives and American shad may influence the future direction of this
project. Contact: Alex Haro (USGS), 413-863-3806, <Alex_Haro@usgs.gov>;
Clem Fay (Penobscot Indian Nation), 207-827-7776,
<pinfish@penobscotnation.org>

**Tribal Fisheries Restoration and Enhancement.** The USGS Great Lakes
Science Center's Tunison Laboratory of Aquatic Science continued
assisting Tribes in restoring and enhancing their fisheries. Tunison
staff stocked 455 catchable rainbow trout, reared at the Tunison
facility, in waters of the Onondaga Nation. Tunison scientists continued
assisting The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe by examining the feasibility of
restoring Atlantic salmon in St. Lawrence River tributaries. Salmon
restoration activities included stocking 21,500 salmon fry in
tributaries of the St. Regis and Little Salmon rivers and assessing
survival through the fall. Survival of salmon fry was lower than in
previous years, possibly due to drought conditions during summer.
Over-winter survival of salmon was also lower than in previous years.
The Environmental Division of The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe and Tunison
Laboratory continue cooperating on a pilot project that focuses on the
American eel population in the St. Lawrence River. The project involves
field collecting American eels, ecological assessments, and laboratory
analysis of eel health and life history of this population. Tunison
staff are also working with Mohawk Tribal groups along the St. Lawrence
in New York, Ontario, and Quebec concerning river water level studies
carried out under the International Joint Commission. Contact: James H.
Johnson, 607-753-9391, ext. 30, <james_h_johnson@usgs.gov>

**South Florida Ecosystem Program, Internal Surface Water Flows.**

As part of the Everglades Restoration Programs, the Army Corps of
Engineers (ACE) and South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)
propose modified water deliveries to The Seminole Tribe of Florida, Big
Cypress National Preserve, and other parts of Florida\'s interior. The
proposal is intended to provide net flood protection and water delivery
to agricultural lands as well as partial restoration of historic
ecosystem conditions within the Seminole lands. A baseline of current
data is needed to help determine the effects that proposed water
delivery changes will have on Seminole lands. The USGS has installed and
is obtaining data from strategically located streamflow gaging sites to
help define future surface-water flow requirements and
decompartmentalization efforts through the Comprehensive Everglades
Restoration Program. Subsequent studies based on accurate flow
calibrations generated by data from these sites may then be used by
other agencies for computation of nutrient and other contaminant
loadings in the canal system. Data from continuous flow gages, at
selected impact points for interior basins, will also compliment the
existing eastern flow canal discharge network and allow more accurately
timed surface-water releases. USGS biologists are using the hydrological
restoration of a wetland that had been drained for cattle pasture to
test several hypotheses about the invasion of wetlands by non-native
species, including methods that may discourage their use of such
wetlands. Contact: Mitch Murray (USGS, water), 305-717-5827,
<mmurray@usgs.gov>; Bill Loftus (USGS, biology), 305-242-7835
<Loftus@usgs.gov>; Craig Tepper (Seminole Tribe of Florida),
954-966-6300, ext.1120, <water@gate.net>

**Mapping Bottom Substrates in the Detour Area of Northern Lake Huron.**
The USGS Great Lakes Science Center\'s Lake Superior Biological Station
completed a benthic mapping survey of near-shore habitats in the Detour
region of Lake Huron for the Chippewa-Ottawa Resource Authority (CORA)
in November 2001. Detailed data on depths and bottom substrate
composition were provided in GIS (geographic information system) mapping
format and will be used by CORA to better understand the relationships
between nearshore habitat and spawning and rearing of lake whitefish and
other commercially important food fish. An interesting result from the
hydrographic survey was the realization that the data could used to
detect and map the distribution of aquatic vegetation and invasive zebra
mussels. USGS scientists also generated overlays of CORA\'s fish
sampling data in the final GIS product to facilitate future research by
Tribal fishery biologists. This work was part of an ongoing inventory of
near-shore aquatic habitats within the 1836 ceded territorial waters of
lakes Superior, Huron, and Michigan. Previous mapping work for CORA was
conducted by the Center in Whitefish Bay of Lake Superior. Since five
Tribes in the upper Great Lakes region were given fishing rights within
the 1836-ceded territorial waters, CORA has sought to protect these
areas for sustainable commercial fisheries. CORA is particularly
interested in near-shore habitats that are used for spawning and rearing
of lake whitefish. Increasing development of shorelines for vacation
homes and resorts potentially will have deleterious effects on the
quality of near-shore spawning and rearing habitats. Understanding the
relationship between habitat and the success of whitefish spawning and
recruitment will provide Tribal natural resource managers with
information needed to protect and enhance these areas for economically
sustainable fisheries. Contact: Owen Gorman, 715-682-6163,
<owen_gorman@usgs.gov>

**Juvenile Lake Trout Assessment in Keweenaw Bay.** The Great Lakes
Science Center\'s Lake Superior Biological Station continues to
cooperate with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community in restoring lake trout
stocks in Keweenaw Bay. The Community is concerned with low levels of
reproduction and abundance of juvenile lake trout in lower Keweenaw Bay;
a management plan was developed to restore that stock. The Center uses a
research vessel to conduct bottom trawl assessments of fish communities
of the lower Keweenaw Bay and adjacent management areas to assist the
Community in evaluating the success of the lake trout restoration
effort. From annual spring trawl assessments of the bay, the Center
provides the following items to the Community\'s fishery biologists:
catch data on stocked and wild lake trout, specimens of stocked lake
trout with imbedded coded wire tags, and comparisons of fish community
composition in the Bay with that in nearby Lake Superior fishery
management units. Contact: Owen Gorman, 715-682-6163,
<owen_gorman@usgs.gov>

**Source-water Assessments and Protection Plans, Keweenaw Bay Indian
Community.** In 2001, the USGS completed an assessment for the L'Anse,
Michigan water supply as part of a 5-year cooperative agreement with the
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The Keweenaw Bay Indian
Community's (KBIC) Zeba Community lies immediately north of L'Anse and
is in the same watershed. In November 2001, the USGS completed a
source-water assessment for the Zeba Community water supply. In 2002,
based on the results of the Zeba source-water assessment, KBIC asked
USGS to complete an assessment of the ground-water supply at the
Kawbawgam Road Community near Marquette, and to prepare source-water
protection plans for both the Zeba and Kawbawgam Road Community water
supplies. A cooperative agreement was implemented in FY2002 to conduct
this work, and an assessment of the Kawbawgam Road supply was completed
in September 2002. In FY2003, the USGS will prepare source-water
protection plans for both supplies. Contact: Mike Sweat, 307-778-2931,
ext. 2748, <mjsweat@usgs.gov>

**Ecosystem Reconstruction and Effects of Past Ecosystem Perturbations
in Lac Courte Oreilles.** The purpose of this study was to reconstruct
the Musky Bay ecosystem history and an additional site within Lac Courte
Oreilles. The USGS Wisconsin Water Resources District project was
completed in FY 2001 within lands of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of
Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. The project emphasized the possible
effects of cranberry farming and shoreline development using the
sediment record. Studies focused on the nutrient history (input and
burial rates) that reflects management practices and possible watershed
degradation. The modeled nutrient history was interpreted in concert
with reconstructed algal (mainly diatom) communities preserved in the
sediments. Another objective of the project was to search for possible
cranberry farming characteristics in the sediment, including sulfur,
uranium, and potassium associated with fertilizers, and copper
associated with pesticides. Biogenic silica profiles provided
complimentary data for algal community reconstructions. The sediment
record is likely to preserve trends in nutrient biogeochemical cycling
and ecosystem character over the last few hundred years, a timeframe
that includes a background period and the period of cranberry farming.
The project was completed with publication of a report in FY 2002:
Fitzpatrick, F.A., Garrison, P.J., Fitzgerald, S.A., and Elder, J.F.,
2003, Nutrient, Trace-Element, and Ecological History of Musky Bay, Lac
Courte Oreilles, Wisconsin, as Inferred from Sediment Cores: USGS
Water-Resources Investigations Report 02-4225. Contact: Faith
Fitzpatrick, 608-821-3818, <fafitzpa@usgs.gov>

**Lake Sturgeon Enhancement in Menominee Waters.** The Menominee
Reservation Lake Sturgeon Enhancement Committee, composed of personnel
from the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and the USGS, is
coordinating ongoing efforts to re-establish lake sturgeon in waters on
the Menominee Reservation. One of these efforts involves evaluating
success of stocking juvenile and fingerling lake sturgeon in Reservation
impoundments. A USGS fishery biologist at the Upper Midwest
Environmental Sciences Center provided training and assistance to
Menominee employees in the implantation of sonic transmitters into
juvenile lake sturgeon in Legend Lake near Keshna, Wisconsin. These
efforts will help resource managers determine habitat requirements of
stocked lake sturgeon in Reservation impoundments. In another part of
the sturgeon restoration project, the USGS Leetown Science Center is
continuing support for research on a spiral fish ladder by assessing the
efficiency of this method for the passage of lake sturgeon and riverine
fishes. Tests are continuing to evaluate whether the second loop of the
spiral of the fish ladder adds to its usefulness. The Tribe is
interested in determining whether two ladders are needed to get fish to
their waters. The fish ladder project is supported by the Great Lakes
Fishery Trust. Contact: Brent Knights (coordination), 608-781-6221,
<brent_knights@usgs.gov>; Boyd Kynard (fish ladder), 413-863-3807,
<kynard@usgs.gov>

**Ground Water and Water Quality of Lakes and Springs on Lands of the
Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.** The USGS Minnesota Water
District Office is delineating the direction of ground-water flow on
lands of the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The Grand
Portage Band will use the information to help them evaluate recharge
areas of the Tribal water resources. Land use may particularly affect
recharge areas. Contact: Don Hansen, 763-783-3250, <dshansen@usgs.gov>

**Moose Population Dynamics, Northeastern Minnesota.** The USGS
Minnesota Field Station of the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
is conducting moose research with the Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and the 1854
Authority. The objectives of the study are to determine survival rates
of adult moose, causes of mortality, and to improve aerial surveying of
the moose population. Twenty-four moose have been captured, fitted with
radio-collars, and aerially radio-tracked once per week. From January
2002 to January 2003, four moose died of malnutrition, one was killed by
wolves, and another was shot during the hunting season. The five
non-hunting mortalities were all females. This information will help the
Tribes and the State improve moose management by providing information
critical to the long-term welfare of moose in Minnesota. Forty
additional moose will be captured in FY 2003 to add to the population
and replace the study animals that have died. Contact: Michael Nelson,
218-365-4505, <michael_nelson@usgs.gov>

**Hydrologic and Lake Level Changes, Long Lost Lake, White Earth Band of
the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe.** Long Lost Lake is a 480-acre land-locked
lake, within the boundaries of the White Earth Indian Reservation. The
lake is approximately 6 miles west of Lake Itasca, the source of the
Mississippi River, in northwestern Minnesota. The water level (stage) of
Long Lost Lake has risen approximately 20 feet since about 1990. Twelve
Tribal residences, several roads, and 50 acres of Tribal lands are
submerged, and thirty Tribal members have been displaced from their
homes. The USGS Minnesota Water Resources District is working with the
Tribe to document historical changes in the stage of Long Lost Lake to
determine the cause-and-effect relationships that have resulted in
increased lake stage, and to develop a general understanding of the
hydrology of lakes that experience rapid and dramatic changes in lake
stage. Climatological changes and human modifications within the
watershed will be considered as potential contributing factors. This
study also will develop the monitoring network needed to understand the
hydrologic setting and hydrologic budget of the Long Lost Lake and
information about the lake's setting relative to other lakes in the
area. The study began in FY 2002 and is expected to conclude in FY 2005.
Contact: Don Hansen, 763-783-3250, <dshansen@usgs.gov>

**Water Resources Investigation for the Prairie Island Indian
Community.** The Prairie Island Indian Community asked the USGS
Minnesota Water District Office to conduct a bathymetric survey of
Sturgeon Lake and to collect bottom sediment samples from the Lake. The
Community is concerned about potential water quality effects of dredging
of the lake for pleasure boat traffic. These investigations are expected
to be completed in FY2005. Contact: Don Hansen, 763-783-3250,
<dshansen@usgs.gov>

**Lake Traverse Reservation Pesticide Management Plan Support.** The
USGS South Dakota Water Resources District, in cooperation with the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, compiled and analyzed data that will be
used as part of the scientific basis for a Pesticide Management Plan
being developed by the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe for their lands.
Numeric and geospatial datasets included: pesticide concentrations in
ground- and surface-water, precipitation, soil information, topographic
data, geohydrologic features, land cover and use, and pesticide use in
the area. Contact: Ryan Thompson, 605-352-4241, ext. 225,
<rcthomps@usgs.gov>

**Flandreau Water Supply Assessment.** USGS hydrologists with the South
Dakota Water Resource District compiled and summarized water-quality
data in order to describe a water source for the Flandreau Santee Sioux
Tribe and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Flandreau Indian School. USGS
employees also collected water samples from selected ground- and
surface-water sites relevant to an aquifer that is a possible Tribal
water source. The samples were analyzed for many compounds including
emerging contaminants. The USGS studies found little evidence of
widespread water-quality problems in the aquifer, which has been used to
supply past and local water needs. In FY 2002, the report was completed
and published as USGS Open File Report 02-074 by Bryan Schapp entitiled,
"Reconnaissance-Level Assessment of Water Quality near Flandreau, South
Dakota." Contact: Bryan Schaap, 605-352-4241, ext. 226,
<bdschaap@usgs.gov>

######### Water-Quality Monitoring of the Missouri River with the Yankton Sioux Tribe. The Missouri River in southeastern South Dakota constitutes the southern boundary of the Yankton Sioux Reservation (YSR) and is a valuable resource to the Yankton Sioux Tribe as well as to the States of South Dakota and Nebraska. Several miles downstream from the western boundary of the YSR, the flow of the Missouri River is impounded by Fort Randall Dam to form Lake Francis Case. Downstream from Fort Randall Dam, the river is free-flowing for several miles until it contacts backwater from Lewis and Clark Lake. Thus, within the YSR boundaries, the Missouri River is both impounded as well as free flowing, which results in a diversity of habitat critical to numerous fish and wildlife species. Beginning in 2002, a water-quality monitoring program for the Missouri River within the YSR was initiated. The program consists of a cooperative effort between Yankton Sioux Tribe and the USGS South Dakota Water Resource District. Water-quality samples are collected six times per year at three different stations. The samples are analyzed for certain field-measured properties, major ions, nutrients, selected trace elements, and suspended sediment. The monitoring program is intended to be a long-term effort. Contact: Steven Sando, 605-352-4241, ext. 230, [**sksando@usgs.gov**](mailto:sksando@usgs.gov)

**Hydrogeology of the Ogallala and Arikaree Aquifers for the Rosebud
Sioux Tribe.** The Ogallala and Arikaree aquifers are important water
resources for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and are used extensively for
agricultural, municipal, and domestic water supplies. Water-resource
tools are needed to evaluate management and environmental issues such as
planning for source-water protection, describing potential impacts of
contamination, and estimating sustainable aquifer withdrawals. A
numerical ground-water flow model of the Ogallala and Arikaree aquifers
underlying the Rosebud Reservation has been developed, calibrated, and
documented by USGS hydrologists from the South Dakota Water Resources
District in cooperation with the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. A GIS interface
for the model is currently being developed to aid the Tribe in using the
model to test the effects of various hydrologic conditions such as
drought or increased water use. Contact: Andy Long, 605-355-4560, ext.
237, <ajlong@usgs.gov>

####### Rosebud Total Maximum Daily Load. The USGS South Dakota Water resources District and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe began a water-quality assessment in support of Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) development for the Little White River in Todd County, South Dakota. Parts of this study include compiling and reviewing historical data, sampling water-quality further define conditions of the Little White River and its tributaries, and analyzing and modeling selected data. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe will use the data and analysis to write a TMDL for the Little White River. Technology transfer, a major part of this project, will aid the Tribe with TMDL development for other streams within its lands. Contact: Joyce Williamson, 605-355-4560, ext. 219, [**jewillia@usgs.gov**](mailto:jewillia@usgs.gov)

######### Potentiometric Map for the Arikaree Aquifer Pine Ridge Reservation

The USGS South Dakota Water Resources District, in cooperation with the
Oglala Sioux Tribe, is conducting a study to map the potentiometric
surface of the Arikaree aquifer. The potentiometric surface is the
"hydraulic head," or upper surface, of an unconfined aquifer (in other
words, the water table) or, on a confined aquifer it is the upper water
surface in a well. The aquifer is present near the surface in
approximately 80 percent of the Oglala Reservation and is the single
largest source of ground water for the Tribe. The objective of this
study is to provide the Oglala Sioux Tribe with a map depicting the
potentiometric surface of the Arikaree aquifer and a compilation of well
locations and construction information. The map will be used by several
Tribal departments and could help identify the best locations for new
wells, predict ground-water movement, and assess aquifer vulnerability
to contamination. Contact: Allen Heakin, 605-355-4560, ext. 216,
<ajheakin@usgs.gov>

####### Water Quality on the Lands of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation. 

