The San Carlos Apache Tribe has the exclusive rights to manage and develop all recreational facilities, wildlife and fisheries within the San Carlos Reservoir Site, Assistant Secretary Forrest J. Gerard announced today. The Reservoir lies entirely within the exterior boundaries of the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation and is formed by Coolidge Dam on the Gila River, near Globe, Arizona.
The announcement follows Gerard's January 11 approval of a renewal of the Tribe's Grant of Concession Agreement with the Department of the Interior for the operation of all San Carlos Reservoir Site concessions. In approving the Agreement renewal, the Assistant Secretary emphasized that "the Tribe, in implementing the Agreement, will exercise their jurisdictional powers of self-government: and will manage their own affairs."
"Comprehensive management of these resources will be enhanced
by a single governmental manager system - and the Tribe has a good track record covering the ten year period of the 1968 Agreement," stated Gerard. The Tribe has agreed that charges collected from resource users "shall be reasonable and schedules shall be posted in at least two conspicuous places on the premises."
Over the past ten years, the San Carlos Apache Tribe has been the only water user to actively accommodate the thousands of visitors attracted yearly to this prime scenic site, which is widely known as the best bass-breeding spot in Arizona. Gerard stated that the Bureau of Indian Affairs will provide "all necessary assistance to assure success of the resource management system, and to assure that the rights of all user groups are respected."
