TRIBAL AND STATE PROGRESS

The tentative agreement between Penobscot Nation and Passamaquoddy Tribe and the state of Maine changes regulations only slightly but attitudes a lot. After a couple of years of contention over who had authority for water quality, the dispute appears not only settled but settled in a way that increases trust and understanding and provides an opening for further cooperation. For a fight that has been carried to court after court, such an outcome is remarkable.

The memorandum of agreement approved by the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes Wednesday gives the state authority to issue federal pollution-discharge permits in waters that flow through and near the tribes’ reservations. It gives the tribes more input on permits and a closer connection with the Department of Environmental Protection and a government-to-government relationship with the state on this issue. The agreement happened because there was goodwill on the parts of both the state and the tribes and it happened because the likely alternative – more court fights, more anger – was worse.

Maine, like 44 other states, had sought this water-quality authority as a way to avoid duplication of effort with the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which has identical rules. The tribes said they preferred to trust the EPA and opposed the move. Another federal agency, the Department of the Interior, leaned the tribes’ way; the courts, state and federal, read the Maine 1980 settlement act and sided with state. The dispute could have gone on quite a bit longer, with the water-quality question being subsumed by other grievances and unstated fears. Something more important would have been

lost in the process if it had: opportunity. While the two sides were disagreeing, they weren’t working together to improve conditions for both.

The Maine agreement, if approved, will be the first time a state agency has been given authority to issue pollution discharge permits in Indian territory without the EPA retaining jurisdiction over permits. It sets out a formal system of involvement in the permitting process for the tribes on the Penobscot and the St. Croix in exchange for the tribes dropping their lawsuits against the state. The agreement provides a framework for cooperation, how well it works depends on the mutual respect and integrity individuals bring to it in the coming years.

When tribal leaders spoke before the Maine Legislature last month, they invited the state to work with them for the benefit of everyone. They know that working together is essential to the survival of the tribes and the nearby Maine communities. Many state leaders have realized this also, and the agreement on water quality is just one example of what can happen when conflict yields to cooperation. More opportunities – culturally, economically, environmentally – are waiting for those who enter in to them with the proper spirit.