Water quality is a major concern for the Prairie Band of Potawatomi
Nation because creeks on their lands provide sources of subsistence
hunting and fishing for Tribal members. Ground water is used in domestic
wells on the reservation and is being considered as a source for water
supply as the Tribe develops its economic base. Surface water on Tribal
lands has been sampled on a quarterly basis since June 1996 and two
reports have been published as a result of this monitoring. In 2002, a
ground-water component was added to the study and eleven wells completed
on the reservation will be sampled on a yearly basis to assess ground
water quality. Tribal personnel assist USGS scientists with the Kansas
Water Resources District in collecting and preparing samples for
analysis in conjunction with the water quality aspects of this study. As
part of the capacity building, Tribal personnel have also attended
training courses at the USGS National Training Center in Denver as well
as training with USGS personnel on other water quality studies in the
Kansas District. The study is scheduled to continue through 2004, with a
cumulative interpretative report on the water quality of the Potawatomi
lands to be released at the conclusion of the study. Contact: Heather
Ross, 785-832-3575, <hross@usgs.gov>

**Historical Channel Change along Soldier Creek, Northeast Kansas.** In
a cooperative study with the Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation, USGS
Kansas Water Resources District scientists analyzed information from
eight USGS streamflow-gaging stations to assess historical channel
change along Soldier Creek, northeast Kansas. At each gaging station,
channel change was assessed using channel-bed elevation as the primary
indicator. Changes in channel-bed elevation were inferred from changes
in the stage associated with the mean annual discharge at each station.
Other variables (channel width, channel area, and streamflow velocity)
were used as additional indicators of change. Results indicated that the
most substantial channel changes occurred downstream from Rocky Ford at
the Soldier Creek streamflow-gaging stations located near Topeka and
Delia. The available evidence indicated that the channelization of
Soldier Creek, completed in 1961, was likely to be the primary cause of
the channel changes at these locations. The decreasing base level
provided by the Kansas River also may have been a contributing factor.
At the Soldier Creek gaging station near Topeka, immediate effects of
the channelization included a decrease in channel-bed elevation of about
5 feet and an increase in channel width of about 35 feet. The
instability introduced by the channelization caused channel-bed
degradation that moved upstream at the rate of about 0.7-1.2 miles per
year. At the Soldier Creek gaging station near Delia, located about 12
miles upstream from the upstream end of the channelized section,
channel-bed degradation began during the 1970s and resulted in a net
decrease in channel-bed elevation of about 5 feet by 1999. The available
evidence indicated that Soldier Creek at and upstream from Rocky Ford
has not been substantially affected by the upstream-progressing
channel-bed degradation as of 2001. In this part of the basin, other
causes of channel change, such as land use and floods, may be relatively
more important. A report on the study results is being prepared and will
be available in FY 2003. Contact: Kyle Juracek, 785-832-3527,
<kjuracek@usgs.gov>

**Effects of Past Mining on Aquatic Resources Important to Native
Americans of Northeast Oklahoma.** The Tri-States Mining District, which
comprises parts of Jasper and Newton Counties in Missouri, Cherokee
County, Kansas, and Ottawa County, Oklahoma, was mined for lead and zinc
for more than a century. Although mining has ceased, mine wastes remain
distributed throughout the District and there is evidence of
surface-water and ground-water contamination throughout the region. The
Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma and other Native American groups have expressed
concern about health risks associated with the consumption of fish and
other aquatic organisms from waters in the Tri-States District. Late in
2001, a study was initiated to determine the extent of metal
contamination from historical mining on fishes and other aquatic
organisms. USGS scientists collected fish and crayfish from selected
locations in the Spring and Neosho River systems of northeast Oklahoma.
Samples of crayfish are being analyzed for concentrations of lead,
cadmium, zinc, and iron to identify important pathways of metal exposure
in stream food webs and potential risks to Native American consumers of
aquatic organisms. Fish and invertebrates were prepared for human
consumption, as they would have been by Native Americans. Blood was
obtained from each fish and analyzed for metals and for biochemical
responses (biomarkers) indicative of exposure to and effects of lead and
other toxic metals. Contact: Michael J. Mac, 573-876-1900,
<michael_mac@usgs.gov>

**Trace Metals in Grand Lake of the Cherokees, Northeastern Oklahoma,
for the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe.** The Seneca-Cayuga Tribe is concerned that
trace metals from the Tri-State Mining District may transport
contaminated sediments into the northern part of Grand Lake of the
Cherokees. Part of the Tri-State Mining District encompasses the EPA's
Tar Creek Superfund Site, which covers an area of approximately 40
square miles; this area includes of several tributaries of Grand Lake of
the Cherokees. In April 2002, USGS Oklahoma Water Resources staff
collected surface-water and bed-sediment samples at two locations
determined by Seneca-Cayuga Tribe's environmental staff. Both samples
were analyzed for concentrations of lead, zinc and cadmium. Elevated
concentrations of the analyzed metals were detected in the water and
bed-sediment samples. A summary of the data was prepared for the Tribe.
Contact: Kyle Davis, 918-254-6651, <kcdavis@usgs.gov>

**Osage-Skiatook Petroleum Environmental Research Project.** USGS
scientists are leading the Osage-Skiatook Petroleum Environmental
Research (OSPER) Project in which research is being conducted to
investigate the transport, fate, and biologic effects of produced water
and hydrocarbon releases from oil production at two sites on Skiatook
Lake, on the Osage Nation. Environmental research began in FY 2001 and
continued in FY 2002 with geologic mapping, drilling of observation
wells, geophysical surveys, microbial studies, and geochemical sampling
of soils, bedrock, and ground and surface waters. This work focuses on
the impacts of produced water and hydrocarbon releases from oil
production on soils, ground and surface water and the ecosystems they
support. Skiatook Lake serves as flood control, water supply, and a
major recreational fishery in the Tulsa, Oklahoma, metropolitan area.
Personnel from the Osage Nation Environmental and Resource Department
participated in the field investigations. The USGS provided training to
Osage Nation personnel on surface-water flow measurement and sampling
methods. Collaborating partners include the Osage Nation, U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), University
of Tulsa, Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma, and USGS
research scientists from Oklahoma, Virginia, Colorado, and California. A
field conference was held in September 2002 to review the early results
of these field investigations. At this conference, an Osage Nation
investigator presented results of a survey of surface water conductivity
and chloride concentrations in streams entering Skiatook Lake.
Conference attendees included personnel and managers from the USGS, the
Osage Nation, the DOE, and the ACE. Contact: Jim Otton, 303-236-8020,
[jkotton@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Availability of Water in Arkansas River Alluvial Aquifer, Osage
Nation.**

The USGS Oklahoma Water Resources District conducted a coopertive
project with the Osage Nation that included using direct-push drilling,
lithostratigraphic and hydrologic analysis, and water-quality sampling
to evaluate the quantity and quality of water in alluvial and terrace
aquifers along the Arkansas River in Osage County. Two Native American
student hydrologists are conducting the project under USGS supervision
as part of their Masters of Science program requirements for Oklahoma
State University. Contact: Marvin M. Abbott, 405-810-4411,
<mmabbott@usgs.gov>

**Overview of Water Resources for the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes.**
The USGS Oklahoma Water Resources District completed a study in
cooperation with the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes on the surface and
ground water, water use, availability, and quality in northern Caddo
County and northwestern Grady County, Oklahoma. The study area covers
about 900 square miles and extends from the Canadian River on the north
to the Washita River on the south. The report will be published in FY
2003. Contact: Marvin M. Abbott, 405-810-4411, <mmabbott@usgs.gov>

**Monitoring of Nitrate and Pesticides for the Chickasaw Nation.** The
Chickasaw Nation is concerned about potential contamination of
groundwater by nitrate and pesticides leaching from cropland and
pastures in their Tribal Jurisdictional Area. As part of a
water-resource assessment, USGS Oklahoma Water Resources District staff,
assisted by Chickasaw Nation Environmental staff, sampled 17 wells in
south-central Oklahoma in August 2002 for water properties, nitrate
concentration, and 86 commonly-used pesticides, at parts per trillion
reporting limits. Only one well had a nitrate concentration exceeding
the drinking water standard; 4 wells had detectable concentrations of
organophosphate or triazine pesticides. A summary of the study is posted
at [ok.water.usgs.gov/chickasaw]{.underline}. Contact: Jason Masoner,
405-810-4407, <masoner@usgs.gov>

**Ground-Water-Quality Monitoring for the Fort Peck Assiniboine and
Sioux Tribes.** Recent studies by the USGS in cooperation with the Fort
Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes identified two significant
ground-water-quality problems: saline-water contamination and large
nitrate concentrations in ground- water. Several studies identified more
than 12 square miles of saline-water contamination in the East Poplar
oil field. Another study found that nitrate concentrations were greater
than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency drinking water standard
(10 mg/l) in ground water from more than 50 percent of wells completed
in the Flaxville and underlying aquifers. Additional monitoring was
needed to determine if the salt water plumes in the East Poplar oil
field have migrated since the last sampling period (1993). Additional
sampling was also needed to determine if nitrate concentrations vary
seasonally or over longer periods of time. A long-term
ground-water-sampling network was needed to determine changes in
ground-water quality for these areas of concern. Wells in the East
Poplar oil field and wells screened in the Flaxville aquifer were
selected by the USGS in consultation with the Fort Peck Tribes for
additional monitoring over a 3-year period. Wells selected in the East
Poplar oil field were sampled annually to detect plume migration. Wells
selected in the Flaxville and underlying aquifers were sampled quarterly
to determine seasonal and temporal trends in nitrate concentrations.
Data and interpretations will be published in a report. Contact: Joanna
Thamke, 406-457-5900, <jothamke@usgs.gov>

**Northern Divide Grizzly Bear Project.** The USGS Northern Rocky
Mountain Science Center in Montana, in cooperation with the Confederated
Salish and Kootenai Tribes, the Blackfeet Nation, and Federal and State
agencies, is leading a multi-year research project to determine the
number of grizzly bears in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem of
the United States. This project, requested by the Governor of Montana
and supported by Senator Burns (MT), is expected to produce a
scientifically valid estimate of the size of the grizzly bear population
for the entire ecosystem. The study area is immense, encompassing 7.9
million acres from the Salish-Kootenai lands in the west to the
Blackfeet Reservation lands in the east and from the Canadian border in
the north to Montana Highway 200 in the south. Much of the project is on
Tribal lands. Representatives from both Tribal governments have been
actively involved in all stages of the planning process and will serve
as project sub-area leaders. Contact: Kate Kendall (USGS), 406-888-7994,
<kkendall@usgs.gov>; Dale Becker (Salish-Kootenai), 406-675-2700, ext.
1278 <daleb@cskt.org>; Dan Carney (Blackfeet), 406-338-2430,
<dcarney@3rivers.net>

**Flood-Frequency at Gaged and Ungaged Sites in Montana.** Reliable
flood-frequency information for streams is essential for design and
operation of various water con­trol structures such as dams, levees, and
water-supply systems. In addition, reliable flood-frequency data are
required for proper design of stream-crossing transportation structures,
such as bridges and culverts, and for iden­tification of flood-prone
areas for land-use management and flood-insurance purposes. The USGS
Montana Water Resources District is conducting this study in cooperation
with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, BIA, and State, and
Federal. It is intended to update flood-frequency information for all
gaged sites in Montana that have at least a 10-year record of
unregulated flow record; it will use the updated flood-frequency
information, together with geomor­phic and climatic data compiled at each
gaged sites, to develop regional regression equations and a
region-of-influ­ence computer model for the estimation of flood-frequency
at ungaged sites; and as well as a Web-based program to help users apply
the estimation methods at ungaged sites. Contact: Charles Parrett,
406-457-5900, <cparrett@usgs.gov>

**Hydraulic Characteristics and Flood-Limit Delineation of the Jocko
River on Part of the Flathead Reservation.** The objective of this
cooperative project is to delineate the flood limits and hydraulic
floodway for 100- and 500-year events for a 20-mile reach of the Jocko
River from near Arlee, Montana, to the river's mouth near Dixon on the
Flathead Reservation of the Confederated Salish and Kootanai Tribes.
USGS hydrologists from the Montana Water Resources District surveyed
channel-geometry (cross-section) data for the Jocko River and are using
the data in a hydraulic model to calculate water-surface profiles and
other hydraulic parameters such as flow area, conveyance, flow widths,
mean flow depths, and velocities. The hydraulic data will be used to
delineate the flood plain and floodway. Determination of hydraulic
characteristics is a prerequisite to the delineation of flood limits and
a hydraulic floodway for the 100-year flood. The 100-year flood is
commonly used as a regulatory flood for flood-plain management and flood
insurance purposes. Adoption of flood-plain management regulations for
the Jocko River would enable land-use and fishery managers for the
Salish and Kootenai Tribes to better plan and guide future development
to minimize riverine impacts and would also enable citizens to purchase
subsidized flood insurance. Contact: Charles Parrett, 406-457-5928,
<cparrett@usgs.gov>

**Northern Cheyenne Tribe and Coalbed Methane.** In FY 2002, the
Northern Cheyenne Tribe began a partnership with the USGS to core drill
several Fort Union coal beds and evaluate the potential of coalbed
methane resources on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation (NCIR). Coring
was performed in conjunction with drilling seven wells to monitor water
in the southern part of the Reservation. The Bureau of Indian Affairs,
and the USGS Montana Water Resources District cooperatively supported
the drilling project. Personnel from the USGS Central Region Geology
Team, Bureau of Land Management, and the Northern Cheyenne Natural
Resource Department collected coal cores from three wells and desorbed
and measured gas on the drill site. Additional desorption was performed
in USGS laboratories in Denver, Colorado. Retrieval of continuous cores
of the coal beds, which include the Knobloch, Wall, Pawnee, and
Flowers-Goodale coals, permitted gas desorption, adsorption (isotherm),
gas composition (chemistry and isotopic), coal quality, and coal
petrology analyses. The data will be used to estimate the gas-in-place
resources on the Northern Cheyenne lands. This information is critical
for the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Council to use in making policy
decisions on the possible development of coalbed methane, especially
with the onset of development off the Reservation. The information will
also provide baseline data for determining the effects of gas drainage
from future coalbed methane development off the Reservation. Contact:
Romeo M. Flores (geology), 303-236-7774, <rflores@usgs.gov>; Mike Cannon
(water), 406-457-5900, <mcannon@usgs.gov>; Jason Whiteman (Northern
Cheyenne Tribe), 406-477-6503

**Water Quality Studies for the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.** The
Southern Ute Indian Tribe has rights to 1/6 of the storage capacity of
the Vallecito Reservoir and has supported water-quality investigations
there with the USGS Colorado Water Resources District. The Vallecito Dam
and Reservoir were constructed to furnish supplemental water to about
54,000 acres. The Vallecito Dam prevents the flooding of crops,
farmland, and structures along the Vallecito River during spring runoff
by storing the floodwater for controlled releases to benefit irrigation.
The Southern Ute Tribe is supporting a USGS study that is characterizing
current water-quality conditions in the Vallecito Reservoir watershed
over five years beginning in 2000. These data will be used to establish
a baseline of major ions, metals, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen
concentrations in reservoir inflows, in the reservoir itself, and in the
reservoir outflow. Current conditions will form the baseline for
comparisons with later years, to assess the affects of future population
growth and land-use changes on reservoir water quality. Monitoring is
planned to continue for 10 to 20 years after the initial 5-year
characterization of existing water-quality conditions to determine
water-quality trends. In June 2002, the Missionary Ridge wildfire
completely burned areas of the Vallecito Reservoir watershed adjacent to
the reservoir and, to a limited degree, the valleys of the two major
inlets to the reservoir, Vallecito Creek and Los Pinos River. The
Missionary Ridge wildfire also burned large areas adjacent to Los Pinos
River downstream from the reservoir. The USGS, in cooperation with the
Southern Ute Indian Tribe, will be collecting water-quality samples on a
monthly basisfrom Vallecito Reservoir, its two inlets, and its outlet,
monthly from April-October 2003 and analyzing the samples for dissolved
major ions, total and dissolved metals, total and dissolved nutrients,
and total and dissolved organic carbon. The water-quality data collected
this year will be compared with pre-wildfire water-quality data
collected since 2000 to 1) determine if a change in the seasonal
distribution of the concentration of the measured parameters has
occurred within Vallecito Reservoir, its inlets, and its outlet as a
result of the Missionary Ridge wildfire, and 2) determine if a change in
the trophic status has occurred in Vallecito Reservoir as a result of
the Missionary Ridge wildfire. The USGS and the Southern Ute tribe will
need to assess the changes in water quality measured this year to
determine the sampling frequency needed in future years to assess the
effects of this major disturbance on the long-term water quality of
Vallecito Reservoir. Contact: Tony Ranalli, 303-236-4882, ext.313,
<tranalli@usgs.gov>

**Mapping Exotic Plants in the Southwest.** In conjunction with land
managers, biologists at the USGS Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science
Center's Colorado Plateau Field Station are developing a database on
exotic plants in the Southwest. The database is an important regional
tool for inventorying, monitoring, and sharing data on exotic
(non-native) plant species that are invading the area. USGS scientists
are gathering data on the plants and compiling it according to Federal
standards. The database can also be used to generate maps of locations
of the plants. The goals of this effort include developing and
maintaining the Southwest Exotics Plant Database, maintaining a
distribution system that integrates educational, management, and
scientific information to aid in control of the exotic plant species,
and facilitating a collaborative partnership among Tribal, Federal,
State, and private land managers. Contact: Kathryn Thomas, 520-556-7327,
ext. 235, <kathryn_a_thomas@usgs.gov>

**Geologic Framework of Rio Grande Basins, New Mexico.** The USGS is
conducting geologic and geophysical studies to provide a framework for
understanding aquifers in several critical ground-water basins along the
Rio Grande, which extends from Colorado to Mexico. The current focus of
this project is the Española ground-water basin in the greater Santa Fe,
New Mexico, region, which includes lands belonging to the Pueblos of
Cochiti, Nambe, Pojoaque, Tesuque, San Ildefonso, San Juan, and Santa
Clara. A major project goal is to develop a three-dimensional geologic
model of the ground-water basin that will eventually improve the
understanding of ground-water flow and resources. The project includes
geologic mapping in cooperation with the New Mexico Bureau of Geology
and Mineral Resources and the University of New Mexico; geophysical
mapping of the subsurface in cooperation with Los Alamos National
Laboratory and the Summer of Applied Geophysics Experience educational
program; investigations into how faults affect the aquifer system; and
studies of geologic history to predict the distribution of underground
aquifers. Geologic and geophysical maps of Pueblo areas provide
information that aids in ground-water protection and assessment of water
and other natural resources. In April 2002, the Rio Grande basins
project hosted a workshop in Santa Fe to foster communication among
scientists working in the Española basin and communicate the results of
the studies to the 85 workshop attendees, several of whom were members
of Pueblo Nations. Contact: Mark Hudson, 303-236-7446,
[mhudson@usgs.gov;]{.underline} Tien Grauch, 303-236-1393,
<tien@usgs.gov>

**Consultation with Santa Clara Pueblo.** USGS scientists are working
with the Forestry Department at the Santa Clara Pueblo in the Pueblo's
development of an Integrated Resource Management Plan. The USGS
scientists are participating in discussions of possible study designs
for field data collection, as well as sharing protocols used by USGS
social scientists to improve understanding of the relationships between
people and the landscape. USGS research at the Cerro Grande burn, which
occurred partly on Pueblo land, has led to acquisition of satellite
images and development of data in a geographic information system (GIS);
all data and products are being provided to the Tribe. In addition, USGS
scientists support the Pueblo's efforts to increase expertise in GIS,
using global positioning systems (GPS) and remotely sensed data, by
providing technical advice and assistance on request. Contact: Sandra
Haire [sandy_hairenusgs.gov](mailto:sandy_haire@usgs.gov); Dave Lambert
<dlambert@santaclarapueblo.org>

**Geohydrologic and Water-Quality Assessment of the Pueblo of San
Ildefonso.** The Pueblo of San Ildefonso needs geohydrologic and
water-quality information to help care for the people of the Pueblo. To
provide that information, the USGS New Mexico Water Resources District,
in cooperation with the Pueblo's Department of Environmental and
Cultural Preservation (DECP), is conducting a multi-year study to
determine the surface- and ground-water quality, and characteristics of
the Pueblo's water resources. The work is identifying environmental
impacts to the geohydrologic system from internal and external sources.
Resulting information will be used by the DECP as the basis for health
risk assessments and potentially for establishing water-quality
standards for the Pueblo. The cooperative project is also providing
training for Pueblo of San Ildefonso staff in the collection of
surface-water, ground-water, and water-quality data, and in basic
interpretation of water-quality data. Contact: Dale Rankin,
505-830-7965, <drrankin@usgs.gov>

