OPINION: As States Argue Over Who Gets to Drain the Colorado River… Tribes Grant It ‘Personhood’

November 2025 may turn out to be a pivotal month in Colorado River history… as two important events merged into one.

First, the seven states in the Southwest U.S. didn’t reach an agreement on which states get to further drain the Colorado River.

Second, the Colorado River Indian Tribes voted unanimously a week earlier to give the Colorado River “personhood” status declaring that the River is “alive.”

As news reports flooded the media yesterday about how the States didn’t reach an agreement, not one story reported that the Colorado River itself is already drained 100% dry before it reaches the Sea of Cortez, nor did any story mention the environmental consequences of the States’ disagreement which could further drain and endanger the River through the Grand Canyon.

At the same time a few stories trickled in about how the Colorado River Indian Tribes granted ‘personhood’ status to the River on their reservation which in part covers both sides of the River near Parker, Arizona.

How these two events coincide remains to be seen, but the stark difference between arguing about who gets to drain the River dry versus declaring the River a ‘person’ that is ‘alive’ reflects dramatically different worldviews

The future of the Colorado River is immensely contested.

Save The Colorado has worked with a few towns in Colorado to pass “Rights of Nature for Rivers” resolutions for local waterways that start the legal process of granting personhood rights to rivers. That program is described here on our website.