This booklet evaluates observed climate effects on Native American lands and discusses the intersection of climate and the unique cultural, socioeconomic, legal, and governance contexts for addressing these issues in Indian Country. It also highlights some preparedness, mitigation, and adaptation planning initiatives currently underway in the Southwest.
1.
I M P A C T
Unique Challenges Facing Southwestern Tribes
“In some cases, modern land-use
policies circumvent the ability of
Native people to practice traditional
adaptation strategies.”
Water levels have been declining in Pyramid Lake, which is part of the 740-square-mile Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation in
Key Messages Nevada, and water quality has been impacted by upstream discharges. Photo by Dan Mosley.
1
The seventeenth chapter of the Assessment of Climate Change
Vulnerability of southwestern tribes to
climate change is higher than that for in the Southwest United States evaluates observed climate
most groups because it is closely linked
to endangered cultural practices, history,
effects on Native American lands and discusses the intersection
water rights, and socioeconomic and
of climate and the unique cultural, socioeconomic, legal, and
political marginalization.
governance contexts for addressing these issues in Indian Country.
2
“Unique Challenges Facing Southwestern Tribes” highlights
Tribes are taking action to address
climate change by instituting climate-change some preparedness, mitigation, and adaptation planning initiatives
mitigation initiatives, including utility-scale
alternative-energy projects, and energy
currently underway in the Southwest.
conservation projects.
Southwestern tribes are situated in many different ecosystem
3
and climatic zones and face varied climate-change challenges.
Already observed climate-change
impacts are compounding the effects of Special issues confronting most, if not all, tribes include cultural
marginal living conditions and extreme
climatic environments.
and religious impacts, impacts to sustainable livelihoods, population
emigration, and threats to the feasibility of living conditions.
For more information about Assessment of Climate Change in the Southwest United States, see: www.swcarr.arizona.edu, www.cakex.org, www.islandpress.org/NCAreports.
This fact sheet developed by Institute of the Environment, University of Arizona.
2.
Socioeconomic Conditions
Limited resources and poor economic conditions
reduce the resilience of tribes to climate change
and increase the vulnerability of southwestern
tribes to climate change impacts. More than
one-quarter of the American Indian and Alaska
Native populations live in poverty–a rate more
than double the general US population.
Historic changes
in streamflow on
Navajo and Hopi lands.
The bold black line Adaptation Challenges
(shown with arrow)
In the past, Native peoples in the Southwest
indicates where perennial
streamflow exists today.
adapted to natural hazards through unique
Inset map shows location strategies guided by their cultural beliefs and
of Navajo lands; black practices. Despite a lack of adequate funding,
diamonds specify locations there is a concerted effort by many tribes to
of sacred mountains on forge ahead with climate-change adaptation
the perimeter of Navajo plans, such as the Yurok Tribe Environmental
traditional homelands. Program that monitors water, air, and fisheries
to understand the local impacts of climate
change. However, lack of funding and conflicting
Sovereignty and History Observed Impacts jurisdictions on neighboring lands continue to
As separate sovereign governments, tribes Interviews with Navajo elders provide accounts pose challenges for the development of flood
have the authority to address the impact of of observed climate change impacts such as and disaster planning as well as drought-
climate change on their lands, resources, and declines in snowfall, surface water features, and mitigation planning. Often modern monitoring,
traditional practices. Since climate operates water availability, and the disappearance of plants forecasting, and adaptation techniques can ignore
across jurisdictional boundaries, an awareness and animals found near water sources or in or be inconsistent with traditional Native values,
of tribal rights to water and cultural resources, high elevations. Though studies of climate change knowledge, and practices.
located both on and off the reservation, is impacts to Native people are limited, climate-
important to evaluate the impacts of climate related impacts already include:
change. Since reservations were often established
in regions with extreme environments where • Decline in ability to grow corn, which is central Moving Forward
the sustainability of acceptable living conditions to many Native cultural practices Climate-change mitigation and energy
is already a challenge, tribes in the Southwest • Increase in wildfire severity affecting Native conservation is also seen by many as a great
already grapple with environmental challenges. foods and resources financial opportunity that may help address
This includes tribal lands in Arizona and Utah • Climate-related stresses to rangeland affecting current economic woes and the challenges of a
that are situated in regions with limited rainfall tribes dependent on livestock limited resource base, such as the utility-scale
and water sources of poor quality. • Increase in erosion of sand dunes, leading to solar project in New Mexico being built by the
wide-scale movement of sand dunes which are Pueblo of Jemez.
inundating housing and impacting endangered
native plants and grazing land Despite many challenges, Native communities
Water Rights have much to offer the climate-science community.
Water rights are closely linked to the vulnerability Native communities have persisted and adapted
and adaptive capacity of tribes. Though many during periods of wide-ranging natural climate
tribal governments are senior water resource variability. The role of indigenous environmental
users with significant water rights, litigation knowledge has received increased attention, and
for a determination of water rights on paper studies of local environmental knowledge show
is an expensive and lengthy process. Some that it contributes greatly to our understanding of
tribal governments have negotiated settlement ecosystem change.
agreements, foregoing a significant percentage
For the past four years, Jemez Pueblo has been planning and
of their legal claims to water in exchange for
negotiating a contract to sell the electricity to be produced
secure allocations and infrastructure funding. from a four-megawatt solar power plant now under development
on Jemez land. This commercial-scale solar power plant will
be the first in the nation on tribal lands.
Information from: Redsteer, M. H., K. Bemis, K. Chief, M. Gautam, B. R. Middleton, and R. Tsosie. 2013. “Unique Challenges Facing Southwestern Tribes.”
In Assessment of Climate Change in the Southwest United States: A Report Prepared for the National Climate Assessment, edited by G. Garfin, A. Jardine,
R. Merideth, M. Black, and S. LeRoy, 385–404. A report by the Southwest Climate Alliance. Washington, DC: Island Press.
Disclaimer: This document does not represent a federal document of any kind and should not be interpreted as the position or policy of any federal, state, local, or tribal government or non-governmental entity.
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