Roughly 20% of the nation’s total oil and natural gas reserves, 30% of domestic coal reserves west of the Mississippi River and additional natural minerals – altogether worth about $1.5 trillion – are on Native American lands, according to a 2014 study from think tank Property and Environment Research Center (PERC).
However, about 86% of Indigenous land with energy and mineral resource potential remain undeveloped and just 3% of domestic oil production comes from tribal land.
“Resource tribes depend on the development of their resources to create better tomorrows for our children,” Conrad Stewart, the director of energy and water for the Crow Nation of Montana, told Fox News Digital in an interview. “It was basically a mandate in Indian policy to establish and develop our resources.” Read more…
