Arizona tribes’ long fight for share of #ColoradoRiver water nears resolution in #USCongress - deal includes a homeland for the San Juan Southern #Paiute Tribe!

Gabrielle Wallace / Cronkite News
Sept. 27, 2024

WASHINGTON – "Seven states that rely on the Colorado River each got a cut of its water under a deal struck over a century ago – a deal that excluded the #Hopi, the #Navajo [#Diné] and other tribal nations.

"After years of pressure and negotiation, Congress is moving to rectify what the tribes have long seen as an #injustice that has caused enormous hardship.

"'We’re closer than we’ve ever been before in reaching a final settlement,' Bryan Newland, assistant secretary for Indian Affairs with the Department of the Interior, told a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

"Representatives from four Arizona tribes – the #YavapaiApacheNation, Hopi, #SanJuanSouthernPaiute and the Navajo Nation – said the settlements, once approved by Congress, will secure their long-standing claims and provide more accessible water for their people.

"Almost a third of members of the Hopi, Navajo and other tribes have no #RunningWater, and leaders say the water currently available isn’t sufficient for growing populations.

"'Congress must act to end the water crisis on the Navajo Nation,' said Navajo Nation President #BuuNygren, who recalled that he didn’t have running water until he went off to college at Arizona State University.

"The water insecurity crisis has been felt for generations, he said.

"Navajo people sometimes have to haul water for over 30 miles, a costly and time-consuming exercise.

"The #YavapaiApacheNation #WaterRightsSettlementAct of 2024 and the #NortheasternArizona #IndianWaterRightsSettlementAct of 2024 would provide funds for pipelines and other infrastructure. The bills would also impose pumping restrictions to ensure that #groundwater is not depleted.

"The process has been slow. The #GilaRiver Adjudication process started over 50 years ago.

"Disputes over the Colorado River stem from a 1922 compact between #Arizona, #California, #Colorado, #Nevada, #NewMexico, #Utah and #Wyoming.

"'Without the settlement, a cloud of uncertainty will remain over tribal water claims in the Colorado River basin and tens of thousands of tribal members will continue to struggle to meet their basic needs,' said Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat who introduced the settlement bills with fellow Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent.

"The Northeastern Arizona Indian Water Rights Settlement Act of 2024 would address claims to water from major stems of the Colorado River and Colorado River basin, providing running water to many Navajo and Hopi people.

"It also sets aside 5,100 acres near Tuba City and another 300 acres in Utah to create a reservation for the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe.

"'The mental-emotional impact of being a landless, homeless tribe is something I wouldn’t wish upon anyone,' said Johnny Lehi Jr., the tribe’s vice president."

https://cronkitenews.azpbs.org/2024/09/27/congress-nears-deal-arizona-tribal-rights-colorado-river-water/

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