For decades, members of the Passamaquoddy Tribe have issued a message to family and visitors to their reservation at Pleasant Point in the state of Maine: Don’t drink the water.

Residents there have long complained about its color, smell and tests reporting excess levels of contaminants. Recent efforts to improve the water treatment system have some members hopeful that a fix could be on its way.

But as Maine Public Radio’s Robbie Feinberg reports, tribal leaders see the solution as a matter of tribal sovereignty.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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