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Tuesday, June 23rd 2026

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Supreme Court ruling complicates Navajo Nation’s fight for more water

Arizona — joined by Nevada and Colorado — argued that requiring them to accommodate the Navajo Nation’s water needs would upend future negotiations over water from the Colorado River

Phillip Yazzie waits for a water drum in the back of his pickup truck to be filled in Teesto, Ariz., on the Navajo Nation, on Feb. 11, 2021. The Supreme Court has ruled against the Navajo Nation in a dispute involving water from the drought-stricken Colorado River. States that draw water from the river — Arizona, Nevada and Colorado — and water districts in California had urged the court to decide for them, and that’s what the justices did in a 5-4 ruling. (AP Photo/Felicia Fonseca, File)
Phillip Yazzie waits for a water drum in the back of his pickup truck to be filled in Teesto, Ariz., on the Navajo Nation, on Feb. 11, 2021. The Supreme Court has ruled against the Navajo Nation in a dispute involving water from the drought-stricken Colorado River. States that draw water from the river — Arizona, Nevada and Colorado — and water districts in California had urged the court to decide for them, and that’s what the justices did in a 5-4 ruling. (AP Photo/Felicia Fonseca, File)
By | The Associated Press and | The Associated Press
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Already facing some of the most severe water scarcity in the drought-stricken Southwest, the Navajo Nation now has to deal with a Supreme Court ruling this week that will make securing water even harder for the 170,000 enrolled tribal members who live on its reservation.
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