The Seminole Tribe’s Water Quality Program has been a central function of the Tribal government for over thirty years. Each month we visit every reservation and collect samples of surface water and test these samples for the presence of nutrients. Surface waters are also tested for heavy metals and other trace contaminants routinely. Now that we have several decades of consistent information on water quality conditions, we have been systematizing and synthesizing our historical information and are working to integrate it together with data from the regional water management system. This integration allows us to produce, for example, annual water and nutrient budgets for the reservations.

Exploration of new ways to collect, analyze, and report information about water quality is a key theme of our work. We have developed a staff of skilled professionals who are committed to lifelong learning and are applying their skills to transform the program. These actions are focused on ensuring that our program meets the current and future needs of the Seminole Tribe. Water quality plays a central role in the regulatory and compliance responsibility that the Environmental Resources Department performs as a service to the Tribe. As we seek to be leaders in Tribal Science we continue to seek and establish collaborative relationships with other Indigenous Nations across the world. Connecting our work with the communities on each Reservation and reaching out to recruit Tribal members to work in the water quality program are two areas where we seek to make significant progress in the next few years.