The Navajo-San Juan Indian Water Rights Settlement

Thirty four years ago, a dispute between the state of New Mexico and the Navajo Nation began over the resources in the San Juan River. Recently in 2005, the Navajo Nation agreed to give up 44 percent of its water rights claims to the San Juan Basin.

The deal was that Navajos would have rights to more than 600,000 acre-feet of water, that's 56 percent of the San Juan Basin. But more importantly, the state of New Mexico would build pipelines that would run all through the Navajo Nation (see map below).


Proposed Navajo Pipeline Map
This is a detailed map of the proposed Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project. The proposed pipelines on this map could bring running water to 60,000-70,000 Navajo people. Funding for these pipelines depends on a proposed $800 million apportionment from the US Congress.

Today, about 70,000 people, especially Native Americans, are living without running water and the bill is still in the hands of some politician.

I recommend checking out "The Water Haulers," a video documentation on this issue:

http://www.knme.org/water/index.php