**USGS/Albuquerque Seismological Laboratory Seismic Test Facility Lease
with the Pueblo of Isleta.** The USGS recently signed a 10-year lease
with the Pueblo of Isleta for use of seismometer test tunnels and
boreholes on Isleta lands, south of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The USGS
Albuquerque Seismological Laboratory (ASL) has used these facilities
since 1961 for low-noise testing of modern seismic instruments in
support of global seismograph networks used for monitoring seismic
activity worldwide. This site is notable for its low noise
characteristics. Seismic equipment manufacturers want their instruments
to be tested here as a key step in qualifying the instruments for use in
seismic networks. The USGS/ASL also operates a standard Global
Seismograph Network (GSN) station at this location, one of 120 such
stations operating worldwide in more than 80 countries and islands. GSN
stations support earthquake monitoring and research at the USGS National
Earthquake Information Center, tsunami warning efforts by the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and monitoring efforts for the
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The Pueblo of Isleta and the general
public receive occasional educational talks and presentations on how the
seismic equipment functions for monitoring earthquakes. Contact: Charles
R. (Bob) Hutt, 505-462-3201 <bhutt@usgs.gov> Additional information:
[http://aslwww.cr.usgs.gov](http://aslwww.cr.usgs.gov/) Live
Seismograms: <http://www.liss.org/>

**Inventory of Vascular Plants and Vertebrate Animals**. In
collaboration with the Navajo Nation, Ute Mountain Ute, and Southern Ute
Tribes, USGS scientists from the Colorado Plateau Field Station
initiated a comprehensive inventory of vascular plants and vertebrate
animals in ten National Parks and National Monuments within and adjacent
to Navajo and Ute Tribal lands. The purpose of the inventory is to
document overall species diversity, collect data on distribution and
abundance of rare species, and identify non-native, weedy species.
Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Hubbell Trading Post National
Historic Site, and Navajo National Monument include lands of the Navajo
Nation. The USGS, National Park Service, and tribal cooperators
conducted vegetation surveys in FY 2002 at Canyon de Chelly and Navajo
National Monument. Amphibian, reptile, and mammal surveys were conducted
at Mesa Verde and Yucca House. All of these projects will continue in
2003. Also, new inventory studies of birds and mammals will begin in
2003 on mammals and birds at Canyon de Chelly, Hubbell Trading Post, and
Navajo National Monument. The southwest has been experiencing severe
drought, and effects of this drought were evident in all aspects of the
inventory during 2002. This still provides insight into the range of
conditions seen in this part of the west, though more rainfall would
increase plant and animal populations. Haskell Indian Nations University
students assisted with mapping and vegetation description in FY 2002,
and their participation is anticipated to continue in FY 2003. The
studies provide students with hands-on experience in field research and
technologies such as geographic information systems. Contact: Charles
Drost, 928-566-7466 ext.233, <charles_drost@usgs.gov>

**Geo-Ecological Studies of Land Use, Climate Change, and Landscape
Vulnerability on the Navajo Nation.** Work is underway to examine the
history of land-use impacts in the ecologically sensitive Hopi Buttes
region of the Navajo Nation, and the relationships between human health
and water quality in an environment with known uranium and arsenic
contamination. Collaboration with offices and people of the Navajo
Nation is crucial to the project, with the ultimate goal of providing
information for education and community-based land-use planning.
Research on separate aspects of the ecosystem includes bedrock geology,
surficial processes, soil and water quality, plant ecology, as well as
the history of human habitation. Geologic controls on water quality are
being examined to outline areas where water of good quality can be
found. Changes in surface stability and erosion and arroyo development
are being examined with the aid of existing photographic records.
Regional work on sand dune stability encompasses eolian deposits within
the entire Navajo Nation. Recent drought years have resulted in
reactivation of sand dunes, threatening agriculture and grazing,
destroying one home and threatening others. The distribution of eolian
deposits is being mapped and classified according to the amount and type
of stabilizing vegetation. Dunes that are mostly active are closely
associated with Russian Thistle (tumbleweeds), an invasive annual that
requires minimal moisture to germinate. The relationship between dune
mobility and vegetation may be altered due to the recent appearance of
this plant, as it dies off and becomes detached during dry, windy
periods. Vegetation mapping, repeat photography, and consultations with
Navajo plant experts are providing information on conditions that
promote the spread of invasive species. Presentations of this work have
been given at a meeting of the Southwest Strategy Native Working Group
and to the Arizona Geological Society. USGS scientists will be meeting
with Tribal dignitaries from the U.S. and Canada to highlight work on
the Navajo Nation in January 2003. This work will also be presented at
the American Indian Science and Engineering Society's conference in
April 2003, and at a workshop on Science and Native Communities to be
held in Fairbanks, Alaska, in July 2003. Contact: Margaret Hiza (project
leader), 928-556-7366, [mhiza@usgs.gov]{.underline}; Kathryn Thomas
(vegetation studies), 520-556-7466, ext.235,
[Kathryn_a_Thomas@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Additional information:
[http://climchange.cr.usgs.gov/hopibuttes/]{.underline}

**Drought, Land Use, and Sand Movement, Navajo Nation.** Sand dunes
cover extensive areas (approximately one-third) of the 70,000 km2 Navajo
Nation. Assessment of dune fields, combined with meteorological data,
indicates that specific regions of the Navajo Nation are especially
susceptible to dune reactivation. Reactivation of stabilized sand is
occurring in many areas. Dune mobility can lead to transportation
problems, lower air quality from periodic dust storms, and possible
contributions to the loss of native plants and grazing land.
Reactivation of sand dunes as a result of the current drought has
serious consequences for human and animal populations, agriculture,
grazing, and infrastructure. Areas covered with dunes and sand sheets
have been mapped and classified according to present conditions of
stability/mobility. These areas are evaluated by comparison to
parameters of the dune mobility index (precipitation
/evapotranspiration), variations in summer versus winter precipitation,
grazing practices, and the type of vegetation cover. This evaluation
provides information on the processes responsible for initiation of
eolian sand movement, including controls from source sediment
availability, climate, vegetation, and land use. The mapped distribution
of sand dunes, in conjunction with meteorological information, provides
data to the Navajo Nation for drought mitigation and emergency
management. The drought of 2002 was the most severe in the past 1450
years and caused the deaths of more than 20,000 cattle and sheep. Navajo
Nation officials are using information from USGS research to identify
the most crucially sensitive areas that have been and will be impacted
by the ongoing drought and by including this work in the Navajo Nation
Drought Mitigation Handbook. Information on dune stability and
susceptibility produced from this study is also of value to Navajo
Chapter grazing officials who are in the process of evaluating grazing
guidelines. Contact: Margaret Hiza, 928-556-7366, <mhiza@usgs.gov>

**Black Mesa Monitoring Program.** The N aquifer is the major source of
water for the 5,400-square-mile Black Mesa area of northern Arizona. The
Hopi Tribe and Navajo Nation use N-aquifer water for municipal purposes
and Peabody Western Coal Company uses N-aquifer water to operate a
coal-slurry line. The USGS has been conducting a monitoring program in
the Black Mesa area since 1971 to document long-term effects of
ground-water pumping. The USGS Arizaona Water Resources District is
monitoring ground-water levels, discharge, chemistry and withdrawals,
along with streamflow, on an annual basis in cooperation with the Hopi
Tribe, the Navajo Nation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the State of
Arizona, and Peabody Coal Company. In addition to hydrologic monitoring,
the USGS has used simulations of the N aquifer to evaluate the effects
of ground-water withdrawals. A numerical model of the N aquifer
developed in 1988 has been used to simulate effects of withdrawals up
through 2051. The performance and sensitivity of that model were
recently analyzed and results were published in 2002. The performance
analysis demonstrated how well the model has simulated 15 years of new
water-level data (1985-99). The sensitivity analysis showed limitations
of the model and determined relations among the model parameters,
observation data, and simulated values. Contact: Blakemore E. Thomas,
928-556-7255, [bthomas@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Geochemical Analysis of Ground-Water Ages, Recharge Rates, and
Hydraulic Conductivity of the D Aquifer, Black Mesa.** The N aquifer is
the most heavily used aquifer for water supply in the Black Mesa area of
northern Arizona by both the Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation. Concern
exists that increasing withdrawals of water from the N aquifer to slurry
coal will cause excessive declines in water levels or will cause
poor-quality water from the overlying D aquifer to infiltrate the N
aquifer. (The D aquifer overlies the N aquifer in the Black Mesa area.).
The USGS Arizona Water Resources District continues characterizing the
ground-water geochemistry of the D aquifer through the use of naturally
occurring inorganic constituents and stable and radio isotopes.
Differences in geochemical signatures between the D and N aquifers will
help determine whether leakage is occurring to the N aquifer from the
overlying D aquifer as a result of pumping ground water from the N
aquifer. D aquifer geochemistry will also be used to estimate
ground-water age and recharge regimes in comparison to the N aquifer.
Water users in the Black Mesa area, including the Hopi and Navajo, will
use the information from this study to make informed decisions on how
best to manage available water resources. Contact: Margot Truini,
520-556-7352, <mtruini@usgs.gov>

**Golden Eagle Studies.** USGS staff from the Snake River Field Station
in Idaho cooperated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and
indirectly with Tribes regarding golden eagles. The USFWS implements the
Federal Indian trust responsibility for contacts with Tribes involving
protected species and the taking of those species by Native Americans
for ceremonial uses. Contact by USGS staff with the Hopi Tribe and
Navajo Nation was limited by legal circumstances. USGS staff recommended
to USFWS basic demographic research and aerial surveys for monitoring
western golden eagle status. Contact: Mark Fuller, 208-426-4115,
<mark_fuller@usgs.gov>

**USGS Evaluates Riparian Habitat for Navajo Nation.** In May 2002, a
research ecologist from the USGS Southwest Biological Science Center
traveled to Canyon de Chelly, Arizona, to meet with staff of the Navajo
Nation to discuss an upcoming saltcedar/Russian olive removal
demonstration project within the Canyon de Chelly National Monument. The
USGS scientist visited the demonstration site to evaluate whether the
riparian habitat there might be suitable habitat for the endangered
southwestern willow flycatcher. The possibility of expanded willow
flycatcher surveys for National Monument projects was also discussed.
Contact: Mark Sogge, 928-556-7466, ext.232,
[mark_sogge@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Aquifer Sensitivity on Navajo Nation Lands and Ground-Water
Vulnerability to Pesticide Contamination on the Navajo Indian Irrigation
Project.** This cooperative study between the USGS New Mexico Water
Resources District and the Navajo Nation determined the sensitivity of
aquifers to impacts from activities occurring on the overlying land
surface, and estimating the effects of irrigated agriculture and
attendant pesticide use on ground water underlying the Navajo Indian
Irrigation Project. GIS coverages were developed that describe recharge
areas, areas of unconsolidated deposits, soil hydrologic group,
topography, and precipitation. The aquifer sensitivity assessment
consisted of combining these coverages and interpreting the results. The
assessment of ground-water vulnerability to pesticide contamination on
the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project consisted of combining the results
of the aquifer sensitivity assessment with pesticide leachability
ratings for each pesticide used during 2000. Leachability ratings were
estimated on a field-by-field basis. The study results were published in
2002, as Water-Resources Investigations Report 02-4051, entitled
\"Assessments of Aquifer Sensitivity on Navajo Nation and Adjacent Lands
and Ground-Water Vulnerability to Pesticide Contamination on the Navajo
Indian Irrigation Project, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.\" Contact:
Paul Blanchard, 505-830-7947, <pblanch@usgs.gov>

**Air Quality on the Navajo Nation.** Indoor air pollution is
hypothesized to contribute significantly to severe respiratory disease
on the Navajo Nation. The source of this pollution may be residential
coal burning for heating and cooking, and ambient air pollution
resulting from industrial coal burning in large power plants. USGS
geologists have proposed a 3-year study entitled, "Relationship of
Indoor and Ambient Air Quality to Respiratory Diseases in the Navajo
Nation," to examine this issue in an epidemiological framework. The
study would use geochemical analytical techniques to characterize the
coal in the Shiprock Chapter of the Navajo Nation. Navajo students would
participate in the project and USGS scientists would work closely with
Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency personnel. Seeking final
approval to proceed with the project, a USGS investigator, along with
collaborators from the Navajo Nation\'s Uranium Education Program, will
present the proposal before the Navajo Nation's Institutional Review
Board in FY 2003 in Window Rock, Arizona, capital of the Navajo Nation.
Contact: Bob Finkelman, 703-648-6412, <rbf@usgs.gov>

**Coal, Health, and the Navajo Nation.** Domestic use of coal for
heating and cooking has led to human health problems in many parts of
the world. USGS geologists have documented the effects on health of
domestic coal use as well as environmental concerns of industrial coal
use in foreign countries. Many families on the Navajo Nation use coal
domestically, and live near and may work in coal mines and coal-burning
power plants. USGS scientists are interested in collaborating on an
epidemiological study of the Navajo Nation to examine those health
effects. The primary issue is assessing the health impacts of
residential coal combustion on Navajo lands. A secondary issue is the
environmental impact of coal-burning power plants near the reservation.
As part of their project development, USGS scientists presented several
workshops at the Navajo Nation\'s Diné College and for the Navajo
Nation\'s Uranium Education Program. These activities were well received
and a team of local geologists, atmospheric scientists, and
epidemiologists are working with the USGS on the project. The USGS is
preparing a proposal to the Indian Research Council to obtain permission
for the study of the Shiprock area. Contact: Bob Finkelman,
703-648-6412, <rbf@usgs.gov>

# Parasites of Native and Non-Native Fishes in the Lower Little Colorado River. Scientists from the USGS National Wildlife Health Center studied parasites in fishes in the lower 21 km of the Little Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Arizona, an area administered by the Navajo Natural Heritage Program (Navajo Nation) and the National Park Service (Grand Canyon National Park). Fish populations were sampled by the USGS in FY 2000 and FY 2001. In FY 2001, a total of 1,235 fish representing seven species (all four native and seven non-native species) were captured and examined for internal parasites. Results from both years indicate that between 50-60 per cent of the endangered humpback chub (*Gila cypha*) were infected with the Asian tapeworm (*Bothriocephalus acheilognathi*). Such infections can cause disease and retard growth. The disease could be severe enough to cause mortality. A reduced growth rate could increase the time that fish are susceptible to predation and also cause the fish to be small when they enter the main stem of the Colorado River during monsoon season. Smaller fish do not survive as well as larger fish in the cold waters of the main stem. In addition, zooplankton (critical to tapeworm transmission) were collected, identified, and counted. Temperature was monitored in various tributaries of the Little Colorado River to evaluate environmental conditions involved in the transmission of the tapeworm. Laboratory infections of bony-tailed chub, a surrogate for the endangered humpback chub, were initiated in FY 2001 and completed in 2002. These experiments were designed to assess the impact of the Asian tapeworm on fish growth, body condition, and ability to withstand thermal stress. The results indicate that the tapeworm did affect growth, causing infected fish to grow more slowly. Other parameters such as body condition and affects of thermal stress were not significantly different than control fish. Contact: Rebecca Cole, 608-270-2468, [**rebecca_cole@usgs.gov**](mailto:rebecca_cole@usgs.gov)

**Vegetation Surveys on Native Lands.** The USGS Colorado Plateau Field
Station's vegetation team is developing land cover map products for most
of Arizona and some surrounding areas. As part of the USGS Southwest
Regional GAP project's regional conservation assessment of biota, a land
cover map of the southwest is being developed. With Tribal permission,
USGS scientists conducted vegetation surveys on the Navajo Nation, San
Carlos Tribal lands, and Hualapai Tribal lands in FY 2002. Tribal
governments will be involved in the land cover mapping process by
reviewing the draft map and will be given results and products of the
overall project. Accuracy assessment of the draft land cover maps is
planned for the summer of 2004. Contact: Kathryn Thomas, 928-556-7327,
<kathryn_a_thomas@usgs.gov>

**Terrestrial Monitoring.** The Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research
Center is leading a project in Grand Canyon National Park to monitor and
evaluate the effects of water releases from Glen Canyon Dam on
terrestrial resources. The Hopi Tribe, Hualapai Tribe, and the Southern
Paiute Consortium participated in a project by providing Tribal input to
USGS biologists and participating in monitoring activities. FY 2002 was
the second year of the project, which is planned to continue for three
years. In FY 2003, the Navajo Nation and the Pueblo of Zuni will be
offered the opportunity to begin participating in the project. Contact:
Ruth Lambert, 928-556-7285, <rlambert@usgs.gov>

**Geoenvironmental Effects of Glen Canyon Dam.** The environment in
Grand Canyon has been affected by Glen Canyon Dam. The USGS is
collaborating with other researchers to provide information for policy
decisions concerning the management of water flow from Glen Canyon Dam.
Under the post-dam flow regime, which limits floods and impounds
sediment, sandbars have degraded, campsites and riparian habitat have
been lost, and species have become endangered. Congress passed the Grand
Canyon Protection Act, requiring the Bureau of Reclamation to alter
discharge from the dam to enhance the environment downstream in Grand
Canyon National Park. Representatives of seven Tribes or Pueblos
(Havasupai, Hopi, Hualapai, Navajo, San Juan Southern Paiute, Southern
Paiute Consortium, and Zuni) are among more than two dozen stakeholders
who participate in the Adaptive Management Program or regularly receive
reports on the progress of this project from USGS Coastal and Marine
Team and the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center. The USGS has
provided marine survey technology including side-scan sonar, rotating
sonar, seismic reflection profiling, and underwater video equipment.
USGS scientists are interpreting sedimentary structures to provide
explanations for sediment transport, particularly for use in determining
sediment transport prior to the dam, and developing new approaches to
sediment-transport modeling. Contact: David Rubin, 831-427-4736,
<drubin@usgs.gov>

**Geologic Mapping at Pipe Spring National Monument**. A three-year
project was begun to conduct geologic mapping of the Pipe Spring
National Monument west of Fredonia, Arizona, and the surrounding the
lands of the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians. The mapping includes four
USGS 7.5' quadrangles and encompasses the western two-thirds of the
Kaibab Paiute Indian Reservation. This USGS project is being conducted
from FY 2002 through FY 2004 in association with National Park Service
hydrological studies and in cooperation with the Kaibab Band of Paiute
Indians. The geologic map will provide baseline geologic data for this
part of the Uinkaret Plateau in northern Arizona in support of
USGS/National Park Service hydrological studies involving Pipe Spring
National Monument, the Kaibab Paiute Tribe, and the town of Moccasin, a
private community of about 200 that is surrounded by Tribal lands. All
three land-managing agencies have a limited water source that all must
share and use. The geologic mapping is also in conjunction with USGS
seismic profile studies and USGS Water Resource studies structured to
reach a common goal: a better understanding of the water resources of
this unique and historical area of the Arizona Strip. Contact: George
Billingsley, 928-556-7198, <gbillingsley@usgs.gov>

