Native American reservations and natural resources

• TRIBES AFFECTED: Tribes possessing natural resources

SIGNIFICANCE: Reservations and tribal governments confront a difficult task in deciding on the most effective ways to develop a reservation’s natural resources.

Natural resources such as coal, timber, natural gas, uranium, and oil have important places in many Indigenous American Nations’ economic development plans. Reservations comprise some of the poorest regions in the United States, so the type of development and the extent of tribal control over these assets is crucial.

General History

Tribal economic dependence on the sale of natural resources gained importance in the late nineteenth century, as tribal leaders and individuals began to sell reservation land and individual allotted lands. Though nations retained possessory rights to timber and subsurface minerals, the absence of market demand and legislation that granted tribal authority to sell timber or minerals apart from the land hindered development. Resources were simply ceded during land sales of this era, depriving tribes of benefits from these commodities.

In 1891, Congress enacted leasing legislation that provided a mechanism for tribes to lease land, coal, oil, and natural gas without selling their real estate. Tribes could control outside access to energy minerals by approving or disapproving of leases. At the time, few leases were made because of low demand for tribal resources.

Congress revised reservation leasing in the 1938 Omnibus Tribal Leasing Act, which required competitive bidding and the posting of bonds by successful bidders. The legislation favored outside developers, not the tribal landowners, because it emphasized quick monetary returns for the tribe in the leasing process rather than ensuring technical expertise on the nation’s behalf.

These reservation leasing guidelines were quickly outdated, but they remained operative for the next four decades. During that time, outsiders leased tribal minerals at less than market value and continued to enjoy the privilege thanks to continuous production clauses. Some outside interests even built power plants on reservations.

Energy Minerals

As a result of the 1970s energy crisis, tribal leaders demanded greater roles in making energy mineral decisions and in writing regulations governing reservation mineral development. Reservations possessed 3 percent of the nation’s oil and natural gas reserves and 13 percent of the coal reserves.

The rising demand for reservation energy resources created a false impression that tribes possessing coal, oil, and natural gas were wealthy. In 1976, the comptroller general reported that tribal resources were underdeveloped and that information on the extent of tribal energy resources was lacking, depriving tribes of revenue. At the same time, the United States failed to monitor lessor reclamation compliance, production figures, and royalty collection from reservation energy contracts. As a result, some tribes were reluctant to enter into energy development simply because too many questions remained unanswered. The Council of Energy Resource Tribes was created, with its primary task to provide tribal leaders with energy mineral information. Tribal leaders became increasingly convinced of the need for local tribal control over energy mineral resources.

As a result of Indigenous American assertions regarding control over resource development on tribal land, the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1977 began requiring reservation energy mineral leasing contractors to comply with the provisions of the 1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. In 1982, as a result of tribal initiative, Congress passed the Indian Minerals Development Act, allowing tribes to become energy producers.

Greater tribal control did not end energy mineral development problems. Monitoring and compliance issues continued to hinder tribal efforts to secure fair market value for their resources and to ensure that tribal lands were not ruined in the process of mineral extraction.

The Indian Tribal Energy Development and Self-Determination Act Amendments of 2017 improved the authority of Indigenous nations to create agreements and leases to develop energy resources on their land. This act also addressed oil pipelines and electricity lines.

In the 2020s, tribal energy policy shifted further with federal initiatives such as the 2022 Tribal Energy Finance Program initiative and new funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. These programs expanded Indigenous authority over fossil-fuel extraction, as well as renewable energy production, microgrid infrastructure, and carbon credit negotiations. Several nations, including the Navajo and Moapa Paiute, began phasing out coal leases in favor of utility-scale solar and wind projects.

Timber

In 1910, Congress passed legislation authorizing the logging of reservation forests. To fund a professional forestry program, administrative charges were deducted from tribal timber contracts. In 1972, the administrative fee program was modified, and passage of the 1975 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act gave tribal leaders increased tribal control over reservation timber.

Reservation leaders began planning to increase timber revenues by developing value-added wood product industries. The creation of the Intertribal Timber Council in 1979 provided tribes with technical assistance to develop wood product industries. In 1990, Congress passed the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act, which increased tribal decision-making powers over reservation timber and provided the potential for greater monetary support for tribal conservation efforts.

In the 2020s, Indigenous communities across the United States continued to advance efforts in sustainable natural resource development, including renewable energy projects, forestry management, and environmental restoration. Despite these positive directions, most tribal nations did not possess sufficient reserves of energy minerals, forests, or other market-dominant resources to independently influence national or global markets. As a result, tribes remained largely dependent on external market conditions and non-Indigenous corporations for the development, processing, and distribution of natural resources.

Revenue from natural resource projects—such as solar or wind energy installations, oil and gas leases, and timber harvesting—often provided limited or temporary economic benefits. In many cases, income took the form of small, irregular per-capita payments distributed to tribal members during active project periods. While these ventures contributed to local infrastructure and community programs, they generally did not create consistent, long-term employment opportunities. This continued reliance on fluctuating resource markets reflected broader structural challenges facing tribal economies in the early twenty-first century, including limited capital access, regulatory constraints, and ongoing environmental and jurisdictional conflicts.

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