Hopi Tribe gets break on snowmaking lawsuit
Arizona Court of Appeals reverses Coconino County superior judge's opinion opening door for new litigation

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - The Hopi Tribe can move forward with efforts to stop snowmaking at Arizona Snowbowl after the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed a 2011 Coconino County Superior Court judge's decision to dismiss an earlier lawsuit the tribe filed.

Reversing a Coconino County Superior Court judge's decision, the judges ruled that the tribe had filed in a timely manner and while previous litigation had considered the environmental effects of snowmaking, no one had argued what those environmental effects would be.

The Court of Appeals concluded that the Hopi Tribe should be allowed to proceed with its claim against the city of Flagtaff that reclaimed wastewater may contain elements "which are harmful to animals," and that the sale of reclaimed wastewater for snowmaking at Snowbowl will "interfere with the public use and enjoyment of surrounding land."

In response to the decision, Hopi Tribal Chairman Leroy Shingoitewa said the Hopi Tribe has always maintained that snowmaking with reclaimed wastewater on the San Francisco Peaks is simply wrong.

"Using wastewater harms the use and enjoyment of these areas and degrades the pristine nature of the Kachina Peaks Wilderness Area," he said. "We look forward to presenting our environmental and public health evidence to the court."

The San Francisco Peaks, where Snowbowl is located, is an ecologically unique alpine ecosystem and contains rare types of habitat and species. The area around the Arizona Snowbowl is of great cultural and religious significance to the Hopi Tribe. The case will now go to the Superior Court in Flagstaff.

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