[env-trinity] Supreme Court declines to reconsider tribes’ water rights at Klamath River

[Tom Stokely]

https://www.times-standard.com/2020/06/22/supreme-court-declines-to-reconsider-tribes-water-rights-at-klamath-river/

Supreme Court declines to reconsider tribes’ water rights at Klamath River
   
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Native American tribal water rights are guaranteed by the federal government to the extent that endangered species, like salmon in the Klamath River, aren’t placed in danger, according to a recent court decision. (Shaun Walker — The Times-Standard file)By SHOMIK MUKHERJEE | smukherjee at times-standard.com | Times-StandardPUBLISHED: June 22, 2020 at 3:01 p.m. | UPDATED: June 24, 2020 at 11:36 a.m.
Native American tribes’ water rights at the Klamath River received another boost Monday as the U.S. Supreme Court declined to overturn a court decision guaranteeing that tribes can reserve enough water in the river to protect fish populations and beyond.

Farmers who divert water from the Klamath for agricultural purposes had sued the federal government in 2001, challenging the notion that tribes have senior rights over the river water. Late last year, an appeals court upheld a decision rejecting the farmers’ claim.

Now the Supreme Court has solidified the tribes as the Klamath’s first priority by declining to review the farmers’ latest appeal. Tribal officials say dams in the river are still diverting too much water to keep fish populations healthy.

“The ruling, or affirmation, by the Supreme Court is encouraging,” said Mike Orcutt, the Hoopa Valley Tribe’s fisheries director. “It doesn’t diminish the standing we have, but there’s still major things that need to happen in the river.”
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The Appeals Court decision guarantees that the Hoopa, Yurok and Klamath tribes have enough right over the water to ensure that fish populations remain alive.

Orcutt said Monday the Hoopa Tribe’s interpretation of previous court decisions extends further, guaranteeing enough water as necessary to protect the tribe’s “way of life,” which includes “the economic and cultural survival” of the tribes.

The lawsuit, Baley v. United States, dates back to 2001, when water districts and farmers around the Klamath sued to receive compensation for reduced water deliveries during a drought year. In the years that followed, the Hoopa and Klamath tribes fought back, saying they needed to be guaranteed enough water by the federal government to preserve their fish supply.

Lower fish populations have starved local tribes of economic resources. A lower-than-expected abundance of salmon in the river delivered a blow to tribal fisheries. This year’s forecast also left a lot to be desired.

“It’s not looking promising in 2020, no,” Desma Williams, a senior fisheries biologist for the Yurok Tribe, said earlier this year. “The 2019 season went very poorly. There were not a lot of fish and we had anticipated a lot more than we actually saw.”

The Supreme Court’s affirmation of tribal water rights is a step in the right direction, said Vivienna Orcutt, a Hoopa tribal councilmember, on Monday.

“Willow Creek depends on the migration of fish in these rivers,” Orcutt said.
Shomik Mukherjee can be reached at 707-441-0504.
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