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Watershed Planning Committee
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About the Committee
Next Watershed Planning Committee General Meeting:TBD
Guam EPA Administration Building
17-3304 Mariner Avenue, Tiyan
Open to the Public
Call 475-1658 for an Agenda |
UPDATE: On March 3, 2004, Governor Camacho signed Executive Order 2004-04 "Establishing the Watershed Planning Committee and Requiring the Implementation of a Comprehensive Watershed Planning Process." This Order significantly restructures the Committee and its goals. The full text of the Executive Order will be available on this site soon.
Committee History
In mid-1998, Guam Environmental Protection Agency (GEPA) established the interagency Water Planning Committee (WPC) to promote collaborative partnerships to help our island identify our water resource problems and priorities, and collectively develop and implement effective resource protection and restoration activities.
Guam' s Water Planning Commitee was created as a result of former President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore's blueprint for fulfilling the original goal of the 1972 Clean Water Act. Guam's WPC meets on a regular basis and has two subcommittees working on restoration of the Northern Guam Lens and Ugum Watershed. The third subcommittee, Environmental Education, was established in early 2000 and assisted in Earth Week celebrations.
The Water Planning Committee has defined its mission as follows:
"To provide timely counsel to the Governor of Guam, government agencies, Guam Legislature, and private groups and citizens, on matters relevant to the management of Island resources. It serves the community by providing a forum to encourage representatives of all entities involved in water resources to meet on a monthly basis to exchange ideas, and to review and encourage the implementation of local and federal initiatives, policies and agendas that are relevant to Guam's water needs."
The WPC is made up of representatives from 14 federal and local organizations and agencies, including Guam EPA, USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service, Guam Waterworks
Authority, Guam Department of Commerce, Guam Department of Agriculture, Guam Bureau of Planning,
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Guam, Water and Environmental Research
Institute, Guam Department of Land Management, the U.S. Navy PWC, ComNavMar, U.S. Air Force, Southern
Soil and Water Conservation District.
Key components of the WPC's innovative approach for addressing the Island's water resource issues include:
- Interacting with other agencies and organizations so that we tap the best resources possible;
- Establishing executive and legislative support so that we have necessary support and visibility to maintain the long term commitment necessary for environmental work;
- Working closely with the military, a major island landowner, particularly during its land transfer activities;
- Capacity building through providing technical assistance, workshops, and training; and
- Promoting public involvement and environmental education.
Projects accomplished during 1999 with WPC leadership, and which illustrate the types of projects of interest to the WPC, include:
- Completion of a Watershed Executive Order which affirmed the WPC and its watershed approach, provided emphasis and direction for Agency heads to participate, emphasized that watershed protection should be approached from a multiple ownership and use perspective, and designated the Northern (Tumon-Yigo) and Ugum Watersheds as the Island's two highest priority watersheds;
- Development of restoration strategies for the Northern and Ugum Priority Watersheds;
- Initiation of implementation of restoration strategies in the Priority Watersheds using a combination of federal (US EPA, NOAA, and US Forest Service) and local funds and resources and volunteered time;
- The beginnings of discussions between agencies about collaborative water quality and biomonitoring work, and an interagency monitoring strategy for the Ugum Watershed restoration project;
- A commitment to environmental education (which in April 2000 culminated in the two-day outdoor celebration at War in the Pacific National Park - Asan Unit).
Contact Information
Additional Information
The sites and reports below contain additional information on Guam's Clean Water Action Plan and on the federal initiative to restore our waters (pages will open in a new window).
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