Laserfiche WebLink
<br />.v <br /> <br />(b) pump no more from the Schuk Toak District than was <br />being pumped as of January I, 1981; and <br />, (c) comply with the management plan established by the Sec- <br />retary, <br />as a condition precedent to the Secretary's obligations to deliver <br />water to the reservation. ' <br />To the best of the Committee's knowledge, the amount of water <br />being pumped as of Janaury I, 1981 at Schuk Toak is zero, except <br />for small domestic and stock watering purposes. <br />The limitation on pumping at San Xavier and Schuk Toak Dis- <br />trict does not apply to domestic and stock wells with a capacity of <br />less than 35 gallons per minute. This exemption is intended to <br />avoid the cost of metering small wells and is consistent with the <br />meeting the requirements of Arizona law. <br />Section 6(c) states that water pumped by or delivered to the <br />Papago Tribe under this Act may be put to any use, on or off the <br />lago Reservation, provided such use occurs within the Tucson <br />'ve Management Area and that part of the Upper Santa Cruz <br />asin not within that area. <br />In the course of hearings, the Committee received extensive testi. <br />mony on the limited nature of water resources in the Tucson and <br />eastern Pima County area. In view of the finite nature of those <br />available water resources, and the projected increase demand on <br />those resources, it is the consensus of the parties to the settlement <br />and th,s Committee that water received by the Tribe under this <br />Act be able to be put to the highest and best uses, including munci. <br />pal and mdustrial uses. ' ' <br />The purpose o~ this provision is to permit flexible management of <br />water resources m the area and encourage application of those re- <br />sources to the highest and best use. <br />The Com':litt~e. anti~ipates that t~e Papago Tribe may apply <br />water to wh,ch ,t IS entltled under th,s Act to uses other than irri- <br />gation including leasing water to other water users in the vicinity <br />in order that. the maximum beneficial use be made, by all wate~ <br />users, 0,1' th~ hm'~ed wa!"'r reso~rces in eastern Pima County. <br />Nothmg In th,s sectIOn, or ,m any other provision of this Act, <br />.11 be construed to determme whether or not the doctrine of Fed- <br />I reserved water rights permits the sale, lease or exchange of <br />water outSIde the boundaries of the reservation to which the water <br />rights attach, <br />The Secretary's obligation, to deliver water is contingent upon an <br />agreement bemg reached by the Secretary, the Tribe and the City <br />of Tucs~n regarding acquisition and delivery of reclaimed water <br />an~ actlO~ by the Tribe to dimiss the pending, lawsuits and W <br />Waiver cla,ms to water other than that provided herein. <br />This action by the Tribe is required because it is the intent of the <br />Committee that the settlement herein provided be a final resolu- <br />t~on of the Tribe's claims of water rights and injuries to water <br />nghts from the Santa Cruz River Basin and the Avra/ Altar Valley <br />Basm, and remove the cloud to title created by the pending law- <br />SUIts. . . <br />, The, Tribe's entitlement to water under the terms of this settle- <br />ment IS not, however, affected by the waiver and release to be ex- <br />flcuted by the Tribe pursuant to Section 7(1), <br /> <br />1 <br /> <br />I. <br />I <br />I <br />i <br /> <br />29 <br /> <br />Neither does the waiver and release preclude the Tribe from ac- <br />quiring additional water, at a later date, by means such as pur- <br />chase, lease or exchange, or affect the legal rights of the Tribe with. <br />, respect to any water so acquired, <br />To remedy a flooding problem at another Papago Reservation, <br />the Secretary is authorized to carry out studies to determine <br />whether the operation of the Painted Rock Dam, on the Gila Bend' <br />Papago Reservation, has rendered reservation lands unsuitable for <br />irrigation. The Gila Bend Reservation is located in the western <br />part of Arizona, well outside the Tucson Active Management Area, <br />At the time the dam was contructed, the Federal government <br />compensated the Tribe for the loss of private dwellings by con- <br />structing new homes. It was not anticipated that operation of the <br />dam would flood valuable farmland. <br />Since the completion of construction and operation of the dam, <br />approxiamtely 4500 acres of irrigable land have been inundated. <br />Pursuant to this section, if the Secretary finds that operation of <br />the dam has rendered tribal lands unsuitable for irrigation, he may <br />exchange those lands, with the consent of the Tribe, for lands of <br />similar quality from the public domain. <br />The lands received in exchange, if any, would become part of the <br />Gila Bend Reservation for all, purposes, Any exchange effected <br />would not expand or diminish the water rights of the Papago Tribe <br />in the Gila Bend Reservation. <br />Section 9 authorizes establishment of a trust fund, the income <br />from which is to be used for the subjugation of land, the develop- <br />ment of water resources, and the construction, operation. mainte- <br />nance, and replacement of related Jacilities. It is not intended to' <br />relieve the United States of the costs to plan, construct, operate, <br />maintain or replace any facilities where these obligations arise <br />under this Act or any other act of Congress. <br />It is the intent of the Committee that the interest from the trust <br />fund, while subject to action by the Appropriations Committee, be <br />appropriated on a permanent basis and not year by year, <br /> <br />o <br />...., <br />c.c <br />00 <br /> <br />SECTION-BY.SECTION ANALYSIS <br /> <br />Sec. ] contains Congressional findings that: <br />The water rights claims of the Papago tribe to waters of the <br />basins surrounding Tucson and eastern Pima County are presently <br />the subject of a lawsuit; <br />The pending and prospective suits may adversely affect the <br />Indian and non-Indian economies in southern Arizona; <br />Parties to the suits, plaintiffs and defendants have diligently at- <br />tempted to resolve the water rights claims of the tribe by negotia- <br />tion rather than by litigation; <br />It is in the best interests of the United States, the State of Arizo- <br />na and its political subdivisions, and the Papago tribe to resolve <br />these claims by means of a legislative settlement; <br />The settlement contained in this Act will allow flexible manage- <br />ment of water resources in southern Arizona and will encourage al- <br />location of those resources to the highest and best uses and will <br />enable the Papago tribe to participate in a basin-wide management <br />plan for conservation and management of their water resources. <br /> <br />. <br />