Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Surface Water Assessment Grant (SWAG) - Big Fork River Watershed

The goal of this project is to complete a water chemistry dataset necessary for the assessment of six Leech Lake Reservation lakes within the Big Fork Watershed for the determination of overall watershed health, and the identification of impaired waters (according to State water quality standards), or waters in need of additional protection to prevent future impairments. The project is a part of the Big Fork Intensive Watershed Monitoring effort which aids the MInnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) in meeting the requirements of the Clean Water Act for restoring and protecting the multiple beneficial and cultural uses of the Band's invaluable water resources.
It is advantageous for the Band to collaborate with federal, state, and local partners to obtain the largest and most intricate water quality data set possible for the analyzation of current conditions and historic trends in Reservation waters to help inform the water quality standard development process.