**Verde River Headwaters Aquifer Framework Study.** The objectives of
this project were to collect geophysical and geochemical data and use
those data to delineate major flow paths, determine rates of travel, and
accurately measure relative source contributions from Big and Little
Chino Basins to perennial springs in the Upper Verde River. The springs
provide water for downstream water users (including the Yavapai-Prescott
Indian Tribe in Verde Valley) and sustain riparian habitat for abundant
wildlife, including several native fish species such as the threatened
spikedace minnow (*Medafulgida*). This project was funded by the Arizona
Water Protection Fund, which is administered by the Arizona Department
of Water Resources. The project had three technical components. First,
the latest advancements in airborne geophysics were used to identify
subsurface features that serve as conduits or obstacles to ground-water
movement. Second, water chemistry, including isotopes, was used to
determine major ground-water flow paths and to determine the age and
travel time of the ground water. Last, project personnel conducted a
tracer dilution study to determine the contribution of base flow from
multiple spring networks in the upper Verde River. The product of this
study will be technically reliable information on ground-water flow
paths, ground-water travel times, and relative contributions from
different aquifer sources. The data for the project have been collected
and study results are being prepared. Ground-water modelers and
water-resource managers in the Prescott Active Management Area, Yavapai
County, and the Verde River Watershed need study results to oversee the
resource more accurately. Contact: Laurie Wirt, 303-236-2492,
<lwirt@usgs.gov>

**Hydrogeologic Study of the Upper and Middle Verde River Watershed,
Arizona.** The population of Yavapai County, Arizona, is growing
rapidly, resulting in an increased demand on water resources in the
upper and middle Verde River watershed. The watershed contains a
thriving riparian zone and is the primary water supply for the county,
as well as for large populations further downstream, including the
Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe and the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. The
hydrogeologic system in the watershed has not been comprehensively
studied, and the effects of historic and present development on regional
water resources are poorly understood. Beginning in 2001, this study was
funded by the Yavapai County Water Advisory Committee to improve
hydrologic and geologic information. This 3-year effort will use
geophysical and geologic methods to better define the geometry of and
internal structures in the basins and the composition and architecture
of the basin fill. As part of the study, USGS personnel will establish
and operate a microgravity network to measure changes in ground-water
storage. Precipitation and streamflow data will also be collected from
new rain gages and a new stream gage on a tributary to Big Chino Wash.
USGS scientists will collect and analyze ground-water samples to help
delineate ground-water flow paths, and conduct surface resistivity
surveys to delineate the thickness and extent of alluvial sediments in
selected reaches of the Verde River. All of these investigations will
produce data that can be directly used in the regional hydrogeologic
investigation and will provide parameters for the conceptual model of
the system. A new open-file report describes the geophysical data. The
reference is Langenheim, V.E., Hoffmann, J.P., Blasch, K.W., Dewitt,
Ed., and Wirt, Laurie, 2002, Preliminary Report on Geophysical Data in
Yavapai County, Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 02-352.
The report is available on the Web at
http://geopubs.wr.usgs.gov/open-file/of02-352/ Contact: Victoria
Langenheim, 650-329-5313, <zulanger@usgs.gov> or John Hoffman,
520-670-6671, ext.265, <jphoffma@usgs.gov>

**Copper Mines Under Review.** Ground-water withdrawals associated with
two new copper mines proposed for southern Arizona has the potential to
affect existing water rights and water supplies of the area. At the
request of the Secretary of the Interior, the USGS Arizona Water
Resources District is working with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) on a plan to monitor impacts to the
ground-water system caused by mine-related pumping. The USGS is also
providing technical expertise to develop a mitigation strategy. The
proposed project could affect the claims to water of the Gila River
Indian Community and the San Carlos Apache Tribe, for whom the Federal
government has trust responsibilities. At a meeting in June 2002,
representatives of the USGS, BLM, the Gila River and San Carlos Tribes,
and the BIA discussed USGS recommendations on specific components of the
plan. Contact: James G. Brown, 520-670-6671, ext. 280,
<jgbrown@usgs.gov>

**Vegetation and Animal Population Monitoring Program at \'Ahakhav
Preserve.** The USGS Colorado Plateau Field Station is providing
assistance to the Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) in a vegetation-
and animal- population monitoring program to assess the progress and
success of riparian restoration projects on the \'Ahakhav Tribal
Preserve belonging to the CRIT near Parker, Arizona. This work has
included overall design of the monitoring protocols for vegetation,
amphibians, reptiles, and mammals, as well as assistance on preliminary
fieldwork for the monitoring. USGS scientists, working in coordination
with CRIT personnel, have completed the population monitoring protocols
and sampling of sites. The monitoring program will provide information
on changes in vegetation and animal populations' response to riparian
restoration efforts carried out on the \'Ahakhav Tribal Preserve, along
the Colorado River near Parker. The monitoring sites and protocols cover
vegetation, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals. Contact: Charles Drost,
928-566-7466, ext.233,<charles_drost@usgs>

**White Sturgeon Habitat Simulations to Assess the Feasibility of
Enhancing Spawning Substrate in the Kootenai River.** In 1999, the USGS
Idaho Water Resources District, in cooperation with the Kootenai Tribe
of Idaho, began examining Kootenai River white sturgeon spawning
substrate habitat to evaluate the feasibility of various recovery
actions on improving substrate conditions in Kootenai River white
sturgeon spawning areas. The Kootenai River Sub-Basin is an
international watershed that encompasses parts of British Columbia,
Montana, and Idaho. The Kootenai River is the second largest tributary
to the Columbia River. During the last 80 years, the hydraulic, sediment
transport, and substrate characteristics of the Kootenai River have been
altered as a result of the construction of Libby Dam, dike construction,
and wetlands drainage. The operation of Libby Dam has altered the river
ecosystem, resulting in the decline of many resident fish populations
including the Kootenai River white sturgeon (listed as an endangered
species in 1994). One limitation to white sturgeon spawning success may
be the change from the natural fluctuations in flow and sedimentation in
sturgeon spawning areas resulting from the operation of the dam. To aid
in white sturgeon recovery efforts, the USGS has been conducting studies
to characterize bed-sediment conditions in the Kootenai River, including
30 kilometers of seismic sub-bottom profiles in and beyond the spawning
reach, 3.5-meter cores of river bottom sediments at 30 locations within
the spawning reach, and sampling sediment from the riverbed. Data from
these studies were integrated with data defining pre- and post-dam
water-surface and riverbed elevations and the river's sediment load to
develop a conceptual model describing the sedimentation history of the
spawning substrate habitat. The integrated analysis helped characterize
how sedimentation processes in the river have changed over time and
whether changes have affected the quality of the habitat area as it
relates to spawning conditions. During FY 2002, the USGS, with
assistance from the U.S. National Geodetic Survey and the Canadian
Geodetic Survey, collected global satellite positioning survey (GPS)
data at benchmarks along the Kootenai River from Libby Dam, Montana, to
Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, including the white sturgeon spawning
reach along the Kootenai Tribal Lands in Idaho. These benchmarks are
reference points for detailed mapping of the bathymetry and levees of
the Kootenai River. During the summer of 2002, USGS scientists mapped
the bathymetry throughout the white sturgeon spawning reach. Since April
2002, the USGS has collected numerous suspended-sediment samples from
the river's water column at the upstream and downstream extents of the
spawning reach and at the mouths of the two tributaries in this reach.
Suspended-sediment samples were collected during the two large snowmelt
runoff events that took place during the spring of 2002. Sediment
samples from the riverbed also were collected throughout the spawning
reach. Streamflow velocity and discharge were monitored intermittently
at various locations in this spawning reach. These data will be used to
develop and calibrate one-dimensional and multidimensional digital
models that simulate streamflow and sediment transport. The sediment
transport models will identify sedimentation characteristics under
various flow regimes and help evaluate the feasibility of various
recovery actions on improving substrate conditions in sturgeon spawning
areas. Contact: Gary Barton, 253-428-3600, ext. 2613, <gbarton@usgs.gov>

Figure 1. Collecting 3.5-meter-long cores of riverbed sediments in
Kootenai River white sturgeon spawning habitat, Bonners Ferry, Idaho

Figure 2. Collecting global positioning satellite data for establishing
highly accurate survey benchmarks along the Kootenai River drainage
system

**Mining Contamination.** From 1998 through 2002, geologists in the USGS
Western Mineral Resources Spokane Field Office have worked in
cooperation with the Coeur d'Alene Tribe to make digital geologic and
geochemical maps of the floodplain of the Coeur d'Alene River valley.
Sediments containing high concentrations of lead and associated heavy
metals (in forms that are bio-available and bio-transferable) cover most
of the floodplain. USGS maps and reports demonstrate the distribution,
character, and quantity of lead-rich sediments on the floodplain. These
maps and reports have been used in support of a Natural Resource Damage
Assessment, and an environmental-damage lawsuit filed by the Coeur
d'Alene Tribe (and joined by the U.S. Departments of Interior and
Justice) against mining companies. The Companies released large volumes
of lead-rich tailings into upstream tributaries between 1886 and 1968.
Frequent floods continue to transport lead-rich sediment, eroding from
the bed and banks of the river and its tributaries, down-valley and onto
the floodplain. In 2002, the USGS completed a report on rates of
sedimentation and lead deposition on the floodplain during a series of
time-stratigraphic intervals that span mine-tailings disposal history,
from before 1886 to about 1993. This report, which includes estimates of
background, historic, and baseline rates of sedimentation and lead
deposition in representative depositional settings on the floodplain,
has important implications for alternative remediation strategies being
considered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, as well as for Coeur d'Alene Lake management
strategies being considered by the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and the States of
Idaho and Washington. Contact: Art Bookstrom, 509 368-3119,
<abookstrom@usgs.gov>

**Western U.S. Phosphate and the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.** The eastern
half of the Fort Hall Reservation, home of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes
and part of the Southeast Idaho Phosphate Resource Area in the Western
Phosphate Field, is included in the study area of the USGS project
\"Geologic and Geoenvironmental Studies of the Western Phosphate
Field.\" Although the project was initially focused on evaluating the
resource potential of the region, research efforts have been extended to
include multidisciplinary geoenvironmental studies of selenium and other
potentially toxic elements. Selenium, an element released from phosphate
waste piles, has had a detrimental effect on local livestock. The study
area includes the Gay Mine, one of the largest open-pit mines in
southeastern Idaho. The mine was operated by commercial entities on the
Shoshone-Bannock lands from 1946 to 1993. The site now consists of
numerous mine pits, waste dumps, and mill shale piles spread over an
area of nearly 25 square miles. After initial contacts and meetings with
the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Tribal Land Use Committee,
USGS staff visited the Gay Mine site, and conducted geologic mapping to
support resource estimates for the Chesterfield Quadrangle. Samples were
also collected for chemical and petrographic analysis. In fiscal years
2000-2002, staff from the BIA and the USGS participated in regular
meetings of the Interagency Area-Wide Technical Group and the Selenium
Working Group Advisory Committee. This project was completed in FY 2002.
Contact: James R. Hein, 650-329-5287, <jhein@usgs.gov>

**Salmonid Genetics.** Biologists at the USGS Alaska Science Center are
researching the genetic population structure of Lahontan cutthroat
trout, in collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The
scientists are examining the genetics of Snake River steelhead for the
State of Idaho. Results of this research will have significant
implications for Tribes that comprise theNevada Indian Fish Commission
and other Tribes in the interior of the Great Basin. Project results
were published as: Nielsen, Jennifer L. and George K. Sage, 2002,
"Population Genetic Structure in Lahontan Cutthroat Trout,"
*Transactions of the American Fisheries Society,* 131:376-388. Contact:
Jennifer Nielsen, 907-786-3512, [jennifer_nielsen@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Cui-ui in Pyramid Lake, Nevada.** The cui-ui is an endangered fish of
the sucker family that is found only in Pyramid Lake, Nevada. The
Pyramid Lake Paiute Indians and other Northern Paiutes historically
relied upon annual spawning runs of cui-ui for food. Since the Tribe
controls use of Pyramid Lake and fully supports efforts to restore the
cui-ui population, the Tribal Council has passed resolutions prohibiting
harvest of cui-ui by non-Indians and Tribal members. The USGS is
continuing studies of the population dynamics and reports results to the
Tribal Chairman. Adult cui-ui are netted at the south end of Pyramid
Lake in the spring and are marked to determine the mortality rate. Fish
are recaptured in the fall at selected stations around the lake to
determine juvenile population size and estimate mortality over the
summer. Contact: Gary Scoppettone, 702-784-5451,
<gary_scoppettone@usgs.gov>

**Fallon Basalt Aquifer.** The Fallon Paiute Shoshone Tribe, the U.S.
Navy, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Nevada Division of Water
Resources are cooperating with the USGS Nevada Water Resources District
on a study to better define sources of water, controls on its use, and
the water quality in the Fallon Basalt Aquifer. This aquifer is the sole
source of drinking water for the Fallon Paiute Shoshone Tribe, the City
of Fallon, and the Fallon Naval Air Station. The Fallon Tribe is
contributing data and funding to the project and is providing access to
Tribal lands for this study. Work on the Fallon Basalt Aquifer study is
progressing, with a report on in-situ arsenic treatment recently
published as a book chapter \"In Situ Arsenic Remediation in a
Fractured, Alkaline Aquifer\" by Alan H. Welch, Kenneth G Stollenwerk,
Douglas K. Maurer, and Lawrence S. Feinson, in a book titled \"Arsenic
in Ground Water, Geochemistry and Occurrence,\" Alan H. Welch and
Kenneth G. Stollenwerk, eds., Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston, 2003.
A report summarizing work on the potential for conjunctive use in the
basalt aquifer has been drafted. That summary discusses potential
geochemical reactions from injection of surface water into the basalt
aquifer. This report will be published as a USGS Water Resources
Investigation Report (WRIR) in 2003. A new study has begun to determine
the potential for formation of chlorination by-products from injection
of treated surface water into the basalt aquifer. A summary of the
results of USGS chlorination by-products work is expected to be
published as a USGS Fact Sheet in 2004. In addition, work to
characterize the basalt aquifer by drilling deep test holes is
continuing. Four holes have been drilled, with the final, fifth hole to
be completed once sufficient funding is obtained from either from the
Bureau of Reclamation or the Fallon Naval Air Station. Available data
will be compiled in a report summarizing the deep test drilling.
Remaining work includes developing a numerical ground-water flow model
and a final report. Contact: Douglas Maurer, 775-887-7631,
<dkmaurer@usgs.gov>

**Susceptibility of Pacific Salmon to Infectious Salmon Anemia Virus.**
The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, in collaboration with the
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS), is supporting research at the USGS Western
Fisheries Research Center (WFRC) on the effects of an exotic virus on
Pacific salmon. Infectious salmon anemia virus (ISAV) was initially
identified as a major pathogen of Atlantic salmon marine aquaculture in
Norway. The virus has received increasing attention following the
identification of the virus in Atlantic salmon reared in marine netpens
in Scotland, in New Brunswick, Canada, and in Chile. More recently, the
virus has been identified in Maine as the cause of losses in Atlantic
salmon netpen aquaculture, resulting in the mandated destruction of
several hundred thousand valuable fish. The virus was also recovered
from Atlantic salmon returning to a USFWS hatchery in Maine that
supports recovery of these endangered wild-spawning stocks. The
potential for the virus to affect various species of Pacific salmon is
ofsignificant interest to the USFWS fish health program as well as
Tribal and State fisheries managers in the western U.S. Using the
specially constructed Biosafety level 3 laboratory at the WFRC, USGS
scientists challenged stocks of juvenile chinook, chum and coho salmon,
steelhead trout, and Atlantic salmon with isolates of ISAV from Norway
and Chile. Mortalities among groups of Atlantic salmon were about 20 per
cent with the Norwegian strain and 98 per cent with the Canadian strain
(delivered at a higher dose). No Pacific salmon or steelhead died during
the challenge periods although transient infections were detected in
most species. These results suggest Pacific salmon are at substantially
less risk than previously suspected. A manuscript presenting the results
of this study has been accepted for publication by the Journal of Fish
Diseases. Contact: James Winton, 206-526-6587, <jim_winton@usgs.gov>

**Transport and Fate of Bacteria and Nitrate in Ground Water, Lower
Nooksack River Basin.** The Nooksack Indian Nation desires an improved
understanding of the fate and transport of fecal coliform and nitrate
contaminants as they move from agricultural fields to the ground-water
system and eventually to surface-water systems in the lower Nooksack
River Basin. Additional information about the extent of denitrification
is also needed to provide realistic constraints on water-quality models
that are used to make water-resource management decisions. In FY 2002,
the USGS Wasington Water Resources District began a study of the
interaction between surface and ground water in the shallow aquifer of
the lower Nooksack River Basin. Stream locations where ground- and
surface-water exchanges occur were identified, and flow directions
between the ground- and surface-water systems were determined. In FY
2003, discharging ground water will be sampled and analyzed for
concentrations of fecal-coliform bacteria and a suite of nutrients and
other constituents related to ground-water denitrification. Ground-water
ages will also be determined. Ground- and surface-water samples will be
collected over the course of a storm hydrograph to determine the
relative proportion of surface runoff that constitutes streamflow during
periods when surface-water bacteria concentrations are significantly
elevated. Lastly, a laboratory microcosm experiment will be conducted to
determine if ground-water denitrification can be enhanced by the
addition of carbon. Contact: Steve Cox, 253-428-3600, ext.2623,
<secox@usgs.gov>

**Trace Metal Concentrations in Shallow Sediments along Lake
Roosevelt.** The Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation are
concerned about the potential threat to human health of trace metals in
exposed bottom sediment from Lake Roosevelt. Lake Roosevelt is a
125-mile-long reservoir in eastern Washington State that extends from
Grand Coulee Dam to near the Canadian border where the Columbia River is
free flowing. During periods when the water level of the reservoir is
lowered, large areas of contaminated sediment are exposed. Upon drying,
the fine-grained portion of these sediments, including trace metals,
becomes airborne due to high winds and can be inhaled by area residents
and visitors. USGS scientists with the Washington Water Resources
District have studied two different, though related, aspects of the
potential human health issues involving trace metals in fine-grained
sediments: the sediment themselves, prior to disturbance, and the
airborne characteristics of these sediments. Sediment samples were
collected to determine the concentrations of trace metals in the
fine-grained sediment exposed during the spring 2001 drawdown. The
results of the sediment study will be published in FY 2003. Once
airborne, the dust particles can be carried downwind various distances
depending on their size and the magnitude and duration of the prevailing
winds throughout the Lake Roosevelt airshed. In FY 2002, the USGS began
monitoring air quality at several locations along Lake Roosevelt to
determine the occurrence, concentrations, distribution, and seasonal
variability of selected trace elements on airborne dust particles, and,
to the extent possible, the fraction of airborne trace element
originating from exposed lake bed sediments. This work is anticipated to
continue through FY 2004. Contact: Sue Kahle, 253-428-3600, ext. 2616,
<sckahle@usgs.gov>

