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NATIVE AMERICANS AND WATER - Created in part for the University of Washington Bothell Water and Sustainability Program.
INTRODUCTION
Throughout history, Native Americans have had a special relationship to their natural environment. As an essential
element to the tribal way of life, the importance of water cannot be understated. Traditional tribal methods of irrigation
and fishing have always relied on access to natural water resources - a right which has regularly been stripped
from numerous tribes.
Struggles over water between an increasingly-industrialized America and native tribes have been
continual since early colonial days. The Delaware tribe, for example, was relocated at least twenty times. Needless to say, their access to
essential bodies of water like Cape
Henlopen and The Hudson River was severely diminished, along
with their ability to sustain themselves.
The impact of water and its relationship to native tribes touches on the topic of dams, fishing and whaling, pollution,
religion, commerce, and much more. Here you'll learn a little about some of the main topics that have been making
the news. While this page is intended only to acquaint you with a variety of contemporary issues surrounding Native Americans
and water, each of these topics could be discussed in great depth.
POLLUTION
Though many major struggles between tribes and the government took place in colonial and frontier times, there are
many new problems that have arisen in recent years. These battles are no longer fought with rifles and tomahawks, but
in the courtroom. In 1998, the Supreme Court ruled that the Isleta tribe did in fact have the right to tell
the city of Albuquerque what types of waste would be allowed to be dumped into the Rio Grande River (pictured above). For years, the tribe had unsuccessfully attempted
to regulate the dumping of waste in the river which had been very obviously poisoning the crops and wildlife. Their success
can be largely attributed to the amending of the Clean Water Act, wherein the government gave 129 tribes the right to control
the quality of water from upstream that flows through tribal lands.
WHALING
Whaling has always been a controversial and sensitive topic between tribes and the
government. For years, most tribes were not allowed to have any whaling rights. Originally, whaling provided tribes with food
and many of the raw materials needed for survival. While that is no longer the case, tribes have fought for whaling rights
on principle, feeling that whaling practices allow them to carry on their traditions and maintain a tribal identity.
The Makah tribe (pictured above on a whaling training exercise) has recently enjoyed
renewed whaling rights granted by the government. Those rights are, however, under attack by anti-whaling activists whose requests that
their 5-year whaling permit be revoked were overturned in a federal appeals court. The Makah have traditionally
smoked and pickled whale blubber for food, and have used the oil for cosmetics.
DAMS
The issue of dams and the environment is another important point of discussion. Since the 1980s, the government has
spent several billion dollars in the Pacific Northwest to develop technology that will allow for industrialization of
waterways without harming the surrounding habitat. These efforts have been largely ineffective, as the all
species of salmon in Idaho, for example, are now officially endangered.
Local tribes have suggested that the lower Snake
River be unplugged - a controversial
solution. The Bush Administration's efforts to come up with new energy development programs and continue industrial development
in the Pacific Northwest seems to indicate that despite environmental concerns, there will be minimal progress in the near
future towards policies that will meet the standards of local tribes.
FISHING
For countless generations tribes have depended on fishing for survival. But as the need for electricity increased,
the need for dams increased as well, choking off many of the primary rivers used by tribes. One notable example is the Cascade
tribe's ongoing battle to regain fishing rights along the Columbia River. The water level behind the Bonneville
Dam destroyed more than 35 Cascade tribal fishing areas. To compensate for this, the government decided that it would
be sufficient to deliver dead hatchery fish with the eggs removed to the tribe for food. In 1940 the government promised to
build six fishing sites for the tribe, but by the 1960 they had still only built four sites totaling less than 40 acres.
It was not until 1988 when Senator Dan Evans attached an amendment to a bill requiring that the government find 360 acres
for 31 new sites that the government decided to make good on its promise.
CONCLUSION
In the end, it seems that there will always be a fight to balance the drive towards modernization and industrialization
with sensible environmental policies that meet the standards put forth by many native tribes. It's a task that will undoubtedly
require the effort of our government, tribes, and us as citizens. Hopefully, together we can build an America that respects the environment, preserves native
cultures, and simultaneously progresses towards meeting the needs of an industrialized society.
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