Letters | Navajo energy stagnates

Navajo energy stagnates

Editor,

The creation of a Navajo energy office is long overdue. The 2014 Energy Policy explicitly called for an independent and separate office to lead energy development, yet despite efforts by four tribal presidents to work with Council, the initiative has repeatedly failed. Internal turf protection by tribal entities and competing power interests between the Executive and Legislative branches have prevented meaningful progress.

Currently, Navajo Nation has two designated energy corridors, primarily located in the Four Corners region. Beyond these corridors, much of the nation lacks the fossil fuel reserves, water access and infrastructure necessary for large-scale energy development. Claims that hundreds of companies are eager to invest in Navajo energy projects are misleading. The reality is that the complexity and inefficiency of navigating tribal government processes have driven many companies to bypass the nation all together.

It is encouraging that tribal leadership now recognizes the need for a streamlined energy approval mechanism. However, no major energy development has occurred on Navajo land in over 40 years, largely due to bureaucratic gridlock and institutional resistance. This stagnation has contributed to the outmigration of skilled and educated tribal members seeking better opportunities elsewhere away from Navajo land. Despite decades of rhetoric about controlling our energy future, the nation’s energy assets remain untapped, offering little economic benefit to our people.

Establishing an energy office is a necessary first step, but unless it is truly independent, it risks becoming another battleground for political control. The Southern Ute Tribe’s Energy Department and Growth Fund offer a proven model, one that has delivered tangible benefits to their tribal community. Adopting a similar structure could be transformative for Navajo Nation, but our current Navajo governmental framework is not designed to support such autonomy.

For decades, the nation has forfeited both current and future revenue by failing to act. The solution is clear: create a fully independent Navajo energy authority. Yet this path will be difficult, as entrenched interests within tribal government are likely to resist any shift in authority. Still, the potential benefits to the nation are undeniable.

An independent oversight board composed of qualified professionals, separate from tribal enterprises and monopolistic entities, would provide the transparency and expertise needed to guide development. Reforming the 164 processes, which permeates every aspect of tribal governance, is essential but will require a coordinated effort across multiple branches of leadership. Passing legislation through Council and securing presidential approval will be a monumental challenge to take on the 164 processes.

Can it be done? Only time will tell. But the stakes are too high to continue doing nothing.

Denise Begay
Hogback, N.M.

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