Tribal nations inhabit nearly every watershed in California, yet Tribal water rights are often poorly understood. In an event earlier this month, Letitia Grenier, director of the PPIC Water Policy Center, presented new research about the history and status of Tribal water rights, which was followed by an expert panel discussing why these rights matter.
California is home to 109 federally recognized Tribes and more than 55 Tribes that are not currently recognized. Water rights are essential to Tribes’ health, economy, and well-being, and Tribes are deeply involved in regional water management as the state confronts challenges of water availability and a changing climate. “We have to cooperate more, and Tribes are a part of that,” said Grenier, citing how water managers and regulators are increasingly referencing Tribes’ traditional knowledge of California’s ecosystems.
Only 16 federally recognized Tribes in California have water rights that have been quantified by judicial decree, congressional legislation, or settlement agreement. Quantification provides certainty about the amount of available water for Tribes for their own uses and offers opportunities to lease or trade water.
Negotiated settlements with congressional approval can be an especially effective way to quantify Tribal water rights. The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, whose reservation is in the Palm Springs area, has a settlement that is currently pending before Congress. John Plata, the Band’s general counsel, noted that, if approved, the settlement would secure the Tribe’s right to 20,000 acre-feet of groundwater not subject to local water district fees. It also would recognize the Tribe’s formal role in managing the groundwater basin. In addition, congressional approval would provide funding for infrastructure projects and create revenue streams to ensure the Tribe can function effectively as a water manager in the future. “Those are benefits you can’t really get in litigation,” said Plata.
Cooperation among Tribes and local agencies is vital. Jay Weiner, principal water attorney for the Fort Yuma Quechan Tribe, described an innovative agreement between the Quechan Tribe and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) that allows the Tribe to defer development of a portion of its reservation lands and let the unused water flow to MWD. This forbearance agreement “allows the same molecules of water to provide multiple benefits,” he said, with the Tribe receiving financial compensation while the district receives water for its service area.
Moderator Brian Gray, senior fellow at PPIC, noted that MWD also has partnerships with other Tribes. For example, it transports water from the Colorado River to five Tribes whose reservations are in the San Luis Rey watershed in San Diego County. MWD also supplies water to the Coachella Valley for groundwater recharge. Catherine Stites, the district’s principal deputy general counsel, emphasized that the agency welcomes the opportunity to develop more cooperative management agreements with Tribes. She summarized the district’s role as “working with our Tribal partners to try and provide imported water and supplemental water where we can and to facilitate conservation and best management practices.”
The panelists remarked that settlements require decades of concerted effort. The first congressionally approved settlement on Tribal water rights in California was the San Luis Rey settlement of 1988. Yet it took another 30 years to fully finalize the terms of that agreement, said Jerimy Billy, CEO of the San Luis Rey Indian Water Authority. “The Tribes have always stated that they’re not going anywhere,” he added. “They’re going to be there for future generations. They’re just trying to look out for the totality of the Pala and Pauma basins, and that includes the non-Indian communities that surround the area.”
