New agreement needs provisions
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Editor,
Federal Water Compact legislation provides irrigators and tribes options for reestablishing a joint entity to manage the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project FIIP. The earlier Cooperative Management Entity CME successfully managed the project from 2010 until early 2014, but because of conflicts among irrigators, the Bureau of Indian Affairs reassumed FIIP management in 2014.
Irrigator conflicts that led to the demise of the CME severely disrupted FIIP operations with negative consequences for irrigators that remain today. Without the efforts of dedicated project employees, the consequences for irrigators would have been far worse.
Thus, a new CME2 agreement should insulate project management and operations from legal and political conflicts among irrigators and between irrigators and the tribes.
First, a CME2 agreement should specify that the CME2 board is responsible for overseeing the management of the project and that tribal and irrigator organizations do not have a direct role in project management.
Second, a CME2 agreement should specify that the CME2 board should avoid becoming engaged in irrigator-tribal conflicts and that it should protect project management and operations from the impact of any such conflicts.
Third, all project employees should be prohibited from becoming involved in any irrigator-tribal political conflicts.
Fourth, if one party decides not to continue with the CME2 agreement, the other party takes full control of project management and operations.
Dick Erb
Moiese
