The Supreme Court has ruled against the Navajo Nation in a dispute involving water from the drought-stricken Colorado River. States that draw water from the river — Arizona, Nevada and Colorado — and water districts in California had urged the court to decide for them, and that's what the justices did. Colorado said siding with the Navajo Nation would undermine existing agreements and disrupt the river's management. The Biden administration said that if the court ruled for the Navajo Nation, the government could face lawsuits from many other tribes. The Navajo Nation's president says the ruling is “disappointing" and lawyers are reviewing it. A lawyer who represented states opposing the tribe’s claims says the justices “ruled exactly right.”
  • tl;dr bot@lemmy.worldBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    tl;dr:

    WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled against the Navajo Nation on Thursday in a dispute involving water from the drought-stricken Colorado River. States that draw water from the river - Arizona, Nevada and Colorado - and water districts in California that are also involved in the case had urged the court to decide for them, which the justices did in a 5-4 ruling. In 2003 the tribe sued the federal government, arguing it had failed to consider or protect the Navajo Nation’s water rights to the lower portion of the Colorado River. During arguments in the case in March, Justice Samuel Alito pointed out that the Navajo Nation’s original reservation was hundreds of miles away from the section of the Colorado River it now seeks water from. The states involved in the case argued that the Navajo Nation was attempting to make an end run around a Supreme Court decree that divvied up water in the Colorado River’s Lower Basin.

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