If he does not affiliate with a firm, he will make himself available for alternative dispute resolution and similar assignments. Little Colorado River Proceedings Optimism was very much in the air as Judge Allen Minker convened court on December 12 in St. Johns to review the status of settlement efforts in the Little Colorado River adjudication. Members of the settlement committee said that differences had narrowed concerning the north-side negotiations. The Department of Interior and Southern California Edison have renewed financial offers that are critical to building a pipeline southward from Lake Powell to provide water for the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, and coal mines in the area. The capacity of the pipeline and the priority date for water delivered by pipe still must be resolved.
Several issues continue to trouble the south-side negotiations.
The Navajo Nation and the United States are still working on an acceptable project for developing water in the Three Canyon area south of Winslow. Threatened and endangered species concerns are being addressed in discussions with officials from state and federal fish and wildlife agencies. The Phelps Dodge Corp. has provided more information about the role Blue Ridge Reservoir might play in a south-side settlement, and the United States indicated it would take another look at this possibility. As part of the settlement, the Navajo Nation seeks an allocation of Central Arizona Project water which it hopes to market off-reservation. The Arizona Department of Water Resources and some parties oppose such marketing proposals, at least in their current form.