S.2109 is the product of a poorly planned settlement. The Nation
tends to haphazardly agree to random acts of development without a
larger strategic plan or vision of how energy projects will impact
communities. This settlement is a case in point. The particular water
development projects McCain and Kyl have proposed will benefit select
communities, but has no vision about how it will integrate water for the
whole Navajo Nation or even most of the Western portion of the
reservation. We are forever relinquishing claims to the Lower Colorado
River for one-time offer of $350 million in water development projects.
Each of the 110 Chapters are supposed to have a Community Land Use
Plan in place. However, Chapters do not have plans that address water
usage and sustainable uses of it that guarantees water will be around in
the communities many generations from now. When communities and
Chapters are talking about economic development, water is hardly ever
considered but should be at the forefront of the conversation. Before we
settle our water claims, we need to do the hard but necessary work of
determining chapter needs and arranging a settlement that addresses
these.
It is crucial now more than ever for communities to begin crafting
Water Plans and Sustainability Plans. But within S.2109, we do not have
an idea about how “wet” water made available through these projects will
be used. There is an allusion to home use for people who live in the
communities of Leupp, Dilkon, and Ganado. But, is industrial-scale
residential piping along these lines even the most pressing water issue
for the Navajo Nation? How will building this infrastructure serve
community members outside of these immediate areas? Will it guarantee
water for livestock? Commercial use? Future industry? These are the
questions that need to be addressed and understood before any settlement
is made.
Perhaps piping at this scale is not an appropriate solution for
Navajo communities. It might work for small Arizona towns, but Navajos
live differently. There does not seem to be a plan about how these
specific piping projects fit into a larger vision of the Navajo Nation
10, 20, 30, or 40 years down the road. But such a plan is absolutely
necessary, if we are going to forever waive our claims to the Lower
Colorado River.
