Colorado River Indian Tribes tell Sinema they need help with water infrastructure

PARKER — Leaders of the Colorado River Indian Tribes met with U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema on Wednesday to discuss a list of concerns, including what leaders called their most critical issue: water and the infrastructure to deliver it.

The 4,270-member tribe also used the occasion to thank Sinema, I-Ariz., for her ongoing support for tribal sovereignty and for ensuring that the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law included funding for water management and conservation, transportation, broadband and other infrastructure for tribal and rural communities.

CRIT leaders said they are particularly worried that decisions on Colorado River management are being made with no tribal input, even though they have voluntarily conserved water and left parts of their nearly 720,000-acre-foot allocation in Lake Mead to forestall deeper reductions outlined in the Drought Contingency Plan.

"Nobody noticed that 15% of that water came from CRIT," Council Member Robert Page said. "We're farmers, and taking land out of production to conserve water was a hard decision."

"We're tied to the Colorado," added CRIT Chairwoman Amelia Flores. "Right now, the river is sick."

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The Colorado River holds not only economic importance for CRIT. Its waters are also at the heart of the tribe's culture and spiritual beliefs.

"No plan, no grand scheme is going to work without tribal involvement," Flores said.

Page said the tribe is losing valuable water to breaks in the irrigation system for its farm. The Bureau of Indian Affairs, which built the system and is responsible for its upkeep, hasn't been able to maintain it, he said.

"We're having to use money meant for housing, welfare and other needs to fix what is BIA's responsibility," Page said.

Tribal consultation is inconsistent

Tribal officials said federally mandated consultation continues to be spotty and inconsistent, despite pledges by the Biden administration to engage in more robust and meaningful consultation, including a requirement that agencies produce consultation plans.

But tribe after tribe has continued to report that the consultation process is not working. Consultations often begin too late or are only part of a "check the box" list in a project to make any meaningful change or mitigation possible.

"The Department of the Interior forgets we have rights to 20% of Arizona's water," Flores said.

Page added, "Our fight is protecting what we already have."

And, tribal council members said, they haven't received compensation for waters lost to leaks or that are being diverted to the Central Arizona Project.

"We don't get credit for letting water flow in the river," Flores said.

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Flores thanked Sinema for supporting Colorado River basin management and conservation programs, and for her work to secure $4 billion in the Inflation Reduction Act for water management and conservation efforts during the prolonged drought.

"I sat on that bill until that money was included," Sinema said.

Sinema was also a major sponsor of other bills that have enhanced the tribe's ability to lease water from its conservation efforts, and negotiated substantial funding for water conservation, building telecommunications infrastructure and repairing roads. Most recently, she worked with U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, to reauthorize the Native American Housing Assistance and Self Determination Act, which passed the full Senate before the summer recess.

"There were 87 votes in favor of the Indian housing bill," Sinema said.

Sinema also said she helped secure nearly $1.6 million for pedestrian safety, almost $25 million to rebuild a 10-mile stretch of Mohave Road on tribal land, and provided $25 million to build a high-speed, affordable internet system to serve La Paz County.

Sinema pledges to support tribal sovereignty

The tribe also has experienced frequent power outages and Flores said the community needs a more reliable electric service. They are also very concerned about an illegal toxic waste facility they said is leaking into the groundwater.

Sinema said she would follow up on tribal concerns using her position as a senator to hold federal agencies accountable for following the law regarding meaningful and consistent consultation.

"What I heard from CRIT and what I hear from other tribal communities in Arizona, is that consultation is inconsistent and not always meaningful," she said. "Congress can pass as many laws as it wants, but the only way to ensure that a law is followed is to use accountability and transparency to ensure that agencies are actually following the law."

She said she wants to help tribes and small communities apply for money to address these and other issues.

Sinema is also part of a special caucus of 14 senators in the Colorado River Basin, which is working on solutions to the river's ongoing issues.

She said she would continue to support tribal sovereignty, which she said she has done over her 20 years in public service. Sinema also said she would continue the fight to keep families and women and children safe by enhancing the Violence Against Women Act.

She sponsored legislation to close the "boyfriend loophole," which allowed people convicted of domestic violence to retain gun ownership if they weren't married to the victim. And, Sinema said, she would continue to work to stem the flow of fentanyl, which has wreaked havoc on tribal communities as well as other Arizona communities.

Flores asked Sinema if she planned to run for another term in Congress. "If you are," she said, "CRIT is behind you."

Sinema didn't answer the question.

Debra Krol reports on Indigenous communities at the confluence of climate, culture and commerce in Arizona and the Intermountain West. Reach Krol at debra.krol@azcentral.com. Follow her on Twitter at @debkrol. 

Coverage of Indigenous issues at the intersection of climate, culture and commerce is supported by the Catena Foundation.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Sinema meets with Colorado River Indian Tribes on water infrastructure