Tacoma, Washington has a population of 200,000. It is located at the southern end of Puget Sound in Washington State. Tacoma operates an unfiltered water system, which serves over 300,000 people. Watershed protection for an unfiltered water system requires much greater control of the watershed than is typically required for filtered water systems. This control can range from having complete ownership of the land within the watershed to having agreements with the landowners to restrict activities on and access to those lands. Maintaining control requires coordination with a number of agencies including local government, state health, ecology and fish and wildlife, and federal agencies including the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Service. Local law enforcement also plays a strong role in maintaining watershed control. Other entities have special rights to access the watershed for reasons unique to their organizations. The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe has treaty rights with the United States government and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad also has special rights through federal law. Tacoma Water has developed a Habitat Conservation Plan for its lands, which covers all wildlife in the watershed and logging on Tacoma's lands. The Surface Water Treatment Rule allows Tacoma Water to operate an unfiltered water system. Though difficult to satisfy, these requirements assure watershed control and effective treatment of the drinking water.
