The U.S. Department of the Interior confirmed funding of newly-executed Navajo-Utah Water Rights settlement.
To help make sure the Navajo Nation has acceptable drinking water infrastructure, the agreement establishes the Nation’s entitlement to utilize 81,500 acre-feet of water per year from the San Juan River, according to a May 27 news release. This will protect existing water uses and boost future improvement in this community.
"Having modern water infrastructure is not only crucial to the health of our kids and families – it's also important to economic opportunity, job creation and responding to the intensifying effects of climate change," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in the release. “As we seek to strengthen Indigenous communities and support Tribal self-governance, today’s action and investments from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will help provide the Navajo Nation with the autonomy and flexibility to design and build appropriate water projects that will address current and future water needs.”
This agreement ended 18 years of negotiations and affirms the water rights of the Utah Navajo people, as well as more than $200 for water infrastructure, according to the San Juan Record. The settlement also recognizes a reserved water right of 81,500 acre-feet of water annually for current and future use by the Navajo Nation in Utah.
“Utah leaders have long-prioritized finding a solution to bring running water and wastewater facilities to the Utah portion of Navajo Nation, including ensuring its citizens have proper water infrastructure, and I picked up that torch when I came to the Senate by reintroducing the Utah Navajo Water Rights Settlement Act,” Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said in a May 27 release on his website. “I was proud to have helped negotiate the bipartisan infrastructure bill to make sure Utah would have a seat at the table, and make good on the longstanding promise by the federal government to the Navajo Nation in Utah.
"Today is possible thanks to the leadership of Governor Herbert, Congressman Bishop, Senator Hatch, State Senator David Hinkins and the San Juan County commissioners who have been strong advocates of this project," Romney added. "Thank you to everyone who has carried the baton over the years in order to get this legislation across the finish line today — this is a monumental occasion.”
The agreement also contributes $200 million in federal funding, which will be pulled from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and $8 million in state funding for water infrastructure development on the reservation, according to the news release. Overall, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes a $2.5 billion investment to carry out the Indian Water Rights Settlement Completion Fund, which will aid in delivering long-promised water resources to Tribes, certainty to all their non-Indian neighbors and a steady base for future economic stimulus in communities dependent on common water resources.
