Navajo Water Project
uswateralliance.org
uswateralliance.org
They haul water because the wells beneath their land pose an extreme health risk as the article points out.
The article however, does not point out why those wells are contaminated. Nor does the project mention it.
They are contaminated because of all the rogue, illegal, unsafe, and exploitative uranium mining done during the Cold War.
The problem of contamination is so bad that over 40% of tribal members are forced to haul water.
It's a disgrace that the problem exists in this form, but it's worse to consider all the heartache and suffering that had to occur before determining the illnesses and birth defects were caused by the water.
This is only counting the ones recognized by the Federal government, there are some only recognized by state governments, some with no land, some not recognized by any government.
There are plenty more in Canada too, and Mexico, under completely different and incompatible systems.
If you found the Najavo nation shockingly undeveloped, note that they are pretty much the most developed and organized of them all.
North America could be dotted with microstates just like the map of Europe shows, with more awareness of whats going on.
That approach might be a better solution for the Navajo Nation and other Native peoples on reservations. There would still be financing challenges, but it's likely cheaper overall and more sustainable than running pipes and cables long distances out to remote locations.
The wealthier tribes, such as those on the Washington Coast, have the vast majority of their members living off-reservation by choice because of exactly this issue.