At the meeting in November, task force members were supportive of the idea. “We would like to request that the state of Colorado implement a pilot program to compensate the tribes in exchange for a forbearance of development of water for a certain number of years,” said Yellow Eagle at the November meeting.įorbearance means compensating water rights holders for the water they aren’t using. Among those recommendations, the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes ask the state to conduct a study to determine whether the tribes should be compensated for water they are not using. The report is approximately 64 pages worth of strategies to address persistent drought conditions. On December 15, the task force released its final report to the Colorado Legislature. And yet… they're watching their water go downstream, and they're watching other water users use that water.” The tribes do have settled water rights they have a quantified amount of water that they have the right to use. “One of the largest challenges is funding.

“Tribes have challenges developing their water,” said Yellow Eagle. Lisa Yellow Eagle, an attorney for the Southern Ute Tribe, ran down a list of recommendations and concerns at the meeting. In November, members of the Colorado River Drought Task Force met in Durango to talk about tribal water issues in the state.

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