A plan to make snow at the Arizona Snowbowl resort outside Flagstaff has brought objections from the Hopi Nation and other tribes.

Now, a decision on whether to allow the plan to go forward has been postponed by the Flagstaff City Council – although the council says it will likely issue a decision by week’s end.

Joe Ferguson and Cyndy Cole of the Arizona Daily Sun write about the latest development, which involves a proposal to make snow from drinking water, rather than treated effluent as originally planned.

Although business people largely support the plan, Native Americans say that any unnatural use of water is wasteful.

“To the Hopi people, water is precious. To use water unwisely is harmful to other people,” Hopi Chairman Le Roy Shingoitewa told council members.

Gwen Florio

Tags: Arizona Snowbowl, buffalo post, Flagstaff City Council, Gwen Florio, Hopi Nation, Le Roy Shingoitewa, Oglala Lakota, snowmaking, tribal sovereignty