(1:58) This will be an interactive session that will include presentations and discussions on: Climate change vulnerability assessment that EPA is developing, Extreme precipitation and transport of contaminants and groundwater impacts and relative to water intakes, Transient non community and private domestic wells that are potentially and particularly vulnerable especially when there is flooding or located in in a flood plain, What are the implications for drinking water quality, How will these wells be monitored given that there is no regulatory requirement, What flooding or extreme precipitation means to both public and private wells, How do we assure that wells near gas stations are sampled and Tribes’ climate plans.
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(1:05:42) In July 2020, the United States Department of Transportation issued a new rule that authorized the transportation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail throughout the United States, with very few restrictions. This authorization directly impacts tribes because many Indian reservations have rail lines running through them. Although it involved other hazardous materials, the recent rail disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, highlights the issues presented by transporting liquefied natural gas by rail. The transportation of LNG by rail also has climate change implications - including sea level rises, extreme weather, increase in fires, and habitat changes - that can impact reservations. The presentation would provide an overview of the litigation challenging the rule. The litigation also concerns important consultation issues under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act as well as environmental justice issues, which the Biden administration indicates is one of its key priorities. This presentation would be given by attorneys involved in the litigation. Additionally, the presentation would look at ways in which the Indian Right of Way Act, under which the Secretary of the Interior may issue a right-of-way easement granting rights of entry to tribes' trust land if the tribe consents, can be used as a tool for protecting reservations and tribal interests. In particular, the presentation will focus on a series of recent decisions in Swinomish Indian Tribal Community v. BNSF Railway Company and how those decisions can be used and built upon moving forward.
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