In an op/ed to the Desert Sun, David Sickey, a senior advisor for energy and water projects at Cadiz, Inc. and a former chairman of the Coushatta Tribe, writes tribes in the Pacific Southwest are now in position to make a difference in the decision-making about water resources to those who have previously been underserved.
For many sovereign tribal nations who call the desert home, water insecurity is a reality that shapes everyday life. For too long, the needs of tribal communities across the country have been overlooked in critical decisions regarding vital water resources, leaving many with unreliable water access. Tribes in the Pacific Southwest are now in a position to change that.
For the first time in history, Indian tribes have a seat at the table, and together with Cadiz, Inc., are creating what will be the first major water infrastructure project to be majority owned by tribes for the benefit of tribes, farmworker and other historically underserved communities.
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