The Colorado River is a huge
natural resource, which means it involves many stakeholders including project
developers, native communities, and local businesses. Up until now, however, the only stakeholders
involved in the discussion of new water development projects for the Colorado River
are the federal Bureau of Reclamation, state agencies, and major water
users. Recently, a few groups have
become dissatisfied with the lack of transparency of information regarding new
water development projects and their lack of decision-making power in these
projects. Nuestro Rio, a group representing Latinos from seven states surrounding
the Colorado River, asked the government to consider their culture’s historic
connections with the river. The Colorado River Basin Tribes Partnership passed
a resolution asking for more participation in a Colorado River planning
study. And Protect the Flows, a group representing over 350 businesses involved
with the Colorado River, stresses the importance that a healthy river has on
their business success.
Ignoring
certain stakeholders from receiving information and making decisions concerning
a natural resource that they value and are very involved in is an important
issue in which environmental anthropology can be used to examine. First of all, the fact that the federal
Bureau of Reclamation, state agencies, and major water users are disregarding
cultural groups that are native to the Colorado River can be seen as a form of
environmental racism. Of course, the
cultural groups involved in Nuestro Rio
and The Colorado River Basin Tribes
Partnership do not legally own the property of the Colorado River now, but
it was their ancestors who used to own that land and they had been racially marginalized
off their own property. The historic
value of the Colorado River to these descendant groups should give them more
authority in the river’s current developments.
Also, we see the classic case of more authoritative and “knowledgeable”
institutions making the assumption that they know what is best to do regarding
natural resources. Local businesses that
are directly involved with the Colorado River on a constant basis may have information
about the river that these state and developmental institutions don’t have. They may know if a certain development to the Colorado River may actually be a detriment to the environment. This sheds light on the important responsibility
that outside institutions should have in providing accurate information to a
community or all stakeholders involved with an environmental concern. The local stakeholders noted in this article
have the right to pressure higher institutions for more transparency and I urge
them to continue the struggle.
It is encouraging to see not only small groups looking out for their interests, but also that they are working together to gain momentum for change. The groups include Nuestro Rio which is made up of Latinos in seven states, the Colorado River Basin Tribes Partnership which incorporates ten tribes, and Protect the Flows which represents more than 350 businesses. This promotes an attitude of cooperation and willingness to work together that could be applied to their relationships with the larger organizations that are making decisions regarding the basin. They seem to be quite reasonably looking for accountability, but also seem willing to put in effort and make their interests heard. The groups are sincerely invested in the outcomes of the decisions being made; while it makes sense that the processes by which those decisions are generated are logistically (and perhaps scientifically) complex, if follows that in such a situation it is difficult to also address very local problems. They want to represent the interest of the individual and make sure not one job is lost. They are invested both economically and culturally, and they have historical roots in the area as well as future health considerations.
ReplyDeleteThis article also relates to what we have been reading about recently: intellectual rights and the value of traditional environmental knowledge. I think it highlights the fact that ensuring the rights of local, and sometimes indigenous, people to the resources in their environments is a highly complex one. Taking into account the forces of power at play (such as the Bureau of Reclamation and various state agencies) makes apparent how the pattern of subjugation and use of natural resources by those with the most power still continues today by default. Nuestro Rio and other similar organizations seem to be worthwhile and extraordinary organizations to try to counter this unfortunate fact while at the same time remedying its consequences for future generations.
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