Navajo Nation approves water rights proposal with Utah in US

Navajo Nation has approved a legislation which would allow the tribe to have access to 81,500 acre-feet of Utah’s unused share of water from the upper Colorado river basin annually.

Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory in the US that covers portions of northeastern Arizona, southeastern Utah, and northwestern New Mexico.

The settlement will allow the tribal nation to draw water from aquifers, and the San Juan River and its tributaries.

It also allows Navajo Nation to divert water from Lake Powell, although the tribe does not have any such intentions at present, reports Associated Press (AP).

The bill that has passed with a 13-7 voting by the lawmakers will need approval from the Utah State Legislature.

Once approved, the settlement calls for the federal government in the country to set aside $200m for water infrastructure projects, which include plans for developing wells, pipelines, and water treatment facilities.

Utah has agreed to contribute $8m, reports National Public Radio member station KJZZ.

Navajo Nation president Russell Begaye was quoted by AP as saying: "If the amount of water allocated is finalised, then we would support the general idea.

"We do not intend to only utilise the water for drinking or housing purposes. We would also like to see it benefit business startups, tribal offices, schools and other programmes on the Navajo Nation."

The tribals living on the Utah portion of the reservation are dependent on a mix of groundwater and surface water, which have been found to be of poor quality, and contaminated with arsenic.

This settlement will offer the US state of Utah certainty in planning their future water uses. Its share for the tribal reservation is not being used by the state.

Utah Division of Water Rights deputy director Boyd Clayton said: "We feel like we gave up a fair share of water.

"We’re putting some money in the settlement to actually develop projects so they can physically get drinking water."