JOINT FEDERAL AGENCY STATEMENT 

REGARDING NAVAJO GENERATING STATION 

The Navajo Generating Station (NGS) is a coal-fired power plant located on the Navajo Indian 

Reservation near some of our country's most treasured natural resources. It is significant to the 

United States because of its unique location and the critical roles that it plays in providing power 

and water and supporting economic development for the State of Arizona, Navajo Nation, Hopi 

Tribe, Gila River Indian Community, and numerous other tribal and non-tribal water users who 

depend on the Central Arizona Project (CAP), and millions of other people in the region. The 

NGS owners and stakeholders and the Federal Government are working to ensure that the critical 

roles that NGS currently plays are maintained into the future while we continue to take steps to 

lower emissions from the NGS and protect the people and landscapes impacted by the plant's 

operations. 

The 2,250 MW NGS is the largest coal-fired power plant in the West. It is located on the Navajo 

Reservation near Page, Arizona, and has been in operation since 1974. The U.S. Bureau of 

Reclamation is its largest single owner, owning 24.3 percent of the plant. Five utilities own the 

remaining 75.7 percent: Salt River Project, Arizona Public Service, Tucson Electric Power, NV 

Energy, and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Over the last few decades, NGS has 

invested in several pollution control technologies to reduce its emissions, but it remains one of 

the largest sources of nitrogen dioxide (NOx) air pollution in the Country. Emissions from NGS 

affect visibility at 11 National Parks and Wilderness Areas, and contribute to ozone and fine 

particle pollution in the region. 

A number of Federal agencies oversee Federal interests and responsibilities related toNGS. In 

addition to the Bureau of Reclamation's role as a part-owner ofNGS, five additional agencies of 

the Department of the Interior (DO I) (National Park Service; Bureau of Indian Affairs; Office of 

Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement; Bureau of Land Management; and Fish and 

Wildlife Service) have direct roles relating to NGS or the coal mine located within the 

boundaries of the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe reservations. The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) has a Clean Air Act regulatory role relating to air quality and visibility in the 

region, which includes promulgating Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART) requirements 

for NGS. The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable 

Energy, Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs, and National Laboratories have technical 

expertise related to clean energy development and production in Indian country. This Joint 

Statement does not alter these authorities and responsibilities. 

This Joint Statement lays out the goals of the three Agencies' with respect toNGS and energy 

production in the region currently served by NGS. It also details specific actions we intend to 

take to further those goals. 
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Goals: The DOl, DOE, and EPA will work together to support Arizona and tribal stakeholders' 

interests in aligning energy infrastructure investments made by the Federal and private owners of 

the NGS (such as upgrades that may be needed for NGS to comply with Clean Air Act emission 

requirements) with long term goals of producing clean, affordable and reliable power, affordable 

and sustainable water supplies, and sustainable economic development, while minimizing 

negative impacts on those who currently obtain significant benefits from NGS, including tribal 

nations. These goals will inform Federal decisions moving forward. In addition, working 

together, the Agencies intend to pursue the following actions: 

1. Create a long-term DOl-EPA-DOE Navajo Generating Station Working Group 

The three Agencies have created an NGS Working Group comprised of Deputy 

Secretaries from DOl and DOE and the Deputy Administrator from EPA as well as key 

staff from each relevant office or bureau in each Agency. The DOl is lead for the 

working group, which will involve additional Federal agencies as appropriate. The 

purpose of this NGS Working Group is to collect sound, scientifically based information 

on issues relating toNGS for the Federal Government, and to help ensure that the three 

Agencies work with stakeholders to complete the NGS Roadmap (see item 2 below). 

2. Work with stakeholders to develop a Navajo Generating Station roadmap 

The NGS Working Group intends to work with stakeholders, including NGS plant 

owners, Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, CAP, Gila River Indian Community and other 

Arizona Indian tribes who receive water from CAP, non-Indian CAP water users, and 

environmental and community groups, to develop a roadmap for accomplishing the goals 

described above. The roadmap should include action recommendations and initial steps 

to begin implementing key recommendations. It should be consistent with Federal trust 

responsibilities to federally recognized Indian tribes in the region. 

3. Complete the Phase 2 report on Navajo Generating Station clean energy options 

Under the direction and coordination ofthe NGS Working Group, DOl, EPA, and DOE 

intend to jointly support, through funding or other means, and working together with 

other NGS owners, tribes and stakeholders, the DOE National Renewable Energy 

Laboratory's (NREL) "Phase 2" Navajo Generating Station report will analyze a full 

range of clean energy options for NGS over the next several decades. This Phase 2 NGS 

report is scheduled to be initiated in 2013 and will build on preliminary findings from the 

last chapter of the 2011-2012 NREL "Phase 1" report titled "Navajo Generating Station 

and Air Visibility Regulations: Alternatives and Impacts." The results of this report will 

inform further development of the NGS roadmap (see item 2 above). 

4. Support shorter term investments that align with long term clean energy goals 

The three Agencies will work together with stakeholders to identify and implement 

actions that support implementation of the BART requirements at NGS in a way that 

reduces emissions while supporting the goals described above in both the near term and 

the long term. A primary consideration will be fulfillment of Federal trust 

responsibilities to Indian tribes affected by NGS. Agency actions may include 

reviewing current and expected future agency resources (grants, loans, and other 

applicable resources) for potential use towards pollution control, renewable energy 
development, water delivery, or other regional needs, and seeking funding to cover 

expenses for plant pollution control or other necessary upgrades for the Federal portion 

ofNGS. 

Secretary JAN 0 4 2013 

Department of the Interior Date. ________ _ 

Steven Chu 

Secretary 

Department of Energy Date ---------

JAN 4 2013 

Administrator JAN 4 2013 

Environmental Protection Agency Date ---------

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