**3D Acoustic Telemetry Study.** USGS researchers at the Columbia River
Research Laboratory are cooperating with the Confederated Tribes of the
Colville Indian Reservation to determine the efficacy of using strobe
lights to reduce entrainment of kokanee salmon through turbines at Grand
Coulee Dam, Washington. Kokanee salmon and rainbow trout were tagged and
released into the forebay of Grand Coulee Dam. When fish enter the area
of the hydrophone receivers, their spatial location in three dimensions
is recorded. The scientists examined how fish responded to strobe lights
when the lights were on, off, and on for 1 hour, then off for 1 hour. We
found that kokanee salmon appeared to be repelled by the strobe lights,
but rainbow trout were attracted to them. The Confederated Tribes of the
Colville Indian Reservation will use this information to reduce
entrainment of fish and to meet their fishery enhancement goals.
Contact: Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299, ext.236,
[jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**White Sturgeon Restoration in the Columbia River.** USGS fishery
biologists are participating with the Spokane Tribe of Indians, the
Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, and Columbia River
Inter-Tribal Fish Commission fishery biologists in an effort to restore
declining white sturgeon populations in the Columbia River basin.
Restoration of this species is especially important because of the
cultural significance of these fish. Federal scientists and Tribal
representatives worked together on the Upper Columbia River White
Sturgeon Recovery Team and collaborate on research projects funded by
the Bonneville Power Administration. Contact: Jim Petersen,
509-538-2299, ext.236,
[jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Water Resources of The Tulalip Tribes.** Future increases in
population and development of lands of The Tulalip Tribes and
neighboring areas could lead to increased pumping of ground water both
on and off the Native lands. Such pumping may decrease baseflows of
streams and could affect fish-rearing operations in the Tulalip Creek
watershed. To help address these issues, the USGS Washington Water
Resources District is conducting a study to evaluate the ground-water
and surface-water resources of The Tulalip Tribes. To date, 252 wells
have been inventoried and 15 wells have been sampled. Selected streams
and wells are being monitored in FY 2002 and FY 2003 for flow and water
level, respectively. The geohydrologic system has been mapped, a water
budget will be determined, and future ground-water use will be
estimated. The results of this study will be published in FY 2004.
Contact: Lonna Frans, 253-428-3600, ext. 2694, <lmfrans@usgs>

**Salmon Life History.** USGS fishery biologists are continuing to
assist the Skagit System Tribal Cooperative in studying the life history
of chinook salmon in the Skagit River, Washington. The study is funded
by Seattle City Light, Skagit System Cooperative, and the USGS, and
investigates the importance of intertidal estuarine habitats in the life
cycle of chinook salmon. The length of time spent in this ecosystem is
determined, and the daily growth of juvenile chinook salmon measured, by
studying the changes in "ear stone" (otolith) microstructure. The USGS
is contracted to provide the staff, specialized equipment, supervision,
technical assistance, and expertise in conducting the study. Contact:

Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299, ext.236,
[jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Salmon River Watershed Analysis, Quinault Indian Nation.** The
Quinault Indian Nation collaborated with the USGS Washington Water
Resources District and several other agencies to conduct an analysis of
the Salmon River watershed. The Salmon River watershed covers 3 square
miles of forested land, much of which has been affected by timber
harvesting. The river has native runs of chinook and coho salmon, as
well as steelhead trout. The Quinault Nation also operates a salmon
hatchery on the river. The watershed analysis will serve as a tool to
support decision-making processes in managing the river system and
restoring salmon runs. Under two separate projects, the USGS led efforts
for two modules--hydrology and geomorphology--of the watershed analysis.
As part of the hydrology module, USGS staff measured and described
low-flow discharge at selected sites on the Salmon River and correlated
low-flow discharges with nearby continuous-discharge records to estimate
low-flow magnitudes and recurrence intervals on the Salmon River. As
part of the geomorphology module, USGS scientists investigated
channel-migration processes, including interactions among channel
migration, large woody debris, floodplains, and the surrounding forest.
Historic channels and logjams were also mapped. The results of these
studies were written as chapters of a watershed analysis that is
expected to be published in FY 2003. Contact: Bill Bidlake,
253-428-3600, ext.2641, <wbidlake@usgs.gov> or Jim O\'Connor,
503-251-3222, <oconnor@usgs.gov>.

**Tsunami Ready Community, Quinault Indian Nation.** The Quinault Indian
Nation became an official "Tsunami Ready Community" on May 30, 2002. The
Tsunami Ready Community recognition is part of the mitigation component
of the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program overseen by NOAA.
Considerable local initiative is required to be designated Tsunami
Ready. Activities that the community completes include: inundation
mapping of low-lying areas, posting of tsunami evacuation routes,
community meetings on the hazard, access to NOAA Weather Radio, and a
local response plan. The Quinault Indian Nation is the first Native
American group to be designated Tsunami Ready. The USGS attended the
award ceremony, gave a short presentation, and met with local Quinault
Indian Nation officials. The Quinaults received official signs from NOAA
announcing that the community is Tsunami Ready. Additionally, all
Tsunami Ready communities are also certified as "Storm Ready," so the
Quinaults are also the first Native American group to be so designated.
The USGS is working with the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program
by improving seismic networks along the coasts of Alaska, Hawaii, and
the Pacific Northwest to provide real-time notification of possible
tsunamagenic earthquakes and to improve the number and quality of
seismic signals being received at the Tsunami Warning Centers in Alaska
and Hawaii (operated by NOAA). The USGS is working with the State of
Washington to improve the access that the Tribes, including the
Quinaults, have to seismic information. Contact: Craig Weaver,
206-553-0627, <craig@ess.washington.edu>

**Concentrations of Dissolved Oxygen in the Lower Puyallup and White
Rivers.** The Puyallup Tribe of Indians is concerned that wasteload
allocations for biochemical oxygen demand and ammonia, based on a
modeling study conducted in the early 1990s, will not protect the
quality of water in the lower Puyallup and White Rivers. The USGS
Washington Water Resources District, in cooperation with the Tribe and
the Washington State Department of Ecology, monitored specific
conductance, temperature, pH, and concentrations of dissolved oxygen in
the Puyallup and White Rivers during August and September 2001 and 2002.
USGS scientists analyzed factors affecting concentrations of dissolved
oxygen in the lower Puyallup and White Rivers and published a report on
their findings in FY 2002. The analysis was based on data collected in
2001 and on data previously collected by the Puyallup Tribe and the
Department of Ecology in August and September 2000. A similar report
analyzing the 2002 data will be published in FY03. The Washington State
Department of Ecology will use the data to determine if wasteload
allocations need to be revised. Contact: Gary Turney, 253-428-3600, ext.
2626, <glturney@usgs.gov>

**Trends in Streamflow in the Lower Puyallup River Basin.** The lower
part of the Puyallup River traverses the Puyallup Indian Reservation and
is an important resource to the Puyallup Tribe of Indians for direct
water uses and for fish that help sustain the Tribe. To improve
understanding of the river's resources, the USGS Washington Water
Resources District and the Tribe are conducting a cooperative study of
flow trends of the Puyallup River, and comparing those flows to
regulatory in-stream flows for the river. Various streamflow statistics
will be evaluated, including annual mean discharge, monthly mean
discharge for summer months, and annual minimum 7-day mean flows.
Streamflow records will also be evaluated to determine the fraction of
time minimum in-stream flows were not met. The impacts of water use will
be evaluated using data from USGS 5-year compilations and water rights
permits. Contact: Steve Sumioka, 253-428-3600, ext. 2645,
<ssumioka@usgs.gov>

**Coastal Erosion in Willapa Bay, Washington.** The USGS, the Bureau of
Indian Affairs, and the Army Corps of Engineers are cooperating in a
study of coastal erosion on lands of the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe,
located in Willapa Bay, Washington. Tribal lands are rapidly eroding,
increasing the frequency of flooding and the loss of valuable intertidal
habitat. The joint study will allow the Tribe to make informed decisions
to remedy this coastal problem. This study is benefiting from the
recently completed "Southwest Washington Coastal Erosion Study" carried
out by the USGS and the Washington State Department of Ecology. This
cooperative project used fundamental and applied studies to develop a
regional perspective and understanding of coastal processes, sediment
transport, and associated shoreline changes. The study examined the
effects of man-made influences (enhanced runoff, dredging operations,
Columbia River dams) and natural processes (climate variability,
subsidence caused by earthquakes, coastal dune development) on sediment
budgets and on the long-term shoreline change trends of the southwest
Washington coast. During FY 2002, USGS scientists collected wave,
current, and sediment transport data during several winter storms. The
field data are being used to calibrate and test a 2D numerical model of
circulation, sediment transport, and morphological change in the
estuary. The modeling is being used to help determine the spatial
patterns and causes of erosion and deposition in the estuary, and will
eventually be used to evaluate alternative solutions to erosion
problems. Contact: Guy Gelfenbaum, 650-329-5483, <ggelfenbaum@usgs.gov>

**Hydrogeologic Issues of the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe and Tokeland
Peninsula.** The Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe obtains water from an
artesian aquifer underlying its lands and the Tokeland Peninsula. The
Tribe is concerned about the effects of increasing population and
commercial activities on the quantity and quality of water in the
aquifer. Specific water-quality concerns include seawater intrusion,
contamination from septic tanks, and contamination from pesticides
applied in nearby forests. The USGS Washington Water Resources District
conducted a study describing the general hydrology and water chemistry
of the aquifer, including concentrations of nitrate and selected
pesticides. An interpretive report describing the findings was published
in FY 2002, completing this project. Contact: Gary Turney, 253-428-3600,
ext. 2624**,** <glturney@usgs.gov>

**Ground-Water Resources of the Yakima River Valley, Confederated Tribes
and Bands of the Yakama Nation.** Surface water in the Yakima River
Basin is under adjudication. The amount of surface water available for
appropriation is not known, but there are increasing demands for water
for municipal, fisheries, agricultural, industrial, and recreational
uses. These demands must either be met by ground-water withdrawals
and/or by changes in the way water resources are allocated and used.
Ongoing management of water in the basin also may be affected by rules
to protect salmonid fish under the Endangered Species Act. In FY 2000,
the USGS Washington Water Resources District began a study of the
ground-water system in the basin, in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation and the Washington State Department of Ecology, and working
with the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. The study
describes the geologic framework and ground-water flow system in the
Yakima River basin, as well as the interaction between ground water and
surface water. A ground-water model will be constructed as a tool to
improve understanding of the system and to help estimate the effects of
selected management strategies. As part of this project about 2,000
wells were visited to verify locations and measure water levels. Water
levels were measured five times at about 800 of these wells. Information
about all inventoried wells was added to the USGS National Water
Information System. Lithologic information for each inventoried well has
been stored digitally for use in constructing maps of the hydrogeologic
units. Concurrently, the interaction of ground water and surface water
along selected river reaches is being monitored on an hourly basis by
collecting continuous water-level and temperature data. Historical
municipal ground-water withdrawal data were collected and compiled, and
agricultural withdrawal data were collected in FY 2002. Work began on
estimating ground-water recharge, with recharge being estimated for the
upland, forested areas in the basin using four previously constructed
watershed models. New methods were developed to thermally profile long
river reaches to locate areas of large ground-water contributions and to
identify potential areas of good salmonid habitat. Contact: John
Vaccaro, 253-428-3600, ext. 2620, <jvaccaro@usgs.gov>

**Restoration Monitoring of Satus Creek and the Satus Wildlife Area,
Yakama Nation Reservation.** Agricultural return flows are known to
contribute suspended sediment, nutrients, bacteria, metals, and
pesticide loads to creeks and rivers in the Yakima River Basin. In
particular, Satus Creek, located on lands of the Confederated Tribes and
Bands of the Yakama Nation, receives loads from the North Drain return
flow, resulting in increases of sediment, nutrients, bacteria, and
pesticides, both in the water column and in streambed sediments. In
addition, the deposition of suspended sediment from the North Drain
return flow has created barriers to the migration of fish protected
under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). A large-scale restoration effort
by the Yakama Nation and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) is being
conducted to improve the aquatic ecosystem associated with Satus Creek
and the Satus Wildlife Area. Several salmonids that are listed under the
ESA have historically used Satus Creek for parts of their lives. A large
part of the production in the basin of one of these species (anadromous
steelhead trout) occurs in Satus Creek. The Satus Wildlife Area also is
an important component in the restoration of habitat for wildlife and
fish in the lower Yakima River Basin. The USGS, with funding from the
USACOE, is monitoring the hydrologic, water-quality, and possible
biologic effects of the North Satus Drain Ecosystem Restoration to
identify temporal and spatial changes in the system. The USGS is also
compiling selected historical data for Satus Creek, local shallow ground
water, and North Drain. The USGS began monitoring the current baseline
conditions in FY 2002 and will continue monitoring after the restoration
work is completed. Contact: John Vaccaro, 253-428-3600, ext. 2620,
<jvaccaro@usgs.gov>

**Yakima River Basin Stream Quality and Biological Communities.** The
lands of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation
encompass more than 100,000 acres of intensively irrigated land within
the Yakima River Basin. Agricultural runoff from the Yakama Nation, in
addition to agricultural runoff from other areas in the Yakima Basin,
has been assessed as part of a National Water Quality Assessment Program
(NAWQA), conducted by the USGS Oregon Water Resources District. Trends
will be assessed by comparing water-quality data (legacy pesticides,
trace elements, fecal indicator bacteria, aquatic communities of insects
and algae) to similar data collected more than a decade ago during the
first cycle of NAWQA study. The study of agricultural runoff from small
watersheds includes several drainages within the Yakama Nation. NAWQA
program personnel worked cooperatively with personnel from the Yakama
Nation\'s Department of Natural Resources. To maximize the level of data
collected, chemical suites from sites routinely sampled by Yakama Nation
staff were augmented with NAWQA pesticide and trace element
determinations to chemically characterize agricultural return flow.
Agricultural runoff was collected from a network of biological sampling
sites on several small watersheds to assess the effect of different
irrigation methods and agricultural practices on surface water quality
including algae and aquatic insects and their habitats. The intent of
the biological assessment is to determine a threshold of agricultural
activity capable of sustaining healthy aquatic communities. A
ground-water and a surface-water sample were collected from each site to
measure emerging contaminants, including antibiotics, other prescription
and non-prescription drugs, organic-waste-water contaminants, and
steroids. These chemicals may be leaching to shallow ground-water from
combined animal feeding operations or may be entering surface water from
point and non-point sources. This is one part of a national study by the
USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program
(http://pubs.acs.org/hotartcl/est/es011055j_rev.html). Reports from
studies of agricultural contaminants in the Yakima Basin as well as
chemical data can be obtained at
<http://oregon.usgs.gov/projs_dir/yakima/index.html>. Contact: Greg
Fuhrer, 503-251-3231, <gjfuhrer@usgs.gov>

**Steelhead Restoration.** USGS fishery biologists continue cooperating
with the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Indian Nation in an
effort to restore steelhead trout in the Wind River basin in
southwestern Washington State. Federal scientists and Tribal
representatives worked together on a Technical Advisory Committee to the
Wind River Watershed Council. Contact: Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299,
ext.236, [jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Watershed Restoration for Reintroduction of Salmon and Steelhead.**
USGS fishery biologists are continuing to partner with the Confederated
Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Indian Nation fishery biologists in an
effort to assess and restore the Rattlesnake Creek watershed of the
White Salmon River basin. Restoration of this watershed is especially
important because of the possible reintroduction of salmon and steelhead
above Condit Dam on the White Salmon River. Federal scientists and
Tribal representatives worked together on a Technical Advisory Committee
to the White Salmon Watershed Management Council. Contact: Jim Petersen,
509-538-2299, ext.236,
[jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Water Management and Steelhead on National Wildlife Refuges.** USGS
fishery biologists from the Western Fisheries Research Center are
continuing to study the effects of water and land management at
Toppenish National Wildlife Refuge (managed by the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service). Fishery biologists of the Confederated Tribes and
Bands of the Yakama Nation are cooperating in this study. The study
involves estimating the number of steelhead that enter the refuge, their
residence times, and their condition and growth rate. The Toppenish
National Wildlife Refuge is adjacent to the Yakama Indian Reservation in
southern Washington State. Information will help refuge managers make
decisions about managing water movement, constructing or removing dikes,
or altering vegetation types. Contact: Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299,
ext.236, [jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Columbia River Chinook Salmon.** The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
Hanford Laboratory in Washington State has become a nuclear waste
disposal site. Tribes in the region, including the Confederated Tribes
and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla
Reservation, and the Nez Perce Tribe, are concerned that chromium
leaking from the site might adversely affect a wide variety of salmonids
through reduced survival. Gender alterations identified in these stocks
also raised concerns about diminished reproductive capacity of natural
populations. In addition, earlier studies focused on anadromous
salmonids, especially chinook salmon, that only live in the Hanford
Reach during early development. Until the present study, species that
spend their entire lives in the Hanford Reach have been largely ignored.
The Tribes are particularly concerned about the human health aspects of
consuming these fish. In a USGS laboratory, USGS biologists have
simulated conditions of the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River in
Washington to study impacts under various exposures to chromium. In FY
2002, employees from the USGS Columbia Environmental Research Center
participated in a review of a white paper prepared for DOE on these
investigations. Contact: Michael J. Mac, 573-875-5399,
[michael_mac@usgs.gov]{.underline}

**Coastal Cutthroat Trout Distribution in Columbia River Gorge.** USGS
fishery biologists from the Western Fisheries Research Center cooperated
with fishery biologists from the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the
Yakama Nation and the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation to describe current distribution of coastal cutthroat trout
in stream systems draining to the Columbia River within the Columbia
River Gorge. Poor hatchery returns, low angling success, and low numbers
of fish at counting stations indicate that populations of sea-run
cutthroat trout have declined throughout the lower Columbia River Basin.
Information on the current status of sea-run and resident coastal
cutthroat trout populations in the lower Columbia River, especially
above Bonneville Dam, is extremely limited. Products of the cooperative
work include a report and a website (under development) presenting
information and portraying species distribution. This effort provides a
necessary first step toward assessing needs for specific management and
recovery goals for coastal cutthroat trout in the Columbia River Basin
above Bonneville Dam. Contact: Patrick Connolly, 509-538-2299, ext. 269,
<Patrick_Connolly@usgs.gov>

**Pacific Lampreys.** The USGS is assisting Columbia River Treaty Tribes
in their effort to study the status and needs of Pacific lamprey in the
Columbia River basin. The USGS is continuing to assist the Confederated
Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation (CTUIR) in their endeavor to
reestablish Pacific lampreys in the Umatilla River. USGS biologists from
the Western Fisheries research Center are cooperating with the CTUIR to
conduct research on several aspects of the life history and habitat
needs of lampreys in the Columbia River basin. The USGS is continuing a
CTUIR-funded investigation of the olfactory sensitivity of Pacific
lampreys to pheromones released by other lampreys and lampreys\' use of
these pheromones as a migratory cue. The USGS is cooperating with the
Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon (CTWSRO)
in research to examine the distribution and abundance of all lamprey
species found in the Deschutes River basin. Additional USGS research to
assist these Tribes includes a study to define critical habitat needs of
lamprey eggs and early larvae by conducting experiments to measure
effects of temperature on these early life history stages and refining
identification and aging techniques for larval lamprey. All of these
projects are intended to provide information that will help the CTUIR
implement their Umatilla River restoration plan. Biologists from the
USGS and CTUIR have often combined resources in activities such as field
collections of larval lampreys, and laboratory dissections of larval
lampreys for identification and aging studies. Additionally, USGS,
CTUIR, and CTWSRO biologists have routinely shared information from
cooperative studies; for example, USGS researchers presented results of
two studies on olfactory sensitivity and temperature effects on larvae
at the 19^th^ Annual Pacific Regional Conference of the Native American
Fish and Wildlife Society, which was hosted by the CTUIR. Contact:
Jennifer Bayer, 509-538-2299, ext. 299, <jennifer_bayer@usgs.gov>

