The White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona is reportedly near a settlement that would finally allow a dam to be built on the Fort Apache Reservation.

The tribe has been seeking the dam for decades. Concerns over the loach minnow, a threatened species, has hindered development of the reservation's natural resources.

"We have an abundance of streams and rivers, but we don't have any groundwater," Chairman Ronnie Lupe told The Arizona Republic. "We need it so bad, it's pitiful."

The deal hasn't been finalized but Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Arizona) has already introduced S.3128 to lend $5 million to the tribe to design the $127 million dam. The tribe would use settlement funds to build the facility.

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Plan for new dam threatens endangered fish (The Arizona Republic 7/20)