Thursday June 12, 2008
DEQ and Coeur
d’Alene Tribe Announce Completion of Draft 2008 Coeur d’Alene Lake
Management Plan
Source: Idaho Department of Environmental Quality
The plan is the product of a year-long effort by the Tribe and DEQ, with the help of a professional mediator, to develop a collaborative plan for protecting lake water quality.
In 2003, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a record of decision for cleanup of metals in the Coeur d’Alene Basin from historic mining activities. While the lake is within the boundaries of the Superfund site, EPA did not include the lake in its clean-up plans. Instead, EPA acknowledged that an update of the 1996 Coeur d’Alene Lake Management Plan may be the appropriate tool to address contaminants in the lake.
Based on state and tribe authorization under the federal Clean Water Act regarding the waters of Coeur d’Alene Lake, the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and DEQ have completed a collaborative draft 2008 LMP that, if successfully implemented, will protect lake water quality.
A briefing will be held as follows to provide an overview of the draft plan:
Date: Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Time: 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Location: Coeur d’Alene Public Library, 702 E. Front St.
The briefing will initiate the 30-day public comment period.
The plan will be provided at the briefing on CD and in hard copy and will also be made available electronically on the Tribe and DEQ Web sites at www.cdatribe-nsn.gov/lake and http://www.deq.idaho.gov/water/data_reports/surface_water/water_bodies/cda_lake_mgmt_plan.cfm.
Contact:
Phillip Cernera
Coeur d’Alene Tribe
Lake Management Department Director
(208) 686-6008