CX-270441: Tribal DOE Program/Agreement-In-Principle – Shoshone-Bannock Tribes

Shoshone-Bannock Tribes' Tribal DOE (TDOE) and Cultural Resources/Heritage Tribal Office (CR/HeTO) Programs have continuously operated under the Agreement in Principle (AIP) and continued funding by the Department of Energy (DOE) Cooperative Agreement. The mission of The Tribal DOE and CR/HeTO programs focuses on involvement and monitoring of DOE activities on the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) site that may affect the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. DOE provides partial funding to Air Quality and Department of Public Safety, to assure DOE activities are preventative and protective of the Tribes interests regarding the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, our ceded territories, aboriginal and treaty lands. The Tribes may choose to collect baseline data on hazardous contaminant and/or radiation levels on or near the Reservation or any unoccupied lands, for the purposes of determining both background levels and any elevated levels that may result from other INL activities, identifying impacts associated with transportation of radioactive or hazardous materials, and assessing the need for the Tribes' continued monitoring efforts. DOE will support the Tribes determination of requiring other sampling efforts for other purposes relative to health, safety, and environment. TDOE will continue to fully support the maintenance and operation of an Environmental Community Monitoring Station (CMS) on the Reservation. DOE will support the Tribes by committing Cooperative Agreement funds, technical assistance, and supporting the partnership between the Tribes, the INL State Oversight Program, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This includes the necessary accommodations to access the existing State/NOAA/INL monitoring network in accordance with DOE security requirements. DOE will support the development and implementation of a data management system and GIS as functional tools for accomplishing the objectives identified in this Agreement.