Tribes to receive $48 mil to repair and revitalize water systems

HOPI RESERVATION, Ariz. — Following a tour of the Hopi Tribe’s Keams Canyon Water Project, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced a $48 million investment from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to repair and revitalize tribal water sanitation systems, upgrade irrigation and power projects and invest in the safety of dams in tribal communities.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is the largest investment in physical and natural systems in American history, including resources to make tribal communities safer and their infrastructure more resilient to the impacts of climate change. The Law invests more than $13 billion directly to tribal communities across the country, including $250 million over five years for tribal dams and water projects.

“In response to chronically underfunded infrastructure in tribal communities, the President’s Investing in America agenda is deploying record investments to provide modern wastewater and sanitation systems, clean drinking water and reliable and affordable electricity,” Haaland said. “These resources advance the Biden-Harris administration's commitment to strengthening the federal government’s nation-to-nation relationship with tribal Nations and will help ensure tribal communities have what they need to thrive for many generations.”

“Water and power are crucial to ensuring the health, safety and empowerment of tribal communities,” said Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland. “Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are investing critical funding to revitalize and repair facilities throughout Indian Country, supporting our trust responsibilities, advancing economic opportunities and expanding access to clean, reliable drinking water for Indigenous communities.”

Water Sanitation

The Bureau of Indian Affairs is investing $8.3 million in funding for vital repairs and upgrades for Indian Affairs-owned water systems. These funds will be used to address Environmental Protection Agency notice of violations, contamination issues, critical risks of system failure and other system upgrades as needed. These projects build on over $10 million already invested for engineering and design services in 2022. These projects include:

$6.6 million to expand access to water at Keams Canyon, Arizona, including replacing fire hydrants and water lines, installing automated water meters and connecting the distribution system to the regional Hopi Arsenic Mitigation Project water system.

$1.6 million for Treaty Fishing Access Sites in North Bonneville, Washington.

Irrigation and Power

The Bureau of Indian Affairs is distributing $10 million in funding for irrigation and power projects to structures and features that reduce the risk of system failure, reduce deferred maintenance and address critical health and safety issues associated with aging infrastructure.

Funding will support the following projects:

$3.6 million for Wapato Irrigation Project: Yakama Indian Reservation, Washington,

$1.5 million for Fort Hall Irrigation Project: Fort Hall Reservation, Idaho,

$1.4 million for Fort Belknap Indian Irrigation Project: Fort Belknap Reservation, Montana,

$1 million for Colorado River Agency - Electrical Services: Colorado River Indian Tribes Reservation, Arizona,

$1 million for Mission Valley Power: Flathead Indian Reservation, Montana,

$1 million for San Carlos Irrigation Project - Power Division: San Carlos Indian Reservation and Gila River Indian Reservation, Arizona and

$500,000 for Fort Peck Irrigation Project: Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Montana.

Safety of Dams

The Bureau of Indian Affairs will allocate $30 million in fiscal year 2023 funding to address known dam safety deficiencies at the following locations:

$23 million for Oglala Dam: Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota,

$5 million for A1, Bootleg, Cooley, Christmas Tree and Davis Dams: Fort Apache Reservation, Arizona,

$1 million for Allen Dam: Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota, and

$1 million for Willow Creek Dam, Crow Reservation, Montana.

For more information on projects funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in tribal communities through the BIA, visit the BIA’s interactive map.