(a) Comprehensive USDA/EPA joint water quality monitoring, evaluation, and analysis.
(1) Representative RCWP project areas will be selected to evaluate the improvement in water quality in the project area and to make projections on a nationwide basis. Water-quality monitoring, evaluation, and analysis will be conducted to evaluate the overall cost and effectiveness of projects and BMPs to provide information on the impact of the program on improved water quality and for general RCWP program management.
(2) Monitoring, evaluation, and analysis is a joint USDA/EPA responsibility. Subject to appropriation of funds, the Administrator, NRCS, and EPA are jointly to select the project areas to be monitored and evaluated based on a list of project areas recommended by the NRCWCC.
(3) The Administrator, NRCS, and Administrator, EPA, are jointly to determine the criteria to be used for comprehensive water-quality monitoring, evaluation, and analysis in the selected project areas. A monitoring and evaluation plan is to be developed and agreed to by NRCS and EPA prior to initiating a project selected for monitoring and evaluation. The State water-quality agency and other Federal, State, and local agencies will be involved in the development of the plan for water-quality evaluation. The involvement of concerned agencies in implementing the plan will be determined at the time the plan is prepared.
(4) The project areas selected for detailed analysis are to be representative of agricultural and silvicultural nonpoint source pollution problems, categories of agriculture and silvicutural nonpoint source pollutants, agricultural enterprises, and BMPs used in the RCWP.
(5) Preference in the selection of project areas for comprehensive evaluation is to be given to those project areas for which long-term baseline information exists on land use, hydrologic data, and water quality.
(6) Monitoring and evaluation of selected project areas is to begin sufficiently in advance of the installation of BMPs to document, in a statistically satisfactory manner, existing land-use practices and baseline water-quality problems.
(7) The water quality monitoring and evaluation plan will provide sufficient basic information to adequately describe the land use, hydrologic water quality relationship. As a minimum, the plan will contain the following components:
(i) Chemical and physical water quality monitoring,
(ii) Biological monitoring,
(iii) Appropriate hydrologic data,
(iv) Soils properties and characteristics, topographic information,
(v) Land use and farm inventory.
(b) Program and project evaluation.
(1) There will be a continuing evaluation of the Rural Clean Water Program to measure its effectiveness and for each project for which cost-sharing funds are provided.
(2) Program and project evaluations will be conducted under the direction of the Assistant Secretary for Conservation, Research and Education, USDA, the Director of Economics, Policy Analysis, and Budget, USDA; and the Assistant Administrator for Water and Waste Management, EPA; or their representatives working through NRCWCC.
(3) Evaluative reports for the program and each project area will be submitted annually to the Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator, EPA.
(c) Funding.
(1) Research oriented activities will be from sources other than RCWP.
(2) Funding for program and project monitoring and evaluation will be provided through RCWP and other authorizations.