WASHINGTON — The Bureau of Reclamation announced an investment of $1.1 million to the Colorado River Indian Tribes to assess the Colorado River Indian Irrigation Project. The funding will assist the tribe to review existing infrastructure and identify necessary maintenance. It will also be used to identify potential opportunities to install new equipment and utilize updated technology to modernize the project.
“We appreciate the Colorado River Indian Tribe’s collaboration for many years on implementing its decreed water rights and the Water Resiliency Act,” said Acting Commissioner David Palumbo. “We look forward to utilizing this funding to further this partnership.”
This assessment is intended to assist the Colorado River Indian Tribes as they evaluate a potential title transfer of the project in order to take direct ownership. This could allow for water leasing and other opportunities that could contribute to overall water savings in the Colorado River Basin.
Interior continues its commitment to Indian tribes in the Colorado River Basin. The Department honors its trust responsibilities to tribes and recognizes that these same tribes have much to contribute to the future management and health of the Colorado River. With this in mind, we look forward to continuing dialogue with tribes whose ancestral homes are in the Colorado River watershed.
This progress comes as the Department and Reclamation continue collaborating with basin states and Tribal Nations to develop Post-2026 Operating Guidelines—an essential framework for managing the Colorado River as current agreements expire.
More information on Post-2026 Colorado River Operations is available at the project website.
