Source Water Protection in Traditional Haudenosaunee Nations: Report on SFAA/EPA Environmental Anthropology Fellowship

Abstract

This article describes a source water protection project carried out under a fellowship funded through the SfAA/EPA Cooperative Agreement in Environmental Anthropology. The fellowship, entitled "Community Dynamics of Source Water Protection," was sponsored by the EPA's Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (OGWDW), and was designed to provide technical assistance to American Indian Nations engaged in drinking water protection efforts. Through a collaboration with the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force, a regional organization with delegates from Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Nations in New York and Canada, I worked with the Tuscarora Nation in western New York to help them develop a source water protection education booklet for their community. I also prepared a guide to source water protection resources on the internet for use by HETF members and Nation environmental staff. Both documents are designed specifically to meet the needs of traditional Haudenosaunee Nations, based on my understanding of their current circumstances and environmental protection goals.