A Utah District Court Judge issued a Memorandum Decision & Order this week that dismisses 9 out of 11 claims made by the Ute Tribe in their water rights case against the United States Department of the Interior and State of Utah. The Ute Tribe alleges in the case that the federal defendants “have breached trust and statutory duties owed to the Tribe regarding the management and allocation of water and water rights and generally discriminated against the Tribe and its members.” United States District Court Judge Jill N. Parrish issued a 50 page Memorandum Decision & Order on September 26th that grants the defendants motions to dismiss on claims 1 through 8 and claim 11. Claims 9 and 10 were not dismissed. These two claims stem from the Bureau of Reclamation’s 2019 Green River Block Exchange Contract with the State of Utah and have to do with water in the Green River and Flaming Gorge Reservoir. The Ute Tribe responded to the order in a press release that stated they will appeal the judge’s decision to dismiss the other claims.