**Spring Chinook Salmon on the Deschutes River, Oregon.** USGS fishery
biologists continue cooperating with the Confederated Tribes of the Warm
Springs Reservation in the second year of a study on the Deschutes River
in Oregon. The study will help to determine the distribution, migration
behavior, habitat use, and species interactions of juvenile spring
chinook salmon raised in hatcheries and released in the fall on the
Deschutes River. Juvenile spring chinook salmon are tagged with radio
transmitters or passive integrated transponder tags and then tracked
throughout the lower Deschutes River as they migrate downstream from the
Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery. Information from tracking devices
will help determine the winter locations of juvenile salmon released
during fall and how they might impact wild salmon in the Deschutes
River. Working together, scientists from the Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation and the USGS are sharing the responsibilities
for trapping, tagging, tracking, and instream sampling during this
study. Contact: Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299, ext.236,
[jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Geomorphology of the Deschutes River, Oregon.** This project was
intended to describe the overall geologic and geomorphic context of the
Deschutes River system in a way that will help evaluate the effects of
the Pelton-Round Butte hydroelectric complex on downstream channel
morphology. Portland General Electric and the Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation are currently applying jointly to the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission for relicensing of the hydroelectric
complex. Results of the USGS Oregon Water Resources District study are
being published in 2003 in an edited volume of the American Geophysical
Union (Water Science and Application Series no. 7, edited by O\'Connor
and Grant). Contact: Jim O'Connor, 503-251-3222, <oconnor@usgs.gov>

**Bull Trout in Beulah Reservoir, Oregon.** In 2001, USGS fishery
biologists from the Western Fisheries Research Center began a study of
the condition and growth of bull trout in Beulah Reservoir, which was
created by a Bureau of Reclamation dam. The study is a collaborative
effort among fishery biologists from the Burns Paiute Tribe, Oregon
Department of Fish and Wildlife, and other Federal agencies. Aspects of
the study include the seasonal occurrence of bull trout in the reservoir
and their diet and movements. Parameters for a bioenergetics model of
sub-adult and adult bull trout are being developed through laboratory
studies. The bioenergetics model of bull trout growth will be used,
along with physical measurements and a reservoir temperature model, to
help managers predict whether a minimum pool level is necessary for bull
trout survival in the reservoir. Contact: Jim Petersen, 509-538-2299,
ext.236, [jim_petersen@usgs.gov](mailto:jim_seelye@usgs.gov)

**Quantifying the Ground-Water Resources of the Upper Klamath Basin,
Oregon and California.** Ground water has long been considered a
possible source to meet the increasing demands for water in the upper
Klamath Basin. A quantitative understanding of the regional ground-water
system is crucial to managing water resources in the basin. However, the
amount of ground water that can be pumped without adversely affecting
existing well users and streamflow is not well understood. The USGS
Oregon Water Resources District is conducting a 7-year investigation
that continues through FY 2005 to quantify the ground-water resources of
the upper Klamath Basin. This information will be used by water managers
to help determine how ground water can contribute to solving
water-supply problems and, at the same time, maintain ground-water
discharge to streams critical for aquatic wildlife. The Klamath Tribe
resides in the upper Klamath Basin study area. Three additional Tribes
(Hoopa Valley, Yurok, and Karuk) reside in the lower basin. All of these
Tribes are interested in water-resources management in the basin and in
the present study. Although the USGS is not formally cooperating in
partnership with Tribes in the basin, project personnel have
communicated with Tribal representatives, and in the case of The Klamath
Tribes, have worked with Tribal members to obtain access to certain
properties and wells for data collection. Contact: Marshall Gannett,
503-251-3233, <mgannett@usgs.gov>

**Anadromous Fishery Restoration.** USGS biologists and hydrologists
participated in the Klamath River Fishery Restoration Program, a
cooperative effort among the Yurok, Karuk, and Hoopa Valley Tribes, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and California Department of Fish and
Game. The USGS Fort Collins Science Center improved the System Impact
Assessment Model (SIAM) to provide a better understanding of water
quality and quantity management problems that limit anadromous fish
restoration in the Klamath River below Iron Gate Dam. Scientists
collected data for the model and performed the required analyses. The
SIAM has been completed and is available through the USGS Fort Collins
Science Center website
(http://www.fort.usgs.gov/products/software/siam/siam.asp) as is the
user\'s guide: Bartholow, J., Heasley, J., Hanna, B., Sandelin, J.,
Flug, M. Campbell, S. and Douglas, A., 2002, Evaluating Water Management
Strategies With The Systems Impact Assessment Model (SIAM, version 3):
Fort Collins, CO, U.S. Geological Survey. Contact: Dave Hamilton,
970-226-9383, <dave_hamilton@usgs.gov>

**Upper Klamath Lake Water-Quality Conditions.** In 2002, the USGS
Oregon Water Resources District Office began a multi-year study to
determine the behavioral response of endangered Lost River and shortnose
suckers to poor water-quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake. These
fish have great cultural significance to The Klamath Tribes and were an
historically important food source for Native Americans in the Klamath
Basin. As one of the reasonable and prudent alternatives in the 2001
Biological Opinion, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asked the Bureau
of Reclamation to begin a study on the role that \"water-quality
refuges\" play in the survival of the endangered suckers during periods
when much of the lake is characterized by poor water-quality conditions.
Two main parts of the study include installing a network of continuous
water-quality monitors to determine the spatial and temporal extent of
water-quality refuges in the lake, and tracking radio-tagged suckers in
the lake throughout the summer. The first of three field seasons was
completed in 2002. An interim report is due in spring of 2003. Contact:
Tammy Wood, 503-251-3255, <tmwood@usgs.gov>

**Traditional Management Techniques on Mesquite Tree Stands at Death
Valley.** A planning effort is underway to attempt to evaluate and
quantify the effects of the re-institution of traditional natural
resource usage on stands of mesquite trees in Death Valley National
Park. The Timbisha Shoshone Tribe will use traditional methods of wood
gathering, stand maintenance, and collection of mesquite bean pods on
plots in a pattern designed to improve understanding of how such
management practices effect individual trees and the mesquite tree
population. USGS scientists intend to determine the effect that
traditional management practices have on various measures of plant
production, plant physiology, and population demography. This project
will integrate diverse factors including elements of cultural
anthropology. Contact: Todd C. Esque, 702-914-2206, ext. 226,
<todd_esque@usgs.gov>

**Mercury in Vegetation and Soils at Abandoned Mercury Mines in
Southwestern Alaska.** Mercury toxicity is an issue to Alaska Natives,
particularly those who rely on fishing for sustenance. USGS scientists
collected and analyzed vegetation (willow and alder) and soil samples
from three abandoned mercury (Hg) mines and from background sites in
southwestern Alaska. The Hg concentrations, speciation, and distribution
from the two types of sites were then compared. Total Hg and
methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations were higher in vegetation and soil
samples from all of the mine sites than in samples from the background
sites. There was no correlation between total Hg concentrations in
vegetation and total Hg concentrations in soil or between total Hg and
MeHg concentrations. However, the percent MeHg of the total Hg was
higher in samples from the background sites compared to samples from the
mine sites and is higher in vegetation samples than in corresponding
soil samples. The percent MeHg is an order of magnitude higher in the
willow samples than in corresponding alder or soil samples. The percent
of divalent Hg \[Hg(II)\] is highest in soil samples from the retort and
background areas. The higher percent MeHg in vegetation and soil in
samples from background sites may be explained by the higher proportions
of reactive Hg species, such as Hg(II), at these sites compared to the
surface mined and tailings areas where most of the Hg is in the
elemental and cinnabar (HgS) forms. Dissolved gaseous Hg species are
more readily accumulated in vegetation and are more readily methylated
than solid phases like HgS (mercury sulphide) and liquid Hg. Contact:
Elizabeth Bailey, 907-786-7442, <eabailey@usgs.gov>

**Water Quality Sampling of Peterson Creek.** In the summer of 2001, the
Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska entered
into a 2-year cooperative agreement with the USGS to collect baseline
water-quality data for Peterson Creek, a valuable salmon fishery located
on north Douglas Island near Juneau, Alaska. Peterson Creek, with a
drainage basin of less than five square miles, will be affected by a
large development project that is scheduled to begin in the near future.
Field crews consisting of two Tlingit-Haida staff, an Alaska Department
of Fish and Game employee, and two USGS Alaska Science Center personnel
divided the basin into nine sub-basins and completed a rigorous sampling
and measuring program for each sub-basin over a variety of flow
conditions. Data from this project are currently being prepared for
publication. Contact: Bruce Bigelow, 907-586-7287, <bbigelow@usgs.gov>

**Water Quality Sampling of the Taku River.** The Douglas Indian
Association (DIA), the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation,
and the USGS Alaska Science Center continue implementing a 5-year
cooperative water-quality project to collect baseline water-quality data
for the Taku River, an important salmon fishery. Although the watershed
is undeveloped, a new mine is proposed in the watershed on the Canadian
side of the border. The Taku River is also subject to glacial outburst
floods that affect the River's water quality. The USGS is conducting the
field sampling and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is analyzing
the samples. The DIA has provided an intern to assist USGS researchers
with the sampling for part of the project. During FY 2002, USGS
scientists continued working with the Water Survey of Canada and the
Canadian part of the DIA by providing logistical support and discharge
measurements for the collection of water quality samples on the Taku
River and several of its tributaries on the Canadian side of the border.
Contact: Bruce Bigelow, 907-586-7287, <bbigelow@usgs.gov>

**Stream Gaging of Sinona Creek.** The USGS Alaska Science Center
operates a relatively new stream flow monitoring station on Sinona Creek
near Chistochina Village (between Glenallen and Tok) for the Cheesh'na
Tribal Council. Sinona Creek is an important subsistence fishery. Tribal
members have noticed a marked decrease in streamflow over the past few
years. The USGS has offered to train Tribal members to measure
streamflow. Contact: Steven Frenzel, 907-786-7100, <sfrenzel@usgs.gov>

**Aniak Mining District Geologic Map Compilation.** The USGS is
cooperating with Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on a 5-year regional
study in southwest Alaska that will benefit two Alaska Native Regional
Corporations---Calista and Doyon. BLM's \"Aniak Mining District\" study
encompasses 360,000 km^2^ of Federal, State, and Native Corporation land
in an area of past gold and mercury production that is may contain
additional undiscovered gold and other resources. The USGS brings local
expertise to the cooperative project, having previously performed
1:250,000-scale geologic mapping and assessment of undiscovered
resources for about half of the area. The USGS has agreed to provide a
digital geologic map of the mining district as an underlay for the BLM
studies. This map is being compiled from existing published maps and
from new USGS data in the central part of BLM's study area. In FY 2003,
BLM will release the results from a 1000-mi^2^ geophysical survey in the
center of the mining district. The USGS will assist in interpreting
these data and will incorporate new information into the geologic
compilation. Contact: Marti L Miller, 907 786-7437, <mlmiller@usgs.gov>

**Stream Gaging of Eklutna River.** In cooperation with the Native
Village of Eklutna, the USGS Alaska Science Center operates a streamflow
monitoring station on the Eklutna River near Eklutna, Alaska. USGS
employees make periodic discharge measurements on the Eklutna River
above the confluence with Thunderbird Creek. The Eklutna River, a
subsistence fishery for the village, has been adversely impacted by
water withdrawal in the headwaters and gravel mining near the mouth. The
village is interested in reclaiming the fishery and applying for
instream-flow water rights. USGS personnel have been teaching tribal
members how to measure streamflow and archive data. USGS staff also
trained tribal fisheries employees to characterize streambed sediments.
Contact: Steven Frenzel, 907-786-7100, <sfrenzel@usgs.gov>

**Geochemical Landscape of Alaska Native Corporation Lands.** Geologists
from the USGS have developed collaborative plans with Alaska Native
Corporations to conduct projects with the goal of understanding the
geochemical landscape (that is, the spatial variations in the
distribution of chemical elements within media such as stream sediment
and soil) of Native and adjacent lands. The study areas comprise the
southwestern quadrant of Alaska, including the Aleutian Islands. Part of
the project includes collecting one sample per 289 km^2^ (20 km cell)
and analyzing each sample for 43 chemical elements of both geological
and environmental significance (e.g., mercury, arsenic, and selenium).
Geologists from the Calista Corporation and the Bristol Bay Native
Corporation participated in acquiring samples for analysis. In FY 2001,
sampling was completed in the Bristol Bay area; sampling in the Calista
area will be completed in FY 2003. The geochemical data will be used to
create interpretive derivative maps involving watersheds, lithologies,
geology, mineral deposits, and political boundaries. As part of this
project, topical study of the distribution of metals in native
vegetation comprises a Master's thesis for the associate land manager of
the Calista Corporation. The products of the project are designed to
assist the Native Corporations in managing their lands. Contact: Andrew
E. Grosz, 703-648-6314, <agrosz@usgs.gov>

**Mapping Sensitive Islands in the Bering Sea.** The USGS and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of
Response and Restoration have completed a mapping project for the
Pribilof Islands of Alaska. St. George and St. Paul are the only two
inhabited islands in the volcanic Pribilof archipelago. The Pribilofs
are located in the Bering Sea approximately 770 air miles southwest of
Anchorage and 250 miles north of the Aleutian Islands. These two tiny
islands are home to the world's largest community of Aleut people. The
Native communities on the islands will use the maps and digital data
from this project for land use, economic development analysis, and
natural resource management. The products of this project will also be
used in restoring the environmental integrity of the islands along with
identifying and protecting sensitive habitat areas of migratory birds
and marine mammals. A concerted effort was undertaken by the local
residents to identify the original Aleut names for various geographic
features on both islands. This effort will help to acknowledge and
preserve the historical and linguistic importance of the Aleut language.
The Alaska Historical Commission along with the U.S. Board of Geographic
Names concurred on the significance of this innovative approach. These
local-use names were provided to the USGS for incorporation into the
final map products and many of the geographic features on both islands
are labeled in English and Aleut. Contact: A.C. Brown, 907-786-7002,
<acbrown@usgs.gov>

**Alaska Volcanoes and Alaska Natives.** Open communication between
Alaska Natives and the USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) is crucial
in helping to safeguard Alaskan communities. Numerous Alaska Native
villages and corporations communicate with the AVO during periods of
volcanic activity. Native officials transmit on-site observations to
AVO, and AVO scientists distribute interpretive and hazards information
to the Native communities. Many of these communities are on the AVO
automatic weekly update fax and/or electronic mail lists that provide
the activity status of more than 40 active volcanoes in the Aleutian
Islands. All Native villages in the Aleutians, including Nelson Lagoon,
Naknek, Unalaska, Akutan, False Pass, Atka, King Cove, and Perryville,
are near active volcanoes. AVO also conducts geological field studies
and services existing seismic-monitoring equipment to provide real-time
warnings of volcanic activity and related hazards to aircraft and local
communities. USGS communications and research involved obtaining letters
of non-objection for proposed volcano hazards work and accessing lands
owned or selected by several Alaska Native corporations, including The
Aleut Corporation, Akutan Corporation, Ounalashka Corporation, Ahtna
Incorporated, and Cook Inlet Region Incorporated. Contact: Thomas
Murray, 907-786-7443, <tlmurray@usgs.gov>

**Technical Assistance**

**Surface-Water Gaging Station and Temperature Probe, Keweenaw Bay
Indian Community.** In September 2001, USGS employees of the Michigan
Water Resources District installed a continuous-data stream-gaging
station on the Silver River, which flows into Lake Superior, in a
cooperative project with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Environmental
Department. Data from the stream gage are available on a real-time
basis. A real-time water temperature gage was added to the site in May
2002. A multi-parameter water-quality monitor may be added during FY
2003, if funding is available. Contact: Tom Weaver, 906-786-0714,
<tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Water-Resources Investigation for** **Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake
Superior Chippewa Indians.** In FY 2002, the USGS Michigan Water
Resources District and the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior
Chippewa Indians began a cooperative 4-year study of surface-water
quality and basin characteristics of Lac Vieux Desert. The 6.6 mi^2^
lake straddles the Michigan-Wisconsin border and is the headwaters of
the Wisconsin River. In May September, 2002, seven sites on the lake
were sampled for a suite of physical parameters and chemical
constituents to help USGS and Tribal scientists determine the water
quality and health of the 34 mi^2^ lake basin. In June 2002, a
continuous-record gaging station was installed to monitor the lake level
of Lac Vieux Desert and the Wisconsin River at the lake outlet.
Monitoring data will be available in real-time in late-October 2002 with
the addition of a GOES satellite transceiver. Additional activities in
FY 2002 included streamflow measurements of all tributaries to the lake,
as well as outflow into the Wisconsin River, and investigation of
ground-water discharge into the lake. Activities for FY 2003 will
include operating the above-noted gaging stations, collecting and
analyzing spring and fall water-quality samples from the lake, analyzing
ground-water/surface-water interaction within the lake basin, and
determining a water budget for the lake basin. Contact: Tom Weaver,
906-786-0714, <tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Streamflow Measurements of Wilson Creek Watershed, Hannahville Indian
Community.** In March 2002, USGS hydrographers from the Michigan Water
Resources District made several discharge measurements of Wilson Creek
at baseflow conditions. Tribal staff of the Hannahville Indian Community
used the information as part of a watershed study for planned industrial
development of lands west of Escanaba, Michigan. Contact: Tom Weaver,
906-786-0714, <tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Water Issues.** Little is known
about surface- and ground-water resources beneath the lands of the
Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi. Tribal members living on the
Reservation depend upon domestic water from fairly shallow wells
completed in unconsolidated glacial and lacustrine deposits. Three small
tributaries of the St. Joseph River system pass through agricultural
land prior to crossing the Reservation. In FY 2000, a 4-year cooperative
agreement was implemented between the Tribe and the USGS Michigan Water
Resources District. The cooperative study will analyze and describe
Tribal water resources. Results of the study will be used to establish
baseline conditions. USGS and Tribal environmental staff are working
cooperatively on several aspects of the data collection effort.
Activities in FY 2000-2002 included surface- and ground-water
measurements. Surface water was sampled and analyzed for a suite of
water constituents including common agricultural pesticides and
herbicides. Sampling on the three tributaries to the St. Joseph River
system was conducted to better understand surface-water-quality during
three distinct periods of agricultural activity: immediately after fall
harvest, prior to plant emergence in the spring, and during the early
summer growth season. Activities in FY 2003 are expected to include a
single early- to mid-summer surface water quality sampling on the three
tributaries to the St. Joseph River system. Surveys will be completed to
relate all ground-water and surface-water sampling sites to a common
reference datum. Additional activities will include analyzing water
samples from 6 or more domestic water supply wells located on or near
the Reservation for a suite of agricultural pesticides and herbicides. A
summary report on the project results will be prepared. Contact: Tom
Weaver, 906-786-0714, <tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Bad River Streamflow, Sedimentation, and Erosion Study.** The major
objective of this study is to understand how streamflow, erosion, and
sedimentation rates have changed in the Bad River and some of its key
tributaries over time due to changes in land cover. It is not known if
erosion and sedimentation are exceeding natural rates. The study began
in FY02 in cooperation with the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Indians. Four tasks were completed in FY02: (1) major landscape
characteristics were identified for each sub-basin; (2) a long-term
gaging station record was analyzed for trends in peak and mean monthly
flows; (3) erosion/sedimentation hot spots were identified through air
photos, flyover video, and field reconnaissance; and (4) existing
literature was reviewed. In FY03, valley transects will be constructed
in key reaches with dominant processes of erosion, lateral migration,
and sedimentation. Cores will be collected along the valley transects
and analyzed for sedimentation rates. USGS contact: Faith Fitzpatrick,
608-821-3818, <fafitzpa@usgs.gov>[;]{.underline} Bad River contact:
Kirsten Cahow, 715-682-7123, <brwater@badriver.com>

