Stephen Roe Lewis: Pioneering Solar-Powered Canals for a Sustainable Future

Under Governor Stephen Roe Lewis’s leadership, the Gila River Indian Community has initiated a groundbreaking project to convert irrigation canals into solar-powered systems. In October, the community’s first solar canal began generating power, providing both solar energy and reducing water evaporation. This pilot project, funded with $5.65 million from the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, covers half a mile of irrigation canals and produces roughly 1 megawatt of power. Lewis emphasizes the need for a federal “moonshot” initiative to tackle aridification and advocates for renewable energy development on Indian Reservations, which has historically faced many constraints. Read more.