UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 

REGION IX 

75 Hawthorne Street 

San Francisco, CA 94105·3901 

OFFICE OF THE JUN 3 0 2011 REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR 

The Honorable Peter Yucupicio 

Chairman of the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe 

7474 South Camino De Oeste 

Tucson, Arizona 85757 

Dear Chairman Yucupicio: 

Thank you for your letter of December 14, 2009 providing information on the potential economic impact 

to the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe of new air pollution controls at the Navajo Generating Station in response to 

the EPA's Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to implement the Best Available Retrofit 

Technology requirement of the Regional Haze Rule on the Four Comers Power Plant and NGS. By 

letter dated November 13,2009, the Acting Regional Administrator of Region IX invited each Tribe in 

Arizona to engage in consultation on NGS. From the resulting discussions in 2009 and 20 I0, I 

understand that many Tribes in Arizona are concerned about the potential effects of our rulemaking on 

Tribal water settlement agreements. 

The EPA is currently conducting an economic analysis to inform our determination of the appropriate 

control technology as BART for NGS. Because of the potential impact of our rulemaking, in accordance 

with the Federal trust obligation to Indian Tribes and EPA's May 4,2011 consultation policy, I invite 

the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe to engage in government-to-govemment consultation prior to our proposed 

rulemaking for NGS. Consultation between the leaders of the Tribe and senior management at the EPA 

is critical for EPA to fully understand the unique impact this rulemaking may have on Tribes. Because 

EPA Region IX is developing the Federal Implementation Plan to implement the BART requirement for 

NGS, Administrator Jackson has determined that consultation should occur within the region. 

If you wish to engage in govemment-to-government consultation on NGS, please have your staff contact 

Ms. Laura Mayo at (415) 947-3561. Ms. Mayo will work with your office to schedule a meeting for me 

with you and your advisors to initiate consultation. The EPA has received requests for consultation from 

other Tribes in Arizona, and my goal is for initial consultation meetings with Tribes to occur during my 

visit to Phoenix in August. At your request, my staff will also invite representatives from the 

Department of Interior to participate in any or all of our consultation meetings. 

I am aware of the important role NGS serves to the Central Arizona Project, and my staff is working to 

more fully understand the relationship between CAP and the water settlement agreements that are 

unique to each Tribe in Arizona. To that end, I am enclosing a spreadsheet that requests information on 

the Tribe's water sources, as well as projected volume and cost estimates from 2009 - 2035 for each 

water source. Participation is entirely voluntary and this information will help us document and assess 

the potential additional impacts of our rulemaking options on all Tribes receiving water from CAP. If 

you choose to engage in consultation with the EPA and elect to provide this information, I respectfully 

request to receive this information early in the consultation process. I am committed to consulting with 

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all affected Tribes that request government-to-government consultation prior to our proposed 

rulemaking. 

I look forward to meeting with you should you choose to engage in consultation on NGS. In the 

meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me at (415) 947-8702, 

or have your staff contact Ms. ColIeen McKaughan, Associate Director for the Air Division, at (520) 

498-0118, or Mr. Nate Lau, Associate Director for the Communities and Ecosystems Division, at (415) 

972-3839. 

Sincerely, 

Enclosure 

cc:	 Mr. Rolando Flores 

Attorney General of the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe 

4725 West Calle Tetakusim, Building B 

Tucson, Arizona 85747