**Ho-Chunk Water Quality.** The USGS Wisconsin Water Resources District
is assisting the Ho-Chunk Nation by assessing the hydrology and water
quality of the streams on, and in close proximity to, Ho-Chunk lands. A
Water Resource Investigations report entitled, "Surface-Water-Resource
Information for the Ho-Chunk Nation Lands and Vicinity, Wisconsin" will
be published in FY 2003 as USGS Water Resources Investigation Report
02-4307 by Diebel, M.W. and Sullivan, D.J. The report includes an
analysis of existing information on chemical, physical, and biological
investigations. Water-quality information, including chemistry and
biological data, were collected in FY 2002 at sites the Ho-Chunk Nation.
Additional data will be collected in FY 2003. Contact: Dan Sullivan
(USGS), 608-821-3869, <djsulliv@ugs.gov>; Randy Poelma (Ho-Chunk
Nation), 800-944-1652, <Rpoelma@ho-chunk.com>

**Neopit Mill Pond Sedimentation And Sediment Chemistry Study.** The
Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin cooperated with the USGS on a study
of sedimentation characteristics in Neopit Mill Pond, which was formed
by damming the West Branch of the Wolf River. USGS Wisconsin Water
Resources District personnel determined the texture, age, and organic
and trace element chemistry of sediment stored behind the dam. The USGS
staff, with the help of Menominee Tribe personnel, also mapped the
pre-dam channel and topography of the West Branch of the Wolf River
through the mill pond. A report is being prepared on the results of
these studies. USGS contact: Faith Fitzpatrick, 608-821-3818,
<fafitzpa@usgs.gov>[;]{.underline} Menominee contact: Doug Cox,
715-799-4937, <dcox@itol.com>

**Historical Trends in Streamflow, Sedimentation Rates, and Sediment
Trace Element Concentrations Associated with the Wolf River, Keshena
Falls to Balsam Row Dam.** This project was designed to identify natural
and historic concentrations of trace elements in streambed, floodplain,
and backwater sediments of the Wolf River from Keshena Falls to Balsam
Row Dam, mostly within the lands of the Menominee Indian Tribe of
Wisconsin. This cooperative study between the Menominee Tribe and the
USGS also determined the range of historic (150+ years) variability of
flooding and the sedimentation characteristics along the same reach of
the Wolf River. Major factors affecting stream sedimentation and
flooding characteristics--geologic/natural versus land-use effects--were
identified. This study was completed in FY2001 and a report has been
prepared. USGS contact: Faith Fitzpatrick, 608-821-3818,
<fafitzpa@usgs.gov>[;]{.underline} Menominee contact: Doug Cox,
715-799-4937, <dcox@itol.com>

**Ground-Water Contribution and Community Water Systems, Menominee
Lands.** The USGS Wisconsin Water Resources District continues studying
the extent and composition of areas that contribute water to, and travel
time of water captured by, community wells on lands of the Menominee
Indian Tribe of Wisconsin. This information will be used by the
Menominee government for water-resource and well-head protection
planning in community areas. Contact: Charles Dunning (USGS),
608-821-3827, <cdunning@usgs.gov>; Gary Schuettpelz (Menominee Indian
Tribe of Wisconsin), 715-799-4937, <gschuett@mail.wiscnet.net>

**Oneida Hydrologic Investigations.** The objectives of this cooperative
project with the Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin are to collect long-term data
at two sites and to perform trend analysis for pesticides, nutrients,
and suspended sediment. Results of the study will assist Oneida
officials with environmental and developmental planning. Contact: Kevin
Richards (USGS), 608-821-3861, <krichard@usgs.gov>; Jim Snitgen (Oneida
Tribeof Wisconsin), 920-869-5812

**Water Resources Investigation for the Prairie Island Indian
Community.** The Prairie Island Indian Community asked the USGS
Minnesota Water District Office to define the wellhead protection areas
of their municipal wells. The USGS study uses two dimensional
ground-water flow models, aquifer tests and continuous stage recorders
on the Mississippi River. The Community is located adjacent to the
River. These investigations were completed in FY 2002. Contact: Don
Hansen, 763-783-3250, <dshansen@usgs.gov>

**Spirit Lake Nation Wetlands Ecology.** The Spirit Lake Nation will
initiate a wetland-monitoring program on its lands in 2003. In preparing
for that program, USGS personnel trained members of the Spirit Lake
Nation in wildlife and plant inventory techniques. The training also
included assistance in the development of quality assurance project
plans (QAPP) to ensure that data quality is consistent with objectives
of the wetland-monitoring plan. Early in 2003, USGS staff will assist
Spirit Lake personnel in selecting candidate wetland sites and
establishing photographic stations for monitoring general temporal
changes in those wetlands. Contact: Ned H. Euliss, Jr., 701-253-5564,
<ned_euliss@usgs.gov>

**Spirit Lake Tribe Capacity Building.** USGS North Dakota Water
Resources personnel accompanied Spirit Lake Tribal staff in the field
and provided quality assurance regarding the collection, processing, and
shipping of water-quality samples. USGS personnel have helped Tribal
staff assemble and install wetland-monitoring packages, and provided
training on how to read and record water-level information, calibrate
the equipment, and transfer data from the field to the office. USGS
personnel also provided training on how to select the location and make
and compile a discharge measurement. The USGS National Water Quality
Laboratory processed the water-quality samples. Contact: Douglas G.
Emerson, 701-250-7402, <demerson@usgs.gov>

**Geographic Information Systems Workshop for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe
and Sinte Gleska University.** Sinte Gleska University (SGU) and the
USGS signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 2000 to cooperatively
improve science education for Native American students. During 2002, the
partnership fostered successful workshops and an online course. In June
2002, SGU and the USGS conducted a 3-day, hands-on geographic
information systems workshop for Tribal and SGU professionals from the
Rosebud offices of water resources, lands, cultural resource management,
biology, and other offices. Sinte Gleska University endorsed its first
online course in geographic information systems as a part of its
long-term goal of establishing the University as a center of excellence
for spatial analysis. The online course is available on the Web at:
[http://rockyweb.cr.usgs.gov/public/
outreach/sgu/sgugis.html](http://rockyweb.cr.usgs.gov/public/outreach/sgu/sgugis.html)

Contact: Joseph Kerski (USGS), 303-202-4315, <jjkerski@usgs.gov>; James
Rattling Leaf (SGU), 605-856-4262, <jamesrl@sinte.edu>

**Hydrologic Information and GIS Capacity Building for the Caddo
Tribe.** The Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma is concerned about the
vulnerability of ground water to pesticide contamination in northern
Caddo County and Canadian County, Oklahoma. On behalf of the Tribe, the
USGS Oklahoma Water Resources District is constructing an
aquifer-sensitivity map to outline areas where the aquifer is
susceptible to pesticide contamination. The Tribe, with USGS assistance,
is developing a geographic information system (GIS) that will include
land use, pesticide use, and other data for parcels of land. USGS
scientists worked with Tribal employees on ways to use GIS to make
ground-water vulnerability maps and provided the tribes with a series of
risk maps. At the Caddo Tribal headquarters in October 2002, several
Tribal members were trained in the use of spatial data and basic GIS
software applications by USGS staff. Contact: Carol J. Becker,
405-810-4436, <cjbecker@usgs.gov>

####### Technical Assistance to the Blackfeet Nation on Water-Resources Issues. In FY 2002, the USGS Montana Water Resources District continued to provide technical assistance to the Blackfeet Nation on water-resources issues. The USGS provided the Tribal government with information and guidance regarding ground-water flow directions and water levels in the vicinity of a wetland area near the town of Browning. The USGS also provided streamflow data and technical assistance to Tribal authorities during flooding in June 2002 that was related to a major snowstorm. Contact: Mike Cannon, 406 457-5900, [**mcannon@usgs.gov**](mailto:mcannon@usgs.gov)

**Navajo Surface Water Project.** The Navajo Surface Water project
continues to help personnel of the Navajo Nation's Water Resources
Department compute streamflow records and operate their
streamflow-gaging stations. The USGS Arizona Water Resources District is
providing technical assistance to Navajo hydrologists and technicians by
populating databases with hydrologic data to compute and store
streamflow data. USGS scientists also are training Navajo personnel to
compute records and develop rating curves. Additionally, USGS personnel
are providing quality assurance for the project. The USGS currently
operates two streamflow gages in cooperation with the Navajo Nation to
provide near-real-time hydrologic data and to provide training
opportunities to Tribal personnel. Contact: Gregory G. Fisk,
520-556-7225, <ggfisk@usgs.gov>

**Navajo Wetlands.** USGS wetland scientists from the Mid-Continent
Ecological Research Center assisted in the design of a constructed
wetland on the Navajo Nation and are currently studying whether the
design improves the quality of the wastewater from the community of
Piñon, Arizona, for reuse and/or discharge. Concurrently, this wetland
was designed to provide wildlife habitat that is scarce in the area.
This is a cooperative effort among the Navajo Nation, the Indian Health
Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the USGS. Besides collecting
water-quality data at this site annually since 1999, the group has been
collecting sediments, vegetation, and invertebrates annually for
bioaccumulation studies of certain chemical element. Results from this
research will provide information on how and when to build additional
treatment wetland cells for further development in the Piñon area and in
other remote locations within the arid southwest. Two field trips were
made in 2002 to collect water, sediment, plant, and invertebrate samples
from the constructed wetland following the second full year of
operation. Two additional field trips are planned during 2003. Contact:
Joan Thullen, 303-445-2212 or, <joan_thullen@usgs.gov> or James
Sartoris, 303-445-2230, <james_j_sartoris@usgs.gov>

**Stream-Gaging Cooperation.** The White Mountain Apache Tribe permitted
USGS employees to access stream gages on Tribal lands, under the terms
of an Intergovernmental Agreement. USGS Arizona Water Resources District
staff helped train White Mountain Apache Tribal staff in water-quality
and surface-water data collection techniques. Contact: Christopher
Smith, 520-670-6671 ext.251, <cfsmith@usgs.gov>

**Availability and Quality of Surface-Water and Ground-Water Resources
of the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe.** During 2002, the USGS Arizona
Water Resources District collected water-level measurements at 12 wells,
measured stream discharge at 2 streamflow gages, and collected
water-quality samples from springs, wells, and surface-water sites on
lands of the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe. This program was designed to
assist the Tribe in managing its water resources and to provide
water-quality data that the Tribe can use to assess the health of Tribal
members by meeting EPA water-quality standards. The USGS has provided
training in collecting hydrologic data to Tribal staff over the past
several years. The Tribe plans to collect its own water-quality,
peak-flow, and ground-water data in FY 2003, demonstrating the success
of this collaborative project to enhance Tribal capabilities. The USGS
may continue operating the continuous-record streamflow gages for the
Tribe. Contact: Robert J. Hart, 928-556-7137, <bhart@usgs.gov>; Gregory
G. Fisk, 928-556-7225, <ggfisk@usgs.gov>

**Hydrologic Information for the Walker River Paiute Tribe.** During
irrigation season, the USGS Nevada Water Resources District collected pH
and conductance measurements for the Walker River Paiute Tribe. The
information will help the Tribe in managing its water quality. Contact:
Kerry Garcia, 775-887-7659, <ktgarcia@usgs.gov>

**Support for Hydrologic Investigations and Ground-Water Modeling for
the Lummi Nation.** The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is assisting the
Lummi Nation in determining the ground-water resources available for
Tribal use on Lummi lands. At the BIA's request, USGS Washington Water
Resources District hydrologists are providing technical review of the
hydrologic data collected and technical oversight and review of a
ground-water model of the Lummi Peninsula that is being constructed. The
review process began late in FY 2002 and will be completed in FY 2003.
Contact: Brian Drost, 253-428-3600, ext. 2642, <bwdrost@usgs.gov>

**Surface-Water Quality Training for the Karuk Tribe of California.**
USGS California Water Resources District scientists are training Karuk
Tribal personnel in water-quality sampling, measurement, and quality
assurance/quality control procedures. The training builds Tribal
capacity to manage water resources. Contact: Jim Bowers, 760-247-1401,
<jcbowers@usgs.gov>

**Streamgaging by the Hoopa Valley Tribe**. Hoopa Valley Tribal
employees are operating four gaging stations in the Trinity River
watershed under the general direction of and quality assurance review by
USGS California Water Resources District scientists. Tribal employees
have attended USGS classes on sediment measurement, in addition to
on-the-job training during USGS field work. As part of the Trinity River
Restoration Program, the Hoopa Valley Tribe is planning to expand its
role in taking stream-discharge measurements and in sediment sampling.
Contact: Jim Bowers, 760-247-1401, <jcbowers@usgs.gov>

**Technical Support to Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake.** In response to
requests from the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake for information related
to mercury in Clear Lake and adjacent areas, USGS California Water
Resources District hydrologists are providing USGS reports and
literature citations for non-USGS reports. This activity has evolved
into requests for USGS support of an Indian-led Clear Lake watershed
initiative. A USGS representative has attended the initial meeting and
will continue in an active advisory role. Contact: Walter Swain,
916-278-3024, <wcswain@usgs.gov>

**Technical Discussions with the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission.**
USGS hydrologists are continuing to provide information to the Owens
Valley Indian Water Commission on ground water and its use by American
Indians and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. These
discussions may lead to USGS review of third-party reports for the Water
Commission, scientific and technical explanations of USGS and
third-party reports, and advice on additional ground-water models. USGS
scientists are currently extending the area covered by a previously
published USGS ground-water model for the Owens Valley, in cooperation
with Inyo County and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. The
extension of the ground-water model may prompt additional work with
Tribes, the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission, and the Bureau of
Indian Affairs (BIA). Contact: Wes Danskin, 858-637-6832,
<wdanskin@usgs.gov>

**Aquifer Characterization with the Morongo Band of Mission Indians.**
USGS hydrogeologists with the California Water Resources District
completed work on a project to provide the Morongo Band with
comprehensive information on the chemical and physical characteristics
of their primary water-supply aquifers. Technical reports were provided
earlier and a graphical poster for use by the Morongo Band of Mission
Indians has been prepared and delivered. The poster will be used to
educate area residents and to improve management of their water-supply
resources. Contact: Allen Christensen, 858-637-6875, <ahchrist@usgs.gov>

**USGS Technical Assistance to Bureau of Indian Affairs.** The USGS
continues to provide networking support to the Bureau of Indian Affairs
(BIA). USGS employees provided technical expertise and designs to assist
BIA with internal communications after BIA computers were taken
off-line. Part of the design was implemented in Alaska in FY 2002. Some
additional routing issues were resolved throughout BIA in early FY 2002.
Contact: Pat Murphy, 650-329-4044, <pmurphy@noc.usgs.net>

**Surface-Water Monitoring Stations.** The USGS Water Resources District
operated the following surface-water monitoring stations in FY 2002,
usually with cooperative funding from the Tribe, the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA), or a third party:

###### Number

**[of Stations Cooperator]{.underline}**

2 Seminole Tribe of Florida & South Florida Water Management District
(includes 2 continuous recorders with Tribal nutrient autosamplers)

Contact: Mitch Murray (Florida), 305-717-5827, <mmurray@usgs.gov>

1 Keweenaw Bay Indian Community

Contact: Tom Weaver (Michigan), 906-786-0714, <tlweaver@usgs.gov>

2 Sokaogon Chippewa, Mole Lake Band

1 Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians

1 Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin

1 Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin

1 Mohican Nation, Stockbridge-Munsee Band

2 Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians

Contact: Rob Waschbusch (Wisconsin), 608-821-3868, <rjwaschb@usgs.gov>

2 Three Affiliated Tribes

Contact: Douglas Emerson (North Dakota), 701-250-7402,
<demerson@usgs.gov>

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Crow Creek Tribe

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Oglala Sioux Tribe

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Oglala Sioux Tribe (crest-stage only)

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Rosebud Sioux Tribe

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Yankton Sioux Tribe

3 Lower Brule Sioux Tribe (crest-stage only)

3 Oglala Sioux Tribe

1 Rosebud Sioux Tribe

1 Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe

##### 1 Standing Rock Sioux Tribe

Contact: Ralph Teller (South Dakota), 605-355-4560 ext. 222,
<rwteller@usgs.gov>

2 Omaha Tribe of Nebraska and Iowa, station installed in FY 2002

2 Santee Sioux Tribe of Nebraska, station installed in FY 2002

1 Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, station installed in FY 2002

Contact: Phil Soenksen (Nebraska), 402 437-5156, <pjsoenks@usgs.gov>

1 Citizen Potawatomi Nation

Contact: Robert Blazs (Oklahoma), 405-810-4419, <rblazs@usgs.gov>

7 Blackfeet Nation

3 Chippewa Cree Tribes of the Rocky Boy's Reservation

9 Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes

2 Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes

4 Northern Cheyenne Tribe

11 Bureau of Indian Affairs

Contact: Wayne Berkas (Montana), 406-457-5900,
[wrberkas@usgs.gov](mailto:rshields@usgs.gov)

13 Tribal Water Engineer through the Joint Business Council of the
Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes (Wind River Reservation)

4 Tribal Water Engineer through the Joint Business Council of the
Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes (Wind River Reservation)
(rating maintenance)

Contact: Bob Swanson (Wyoming), 307-778-2931, <rswanson@usgs.gov>

2 Southern Ute Indian Tribe

1 Ute Mountain Ute Tribe

Contact: Bob Boulger (Colorado), 970-245-5257, ext. 21,
[rboulger@usgs.]{.underline}[gov]{.underline}

6 Bureau of Indian Affairs

2 Pueblo of Zuni

1 Isleta Pueblo, flood stage gage

Contact: Michael Roark (New Mexico), 505-830-7903, <mroark@usgs.gov>

1 Nez Perce Tribe

4 Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)

Contact: Thomas S. Brennan (Idaho), 208-387-1366,
[tbrennan@usgs.gov]{.underline}

3 Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe

1 Summit Lake Paiute Tribe

1 Shoshone-Paiute Tribes

10 Walker River Paiute Tribe

Contact: Kerry Garcia (Nevada), 775-887-7659, <ktgarcia@usgs.gov>

1 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Peabody Coal Co. (Navajo Reservation)

