Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands integrated 305(b) and 303(d) water quality assessment report
Bearden B, Castro F, Kaipat J, Tanaka C. 2004. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands integrated 305(b) and 303(d) water quality assessment report. integrated 305(b) and 303(d) report. Division of Environmental Quality. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
The health and economic wellbeing of the people of the CNMI depend upon good water quality. Tourism is a major driving force behind the CNMI economy. Tourists come to see beautiful sandy beaches, clear blue water, and outstanding coral reefs and other marine environments. Healthy marine environments require clean water that remains within a narrow range of water quality parameters. Local residents rely on clean water to support fish stocks and provide recreation. Both point and non-point source pollution are responsible for lowering the quality of the CNMI’s surface and ground waters. Eighty beach locations are monitored for traditional surface water quality parameters and Enterococci bacteria levels. Unsurprisingly, most microbiological violations occurred in areas of stormwater discharge, particularly those drainages associated with urban, or other, development. Two biocriteria monitoring programs have been established by the Division of Environmental Quality in conjunction with other local resource management agencies. The Saipan Lagoon monitoring program collects data regarding the abundances of fast growing macroalgae, seagrass, and corals for each lagoon habitat. This report is referred to as the 305(b) which will be used by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Congress, and the public, to evaluate (1) whether U.S. waters meet water quality standards, (2) the progress made in maintaining and restoring water quality, and (3) the extent of remaining problems.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Bearden, Brian; Castro, Frances; Kaipat, Jose; Tanaka, Clarissa
- Date of Issue
- 2004-05
- Publisher
- Division of Environmental Quality
- Units
- AMME
- Keywords
- aquatic life, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Groundwater, Monitoring, Pollution, Recreation, Saipan, Surface Water, Wastewater, Water Quality, Watershed, Wetlands