Western States Water Council 2001 Report

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OTHER MEETINGS Water Information Management Systems Workshop Thirty five representatives from ten states gathered in Missoula, Montana on September 7 -9, to discuss continuing innovations in information technology as it relates to water resources management and water rights administration. Jack Stults, Water Resources Division Administrator for the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (and WSWC Secretary - Treasurer), welcomed the group, noting that drought still afflicted Montana and accurate, real -time water resources information was of growing importance. Jim Hill, described Montana's Natural Resources Information System (KRIS), which served as a one -stop shop for compiling and sharing data, as well as visualization resources and direct public access. Other presenters described and discussed the importance of satellite thermal imaging in identifying and tracking irrigated areas that are also marked with aerial photography. Political support for NASA's LANDSAT was badly needed. As current satellites age and fail, without new sensors, this capability would be lost. The National Integrated Drought Information System, National Water Information System, water rights adjudications and data, surface and ground water use data, predictive tools, regional water planning, data sets and data viewers were other topics raised and discussed. Indian Water Rights Settlement Symposium Over 200 people gathered for the ninth symposium on Indian Water Rights Settlements cosponsored by the Western States Water Council and the Native American Rights Fund in Moscow, Idaho on September 14 -16. Karl Dreher, Director of the Idaho Department of Water Resources and immediate Past Chairman of the Council, welcomed participants on behalf of the Council. In his remarks, he observed that the success of future negotiations will depend upon the reasonableness of the outcomes and the federal government owning up to its trust responsibility for the tribes. He emphasized that this trust responsibility goes well beyond a narrow interpretation of litigation costs and potential liability for breach of trust. Rebecca Miles, Chairwoman of the Nez Perce Tribe, welcomed the participants as well. She spoke of the difficulty her tribe had with discussing the "negotiation" of a longstanding right belonging to the tribe, in the context of the Nez Perce Settlement approved last year by Congress, also known as the Snake River Settlement. Reaching the point where the tribe could approve the settlement required much discussion and soul searching. She saw it as the most important decision by the tribe in the last 100 years and probably for the next 100 years. The keynote speaker was Barbara Cosens, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Idaho in Moscow, and formerly legal counsel to the Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission. She emphasized six major points in her presentation. First, she noted that uncertainty is necessary to bring parties to the table to negotiate. The process of negotiation involves the distribution of risks regarding these uncertainties. Her second point was that there is no substitute for honesty and trust in the negotiations. This is difficult to achieve and settlements must be accompanied by enforcement, looking to the future, but trust in the process of negotiations is indispensable. Her third point was that because the nature of negotiated settlements result in voluntary outcomes rather than mandated actions from courts, these voluntary outcomes must be perceived as reasonable in order to be successful. Fourth, a negotiated settlement will almost invariably involve giving up some aspects of sovereignty, meaning control, in order to gain control from others in the negotiations. "It is the federal government's fault," was her fifth point. She was careful to distinguish between federal policies and federal representatives, many of whom were in the room and whom she listed by name as deserving credit for many of the settlements that have been approved. She thought the current criteria and procedures guiding the process should be 26