Written by CRIT Media Reporter Ariana Romero

“This river is everything to so many people. And yet so many of us treat it as if it’s nothing.”

Those words from ultradistance runner and water advocate Mina Guli carry added weight as the Colorado River faces more than two decades of drought, declining reservoir levels, and growing uncertainty over how the river will be managed in the years ahead.

For the Colorado River Indian Tribes, the future of the river is not a distant issue. CRIT lives along its banks, holds senior Colorado River water rights, and continues to play an active role in conversations surrounding conservation, management, and the river’s future.

Those conditions gave added significance to Guli’s 2,000-mile “Keep the River Running” journey as it reached the Colorado River Indian Reservation.

Guli is running approximately 2,000 miles in 100 days along the Colorado River as part of her “Keep the River Running” campaign. Her journey follows the river through communities that depend on it, with a focus on raising awareness, listening to local voices, and encouraging cooperation around the river’s future.

Her CRIT visit began on the California side of the Reservation, where Councilman Tommy Drennan, Councilwoman Raeanne Patch, and Councilwoman Tracey Quillen greeted and welcomed her before the run.

From there, members of the Mohave Runners, Adrian Pulido, Nolan Taliman, Irving Sharp, Elan Drennan-Webb, Joseph “Joe” Deleon, Aniah “AB” Booth, Mickey Anderson Jr., Joshua Mike, Oslette Johnson, and Chance Fisher joined Guli and ran alongside her through scorching desert heat. Together, they crossed the Colorado River from the California side into Arizona and continued through the community to the Tribal Council Chambers on Mohave Road.

The Mohave Runners brought a strong local presence to the event. Their participation reflected more than physical endurance. They were running beside a river that has sustained their community for generations, showing strength and determination while taking part in a larger effort focused on the future of the Colorado.

Guli said running alongside local people gave her a deeper understanding of the communities tied to the river.

“These are people who have spent their lives here and have so much to share and so much knowledge,” she said.

After the run, Guli, Tribal Council, and community members gathered inside the Tribal Council Chambers. Vice Chairman Dwight Lomayesva, Secretary Josephine Tahbo, Treasurer Anisa Patch, Councilwomen Tracey Quillen, Vanessa Welch, and Raeanne Patch, and Councilman Tommy Drennan were among those in attendance.

The Tribal Council welcomed Guli, presented her with a gift, and thanked her for bringing attention to the Colorado River and the people whose lives are connected to it.

During the gathering and her interview with CRIT Media, one message continued to surface: the importance of working together.

Guli spoke about the many challenges facing the river, including fragmentation among governments, communities, industries, and organizations. She said long-term solutions will require people to look beyond individual interests and focus on a shared future.

“Together doesn’t mean that the river is yours or mine,” Guli said. “It means that it’s ours.”

She also described what she called the “power of together,” saying the future of the river will depend on people being willing to listen to one another, include different perspectives, and work across boundaries.

For Guli, that includes Tribal communities whose relationship with the river goes back generations.

She said being at CRIT gave her the opportunity to listen directly to people who have lived with and understood the Colorado River “since time immemorial.” She also pointed to CRIT’s work involving legal personhood as an example of thinking about the river as more than simply a resource.

“The way to hear them is to be here,” she said. (more…)

(PARKER, Ariz.) The Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) remains vigilant and recognizes the efforts brought forward in the release of the Record of Decision (ROD) for operations of Lake Powell and Lake Mead (2027–2036). The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) is not imposing illegal water cuts on CRIT that it initially proposed in the draft EIS issued earlier this year.

CRIT recognizes the current water crisis impacts the millions of people who depend on the River including wildlife and natural habitats. CRIT’s own membership residing in the various towns, cities, states will be impacted by water shortages. Indeed, the Tribes’ deep-rooted connection to the River spans since time immemorial.

The ROD cites to formally include Tribal nations including CRIT in the Basin-wide consultation structure. CRIT has been seeking this for years and hopes the BOR keeps to their promise.

On behalf of the CRIT Tribal Council, Chairwoman Amelia Flores states, “The efforts of CRIT have made a difference. The numerous meetings and discussions between CRIT’s Tribal Council and the Bureau of Reclamation have clearly had an impact. In the ROD, the Bureau of Reclamation acknowledged they would follow the decree established in AZ v. California. This is of critical importance to CRIT, which holds the most senior Tribal rights in the Lower Basin.”

