The reservation covers 829,440 acres, or about 1,300 square miles, in northwestern Minnesota. Under an ordinance enacted May 5, 2023, by the White Earth Reservation Business Committee, farmers wanting to irrigate within White Earth Nation or in a 5-mile perimeter outside the reservation need to have a permit from the White Earth Division of Natural Resources. Vehicles from the White Earth Division of Natural Resources in Mahnomen, Minn., on Aug. On May 5, 2023, the White Earth Reservation Business Committee - the governing body for the White Earth Band of Chippewa’s reservation - passed a new water resolution and ordinance that required farmers who wish to irrigate on the reservation or within a five-mile zone around it to apply for a tribal permit, in addition to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources permit. While farmers on and near the White Earth Band of Chippewa Reservation - or White Earth Nation - believe state, rather than tribal, officials control the issue of irrigation permits, the band itself believes it retained the right to control natural resources like water through its treaties with the U.S.