3 Bureau of Indian Affairs & Peabody Coal Co. (Hopi Reservation)

1 Arizona Department of Water Resources (Navajo Reservation)

2 Bureau of Indian Affairs (Navajo Reservation)

2 Hopi Tribe

2 Havasupai Tribe

3 Bureau of Indian Affairs (Hualapai Tribe)

6 Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe (2 continuous records and 4 crest-stage
gages)

1 Tohono O\'odham Nation

3 Pueblo of Zuni

3 Bureau of Indian Affairs (White Mountain Apache Tribe)

Contact: Christopher Smith (Arizona), 520-670-6671, ext. 251,
<cfsmith@usgs.gov>

1 Coeur d'Alene Tribe

7 Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation

4 Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation

2 Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe

26 Lummi Nation

1 Makah Nation

##### 2 Nisqually Indian Tribe

1 Nooksack Indian Tribe

1 Quileute Tribe

1 Quinault Indian Nation

1 Skokomish Tribe of Indians

3 Spokane Tribe of Indians

7 The Tulalip Tribes

2 Bureau of Indian Affairs

Contact: Robert Kimbrough (Washington), 253-428-3600, ext. 2608,
<rakimbro@usgs.gov>

11 Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation

## 1 Nez Perce Tribe

Contact: Thomas A. Herrett (Oregon), 503-251-3239, <herrett@usgs.gov>

7 Hoopa Valley Tribe

1 Karuk Tribe of California

2 Tule River Tribe

Contact: Jim Bowers (California), 760-247-1401, <jcbowers@usgs.gov>

3 Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium

1 Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska

1 Cheesh'Na Tribal Council

1 Eklutna, Native Village

1 Haida Corporation

Contact: Steve Freznel (Alaska), 907-786-7100, <sfreznel@ugs.gov>

**Water-Quality Monitoring Stations.** The USGS Water Resources District
collected water-quality data at the following sites in FY 2002, usually
with cooperative funding from the Tribe:

####### Number

**[of Stations Cooperator]{.underline}**

4 Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians (lake sites)

Contact: Douglas Emerson (North Dakota), 701-250-7402,
<demerson@usgs.gov>

2 Southern Ute Indian Tribe

Contact: Bob Boulger (Colorado), 970-245-5257, ext. 21,
<rboulger@usgs.gov>

2 Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes

Contact: John Lambing (Montana), 406-457-5900, jlambing@usgs.gov

1 Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe

4 Walker River Paiute Tribe

Contact: Kerry Garcia (Nevada), 775-887-7659, <ktgarcia@usgs.gov>

2 Karuk Tribe of California

Contact: James Bowers (California), 760-247-1401, <jcbowers@usgs.gov>

**Ground-Water Monitoring Stations.** The USGS Water Resources District
operated the following ground-water monitoring stations in FY 2002,
usually with cooperative funding from the Tribe:

**Number**

**[of Stations Cooperator]{.underline}**

1 Collection of Basic Records (CBR) program (observation well located on
Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians Reservation)

6 Bureau of Indian Affairs (Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe)

Contact: Christopher Smith (Arizona), 520-670-6671, ext. 251,
<cfsmith@usgs.gov>

15 Pechanga Band and Morongo Band of Mission Indians (wells for monthly
depth to water)

3 Pechanga Band and Morongo Band of Mission Indians (continuous record
wells)

6 Pechanga Band and Morongo Band of Mission Indians (wells for annual
water quality)

Contact: Jim Bowers (California), 760-247-1401, <jcbowers@usgs.gov>

**Sediment-Monitoring Stations.** The USGS Water Resources District
operated the following sediment-monitoring stations in FY 2002, usually
with cooperative funding from the Tribe:

**Number**

**[of Stations Cooperator]{.underline}**

3 Hopi Tribe

1 Pueblo of Zuni

Contact: Christopher Smith (Arizona), 520-670-6671, ext. 251,
<cfsmith@usgs.gov>

# General Coordination and Policy Activities

**General National Mapping Program Activities.** The USGS conducts the
National Mapping Program of the United States. Cartographic, geographic,
and remotely sensed information in digital, graphic, and image form are
collected and distributed in support of Federal, Tribal, State, and
local governments, private sector organizations, and the general public.
Since 1994, the USGS has worked through the Interior Geographic Data
Committee (IGDC) to identify topographic map revision and geospatial
data requirements in support of high-priority Department of the Interior
(DOI) programs and applications. This is accomplished through the DOI
High-Priority Base Data Program, which is funded and administratively
managed by the USGS National Mapping Discipline (NMD). Key program
objectives include minimizing redundancy in the production of digital
data and maximizing the number of customer requirements satisfied for
each product generated. As part of this program, NMD annually solicits
the DOI bureaus for their graphic revision and geospatial data
requirements, and a working group of the IGDC selects the project areas
where these base data are needed to support priority natural-resource
and land-management issues in the upcoming fiscal year. Tribal
requirements for USGS base data are typically gathered through the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) area offices and submitted by the BIA as
part of this process. In FY 2002, NMD funds were used to produce digital
base data and revised topographic maps to support the projects
identified specifically by the BIA in the following States in the
Central Region:

**Montana** − interferometric synthetic aperture radar (IFSAR) elevation
data of the Crow Indian Reservation (Crow Tribe of Indians)

**New Mexico** − high-resolution National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) for
parts of the Navajo Nation and the Pueblo of Zuni

**North Dakota** − high-resolution NHD data for part of the Fort
Berthold Indian Reservation (Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort
Berthold Indian Reservation).

**Wyoming** − IFSAR elevation data for the Wind River Indian Reservation
(Northern Arapaho Tribe and Eastern Shoshone Tribe)

In addition to the above projects, an additional \$1.0 million was used
to produce high-resolution NHD data and to acquire color infrared
imagery for the Texas portion of the U.S./Mexico Border project to meet
the high-priority requirements of multiple DOI bureaus, including those
of the BIA. This imagery will be used to produce digital orthophotoquads
in FY 2003. Contact: Gene Napier, 605-594-6088, <enapier@usgs.gov>

**National Congress of American Indians (NCAI).** The USGS exhibited at
the NCAI annual meeting in Spokane, Washington in November 2001.
Information resources, materials, and contacts at the exhibit provided
Tribal representatives with opportunities to build Tribal capabilities
through data acquisition and management. USGS employees staffing the
exhibit answered questions and helped USGS understand Tribal priorities.
Contact: Susan Marcus, 703-648-4437, <smarcus@usgs.gov>

**Intertribal GIS Council.** The Intertribal GIS Council (IGC) and the
USGS, through its support of the Federal Geographic Data Committee
(FGDC), continued assisting the IGC in training and workshops on
metadata and the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). The USGS,
FGDC, IGC, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are exploring
opportunities to update Tribal boundary maps. Contact: Bonnie Gallahan,
703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>

**Rural Geospatial Innovations in America.** The Federal Geographic Data
Committee (FGDC) through its Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with
Rural Geospacial Innovations in America (RGIS), will assist Federal,
State, Tribal and local entities in implementing advanced geospatial
information technologies to improve the quality of life, environmental
health, and economics of rural communities. Implementing the MOU will
include providing technical assistance in system development and
management to Tribal colleges and universities, training programs
including kindergarten through 12^th^ grade education, short courses and
university curricula, and advanced spatial analysis for decision-making
processes. Contact: Bonnie Gallahan, 703-648-6084, <bgallahan@usgs.gov>

**Biological Information for Committees of the Great Lakes Fishery
Commission.** The Great Lakes Fishery Commission has established
inter-agency committees to coordinate fishery resource management in
individual lakes. The USGS Great Lakes Science Center and American
Indian groups, such as the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority and the
Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission, are represented on the
committees for lakes Superior, Michigan, and Huron. To assist Tribal and
State fishery management agencies in assessing the success of fish
restoration efforts, USGS and Tribal scientists report annually on the
status of lake trout rehabilitation and important prey fishes in lakes
Superior, Michigan, and Huron. In addition, for the Lake Superior
Committee, the USGS provided data and technical assistance. Contact:
Rebecca Hayes, 734-994-3331, <rhayes@usgs.gov>

**Coordination with Tribal Organizations in Michigan.** USGS staff
attended quarterly Michigan Tribal Environmental Group (MTEG) meetings.
The Michigan Tribes, the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5, the USGS, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, the State of Michigan, and other groups and
agencies are represented in MTEG. MTEG meetings provide a forum for
environmental issues pertinent to Michigan Tribes. The USGS also
participates in quarterly Multi-Federal Agency Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) meetings sponsored by the Midwest Region of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Federal agencies participating in the
MOU workgroup include the BIA, the USGS, the Indian Health Service, the
Army Corps of Engineers, and the EPA, which meet to cooperatively plan
and coordinate Federal-Tribal activities in EPA's Region 5. Contact: Tom
Weaver, 906-786-0714, <tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Water Resources and The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians.** In
September 2002, the USGS met with environmental staff of The Pokagon
Band of Potawatomi Indians to discuss various water-resources issues.
The USGS reviewed Tribal property boundaries and the parties discussed
how the USGS could help address specific Tribal concerns. Afterward,
five locations on the Reservation were visited, followed by further
discussion about site-specific monitoring ideas (such as water-level
measurements, pesticide sampling, land use changes, GIS, and
ground-water flow modeling). Contact: Tom Weaver, 906 786-0714,
<tlweaver@usgs.gov>

**Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Natural Resources.** Eight staff from
the Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Natural Resources toured the USGS
Upper Midwest Environmental Science Center in October 2001. Along with
learning the about the USGS, the group heard a presentation on U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service involvement with Tribal resource management.
Contact: Mike Dewey 608-781-6206, <Michael_Dewey@usgs.gov>

**Understanding Fire in Southwestern Forests. Western Science and
Traditional Knowledge.** A dialogue was held at the Western Social
Science Association (WSSA) meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in April
2002 to discuss the importance of traditional Native American knowledge
in understanding and managing fire-adapted systems. A major focus of the
discussion involved the ramifications of sharing knowledge, including
the proprietary nature of some traditional knowledge and differences in
perspective on this issue among different Tribes. Invited participants
included members of the Santa Clara Pueblo, the Pueblo of Isleta, and
the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Contact: Sandra Haire, <sandy_haire@usgs.gov>

**Wildlife Disease Issues in FY 2003.** Early in FY 2003, USGS staff
from the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wisconsin, will
participate in the 20^th^ Annual Pacific Regional Conference of the
Native American Fish and Wildlife Society in Worley, Idaho. The Coeur
d'Alene Tribe is hosting this meeting with the theme: "We shall protect
what is ours, for future generations." USGS Center staff will sponsor a
session and gave a presentation on emerging diseases including Chronic
Wasting Disease, West Nile Virus, and Newcastle disease. The
presentation will be followed by a panel discussion. The following
Tribes are expected to participate: Yakama, Umatilla, Nez Perce, Warm
Springs (Wascot and Paiute), Spokane, Coeur d\' Alene, Kalispel and
Colville. In December 2003, the Center will host a workshop on
surveillance strategies to detect CWD in wild elk and deer. A
representative of the Bureau of Indian of Affairs (BIA) Great Plains
Regional Office was invited to participate in this workshop. The USGS
has been asked to present several additional wildlife disease workshops
in 2003 as well as assist Tribes in the detection of CWD in their wild
herds. Contact: Scott Wright, 608-270-2460, <swright@usgs.gov> or
Kathryn Converse, 608-270-2445, <Kathy_converse@usgs.gov>

**Utah-Native American GIS Meeting.** The Automated Geographic Reference
Center (AGRC), a Utah State agency, sponsored a one-day meeting in
August 2002 with GIS coordinators from Native American Tribes in Utah.
The meeting was held to share information with Tribal members about the
many GIS projects throughout Utah. AGRC managers also wanted to learn
how AGRC could help Tribes with Tribal GIS operations. The Utah
Framework Implementation Team Plan (I-Team Plan) was also discussed.
This plan has helped AGRC develop a strategic plan for completing the 18
data theme layers that are critical to many issues in the State. The
Tribes were encouraged to join this planning process. Representatives
from other Federal agencies presented overviews of their GIS and
geospatial programs in the State. The USGS Southwest Strategy
Coordinator presented an overview of USGS projects with Tribes. USGS
Geography and Water Discipline representatives gave respective overviews
on ***The National Map***, High-Resolution National Hydrography Dataset
(NHD), and water delineation programs. An overview of the U.S. Census
Bureau\'s modernization program was also presented. Contact: David M.
Vincent, 801-975-3435, <dmvincent@usgs.gov>

**Enhancing Tribal Relations Internal Training.** "Enhancing Tribal
Relations" was the theme of a 2-day training session for USGS Science
Center, Region, and Headquarters personnel held in Tacoma, Washington.
The session featured representatives of the Jamestown S\'Klallam, Lower
Elwha S\'Klallam, Tulalip, Nooksack, Lummi, and Puyallup Tribes, as well
as representatives from the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission and
the Washington State Governor\'s Office of Indian Affairs. A panel
discussion of Tribal history and sensitivity to cultural differences was
followed by breakout groups discussing field work on Indian lands,
consultation in developing proposals, and ways of enhancing partnerships
with Tribes. The USGS Washington Water Science Center and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency Region 10 Tribal Program hosted the
training. Contact: Cynthia Barton, 253-428-3600, ext. 2602,
<cbarton@usgs.gov>

# Future Opportunities

**Geographic Information in the Four Corners Region.** Along with other
Federal, State, and academic partners in the Colorado Plateau Data
Coordination Group, USGS scientists participated in a workshop for Four
Corners area Tribal users of geographic information systems (GIS),
providing information about GIS training and data sharing/partnership
opportunities, the Navajo Nation Data Resource Center, regional GIS
involvement, Tribal and regional pilot projects, Federal and academic
GIS projects and research, and presentation of a Colorado Plateau
"Information Team" concept. In addition, a free one-day GIS training
workshop for ArcView users provided a demonstration on how to develop a
project using this software. Another training opportunity will be
provided in late spring 2003. Contact: David M. Vincent, 801-975-3435,
<dmvincent@usgs.gov>

**Bureau of Indian Affairs Requests Additional Endangered Species
Training.** The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has requested USGS
assistance in offering training to Tribal biologists in FY 2003. Similar
training for Tribal personnel has previously been conducted, with BIA
assistance, for Tribal personnel, by a research ecologist at the USGS
Southwest Biological Science Center. The training includes techniques
for surveying the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher. In the
past, lectures were presented on the status, distribution, ecology, and
habitat use of the flycatcher, and the USGS scientist led a field trip
to known flycatcher breeding sites along the Rio Grande. Contact: Mark
Sogge, 928-556-7466, ext. 232, <mark_k_sogge@usgs.gov>

**Ground-Water and Surface-Water, Colony Wash Watershed, Ft. McDowell
Yavapai Nation, Maricopa County, Arizona.** The Ft. McDowell Yavapai
Nation has several concerns regarding the quality of water flowing onto
their lands. Samples collected from previous USGS/Fort McDowell
cooperative projects indicate the presence of high levels of dissolved
solids and contaminants at levels exceeding U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency water-quality standards. Analyses also detected low
levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and pesticides. The FY 2003
USGS/Fort McDowell monitoring project will monitor the chemical
composition and quality of the ground and surface water flowing through
Colony Wash; it will also monitor aquifer responses to various upstream
influences within the Colony Wash watershed. This work will augment a
long-term hydrologic (water-quality and water-level) database that can
be used to evaluate the aquifer over time. As part of this monitoring
program, streamflow samples will be collected when conditions permit.
Shallow ground-water samples will be collected quarterly during dry
periods from existing monitor wells. Deep ground water from the Ft.
McDowell back-up drinking-water well will be sampled twice. Samples will
be analyzed for nutrients, major and trace ions, trace metals, VOCs, and
pesticides; water-level pressure transducers will be installed in two
shallow wells to monitor water-level changes with time and in response
to surface flows. Modified temperature sensors (resistivity probes) will
be placed at several locations within Colony Wash to detect the
presence, duration, and extent of ephemeral surface flows. Contact: John
Hoffmann, 520-670-6671, ext. 265; <jphoffma@usgs.gov> or Christie O'Day,
480-736-1093, ext. 224, <cmoday@usgs.gov>

**Restoration of the Elwha River Ecosystem.** Scientists from the USGS
Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center are providing technical
advice to the National Park Service (NPS) and the Lower Elwha Tribal
Community of the Lower Elwha Reservation on restoration of the Elwha
River ecosystem. As part of this project the USGS is planning to conduct
a workshop in FY 2003 for NPS and Tribal employees to determine research
issues associated with dam removal. Restoration of anadromous fisheries
is a priority for Tribes on the Olympic Peninsula. Contact: Edward
Schreiner, 360-565-3044, <ed_schreiner@usgs.gov>

**Umatilla Basin Ground-Water Study Planning.** During FY 2002, the
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Oregon Water
Resources Department (OWRD), and USGS planned an investigation of the
ground-water resources in the Umatilla Basin with special focus on
ground-water/surface-water interaction. The Columbia River Basalt
Aquifer can produce large quantities of water and underlies the Umatilla
Basin, however, the storage capacity of the basalts is limited. As a
result, water levels in the aquifer are declining in many parts of the
basin and there is concern about the impact of these changes to the
hydrologic system on discharge to streams. As part of this planning and
preparation for the study, the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral
Industries was asked to conduct geologic mapping and geologic map
compilation in the basin. This information will be valuable to the
cooperative ground-water study that is expected to begin in late FY
2003. Recent meetings between the Tribes, OWRD, and USGS have started
the process of developing a detailed scope of work for the
investigation. Contact: Bill McFarland, 503-251-3204, <billmcf@usgs.gov>

**USGS Contacts**

The U.S. Geological Survey has an American Indian/Alaska Native
Coordinating Team to establish policy and to coordinate USGS activities.
Please contact any of the individuals listed below for more information
or to discuss questions or concerns.

Director's Office: Susan Marcus

MS 104, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-4437; fax 703-648-5068; <smarcus@usgs.gov>

Eastern Region: Gayle Sisler

MS 150, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-4412; fax 703-648-4588; [gsisler@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Central Region: Gene Napier

EROS Data Center, Mundt Federal Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57198

605-594-6088; fax 605-594-6154; <enapier@usgs.gov>

Western Region: Elaine Padovani

ENR Building, 520 N. Park Street, Tucson, Arizona 85719-5035

520-670-5506; fax 520-670-5571; [epadovani@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Biological Resources: Hardy Pearce

MS 300, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-4085; fax 703-648-4238; [hardy_pearce@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Geology: Sharon Swanson

MS 910, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-6453; fax 703-648-6057; [smswanson@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Geography: Gene Napier

EROS Data Center, Mundt Federal Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57198

605-594-6088; fax 605-594-6154; <enapier@usgs.gov>

Geographic Information: Bonnie Gallahan

MS 590, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-6084; fax 703-648-5755; [bgallahan@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Office of Equal Opportunity: Lynne Sendejo

MS 602, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-4868; fax 703-648-4445; [lynne_sendejo@usgs.gov]{.underline}

Water Resources: Tom Zembrzuski

MS 405, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, Virginia 20192

703-648-5364; fax 703-648-5295; [tjzembrz@usgs.gov]{.underline}

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