Tribal Council Member Tommy Drennan states, “We turn another page in this water crisis. We go forward to defend the river, our allocation, and the voice of our CRIT nation. It is progress, knowing that the US recognizes the need to work towards further solutions until the river recovers.  It is progress to know there are no illegal reductions facing our allocation today. We will continue to do what we must to keep the river alive.”

Councilmember Raeanne Patch states, “Given the critical status of the river, tribal consultation is mandatory in every discussion and decision regarding the Colorado River.”

Councilmember Anisa Patch states, “As the river’s natural ability to replenish itself falls further behind, CRIT continues defending our water allocation and traditional lifelines, navigating colonial processes.  We fight to preserve our livelihoods, the livelihoods of all living things who depend on this river to the changed landscapes ahead.”

Councilmember Tracey Quillen states, “I am proud of the work CRIT has done to bring us to this point, but our work is not finished. We remain vigilant in protecting our water and will continue working together to ensure that our rights are respected and protected for generations to come.”

The ROD preserves the legal status of CRIT’s water rights. It also clarified Reclamation will not rely on misdealing assumptions about CRIT’s water use in the FEIS (Final Environmental Impact Statement) regarding CRIT’s inability to entirely use its water resources.

However, the ROD also introduces a series of two-year operating frameworks under which additional reductions in water supply for central Arizona could be adopted if reservoir conditions worsen. As a result, CRIT will continue to proactively engage with Reclamation and other stakeholders throughout these successive two-year processes to fully protect CRIT’s water rights.

In November, the CRIT Tribal Council voted unanimously to proclaim Personhood Status for the Colorado River, acknowledging the Colorado River as a living entity whose health and well-being are intrinsically linked to the well-being of the Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) members.

While the Tribal Council will stay engaged regarding CRIT’s water allocation, It will also continue to actively address the limitations in water delivery infrastructure which must be addressed by the federal government.

Flores added, “As this water crisis persists, CRIT continues conservation measures to preserve the life of the Colorado River.”

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Veterinarian-Stakeholder Comms-WOLKER-SIGNED

The Colorado River has faced historic drought and declining reservoir levels for more than two decades. In 2019, the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, and representatives of the seven Colorado River Basin states signed the Drought Contingency Plans (DCP). The plans established coordinated conservation measures to reduce the risk of Lake Mead and Lake Powell falling to critically low levels.

The Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) were among the Colorado River water users that voluntarily agreed to conserve water as part of the DCP. Between 2020 and 2022, the Tribes conserved 150,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water, helping keep additional water in Lake Mead. An acre-foot is enough water to cover one acre of land one foot deep.

CRIT received compensation for the 150,000 acre-feet it conserved. The effort also left approximately 10,000 acre-feet of additional water in Lake Mead. CRIT was not compensated for that portion, which became the Tribes’ Intentionally Created Surplus (ICS).

ICS is conserved water stored in Lake Mead for later use. The Bureau of Reclamation continues to credit the water to CRIT, similar to money held in a savings account. The balance is separate from the Tribes’ regular annual Colorado River allocation, and using it would not reduce CRIT’s allocation in future years.

Two rules govern CRIT’s ICS water. The first involves evaporation. The Bureau of Reclamation accounts for ICS as water stored at the top of the reservoir, making it subject to evaporation losses. Similar to water sitting in an uncovered container, water at the surface is the first to evaporate.

Those losses have reduced CRIT’s original ICS balance from approximately 10,000 acre-feet to 9,009 acre-feet. Water lost through evaporation cannot be recovered, and CRIT does not receive compensation for it. The longer the water remains in Lake Mead, the less CRIT has available to use or receive compensation for.

The second rule limits who may use ICS. It may only be used by the federal government or another entity that also holds ICS. Under the current rules, the Central Arizona Project, commonly known as CAP, and the Gila River Indian Community are the only eligible users for CRIT’s stored water.

CAP has approached Tribal Council about using the water in exchange for compensation. A possible agreement would allow CRIT to receive value from the remaining balance before additional water is lost through evaporation.

CRIT’s ICS is a finite Tribal resource created through conservation. Tribal Council is now considering how to use the remaining 9,009 acre-feet before evaporation further reduces its potential value.