It was a mixed week of news for local American Indian tribes.
First the good: The Western Shoshone of Elko County is one of 41 American Indian tribes which will split a billion dollar settlement with the U.S. government.
The Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone Indians are not commenting on how much money they will receive as part of their settlement and Department of Interior press spokesman Adam Fetcher declined to comment, citing confidentiality.
The Te-Moak Tribe is made up of four colonies: the Battle Mountain Band Colony, the Elko Band Colony, the South Fork Band Colony and the Wells Band Colony. Combined they have an enrollment of 2.096, according to information on their web site.
Nationally, the $1.02 billion in claims involve money lost in mismanaged accounts and from royalties for oil, gas, grazing and timber rights on tribal lands. Some are a century old.
“These settlements fairly and honorably resolve historical grievances over the accounting and management of tribal trust funds, trust lands, and other non-monetary trust resources that, for far too long, have been a source of conflict between Indian tribes and the United States,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement.
But while the Temoke are celebrating this month, the Goshutes, their neighbors to the east are mourning.
The Nevada State Engineer’s decision to supports the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s proposed pipeline despite numerous objections from the Goshute Nation and many other scientists who warn that the finite aquifers of the Snake and Spring Valley targeted by the SNWA pipeline would not sustain this amount of extraction without causing ecosystem collapse as springs dry and species become extinct. It could be said that removal of water from the sovereign Goshute Nation by the SNWA is a form of cultural genocide.
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Jason King published a decision today on the most important water rights battle ever decided by any Nevada State Engineer. The ruling could allow for 83,988 acre feet of water to be removed from four valleys in the Great Salt Lake Desert aquifer to send to Las Vegas under a proposal made by the Southern Nevada Water Authority. SNWA had applied for 125,976 acre-feet from these valleys and plans to request more from Snake Valley.
The Goshute Tribe has been defending itself from the threat of this project for nine years, but with little support from the federal government, which has a trust responsibility to protect the tribe’s interests. On its own, the tribe interviewed almost every one of its tribal elders to document cultural uses and sites they consider sacred within its ancestral landscape in preparation for this hearing. The tribe detailed its hunting and gathering areas, massacre sites, historic villages, burial sites, sacred springs, and more as part of this process. This substantive information was presented to the State Engineer during the six week hearing (see cultural map online which is available for media use), but does not appear to have influenced the decision in any meaningful way.
Tribal Chairman Ed Naranjo stated, “I fear Mr. King’s decision might literally wipe out our tribe. What is most frustrating though, is that millions of people who will be severely impacted by this project, have never even heard of it. Goshute people never damaged the earth, we never messed with the balance, but others are out to destroy us, and seemingly for only one reason, the almighty dollar.”
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Additionally, six Goshute witnesses testified and detailed the Goshute’s strong cultural ties to this area and spiritual beliefs about the importance of water. During this testimony, SNWA’s attorney asked the Goshute witness to explain the difference between Goshute spiritual beliefs, and his own childhood belief in the bogeyman. The were numerous protestants arguing against SNWA’s proposal during the hearing, including the LDS Church, Salt Lake, Millard, Juab, and Tooele Counties in Utah, Great Basin Water Network, and the Ely and Duckwater Shoshone Tribes.
The Goshute tribe has 30 days to decide whether to appeal of the State Engineers decision in court.
Vice-Chair of the Goshute Tribal Council, Madeline Greymountain says, “Las Vegas might believe it has hit the jackpot with today’s decision, but the tribe has no intentions of letting this go without more fight. Goshute People are determined to protect the abundant life that exists in Spring Valley. These natural resources are vital to our existence, spiritual balance and well-being. This land is part of our ancestral lineage. It is as important to our people today, as it was to our past, and will be to our future generations. So we must protect it in every way we can.