By Josh Margolis
WASHINGTON D.C. (NMB) – The U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs convened on Wednesday and heard testimony from Fort Belknap President Andrew Werk Jr., about S. 1911, the Fort Belknap Water Rights Settlement Act of 2021.
Fort Belknap’s Water Compact was approved by the Montana Legislature back in 2001 but has been awaiting ratification from U.S. Congress.
Senator Jon Tester, the sponsor of the bill, said that although the settlement may result in lawsuits, Fort Belknap’s water rights must be honored.
“I am incredibly pleased to see the Gros Ventre and Assiniboine Tribes Water Settlement before this Committee. It has been a long time coming. The Fort Belknap Indian Community has been working towards this moment for over a century. That has included dozens and dozens of meetings with local elected officials, irrigators, State Legislators, Federal Agencies and other stakeholders to hammer out a fair compromise that honored FBIC’s water rights and protects irrigators.”
Tester’s counterpart, Senator Steve Daines, also spoke at the hearing to express his support towards the settlement.
“I’m committed to settling the long and very overdue water rights of the Fort Belknap Indian Community. As you all know, I was proud to get the Montana Water Rights Protection Act over the finish line to settle the CSKT Water claims. I want to see the same for Fort Belknap. It is so important that we work together to accomplish this most important task. We need support from the Tribes, local communities and both state and federal governments to ensure we are doing right by the people of Fort Belknap.”
Bryan Todd Newland, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at the Department of the Interior, was asked by Daines if this bill adequately closes all existing federal liabilities. In response, Newland said there is still work to be done on certain provisions to ensure finality.
“We have expressed some concerns at the Department here in our testimony about the lack of certainty or finality in the current legislation. But overall, we’re committed to getting there,” Newland said. ”
Werk says if their water rights are not confirmed by Congress, they may have to take legal action.
“If we don’t work together to reach a settlement, we will go back to Court and enforce our senior water rights. There is no question who has the senior water rights for the Milk River. Just ask Henry Winters. The non-Indian irrigators in our area know this and support our bill. No one wants litigation. This is our future. Our bill will grow our economy and benefit the entire region for future generations.”
Along with ratifying water rights, the bill would also authorize funds to develop water and other infrastructure and restore certain ancestral lands with historic cultural and sacred value to the Tribe.
Werk says the bill allocated over $200 million towards fixing their federal irrigation project which is in desperate need of repair. $40 million would go towards reservoirs, flood control, stock watering and other irrigation facilities. About $23 million would be used for safe drinking water infrastructure,”and $230 million would support economic development, training, and operation cost related to water development.
“Our bill is a true Indian Water Rights Settlement,” says Werk. “It provides Indian water for Indian people using our lands. Almost all of our lands are held in trust, about 97 percent. Agriculture is still the biggest private industry on our Reservation. These are Indian ranchers and farmers that were left behind. We need the waters that we reserved to make a living and to expand our economy.”
In addition, Werk says the bill restores tribal homelands, including part of the Grinnell Notch in the Little Rockies.
“The United States wanted a gold mine and cut 60,000 acres from our southern boundary,” Werk said. “Now that mine is a superfund site and drains acid into the water. Some of these ground waters that flow onto our Reservation will be polluted forever. These waters pass by our celebration grounds, our ceremonial grounds where our children swim. It’s a perpetual nightmare. We’re not asking for all of the Grinnell Notch to be restored. Just 14,000 acres we need to manage our headwaters and the water shed in the Little Rockies.”
Opponents of Fort Belknap’s Water Compact have criticized the fact that the Tribe is staking claims to some waters outside their boundaries, but Werk told the Committee that they are willing to speak with the opposition to try and address their concerns.
“We’ll meet with anyone as far as a discussion about water,” Werk said about those concerned about the Compact. “We’re very transparent about that. About meeting with folks along the Hi-Line, Commissioners, other Tribes, to come up with solutions and to work together. Because like I was talking about earlier, we’ve all gotta share. Water is getting more and more scarce, especially out in Montana with the drought year. And those meetings have been good meetings. We just try to keep working together to come up with solutions so we can get this thing done.”
