How can a tribe determine which energy resources may be developed on its tribal lands?
The Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development’s (IEED’s) Division of Energy and Mineral Development Office (DEMD) has a technical library which contains digital versions of energy and mineral resource reports which were completed in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s by the U.S. Geological Survey on almost all Indian reservations in the United States. These publicly available reports include comprehensive details on all of the conventional energy and mineral resources that are either known or are inferred to exist on Indian lands. DEMD has PDF versions of all reports. While these reports are specific to conventional (non-renewable) energy and mineral resources, there is considerable information about renewable energy in the public domain that can be located easily on several Web sites, such as the Department of Energy’s renewable energy sites. For more information and assistance, contact the DEMD at (303) 969-5270, review the DEMD summary, or visit the DEMD Web site.
