On March 3, 2026, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan granted the Tribal Nations’ motion to intervene in Torongo v. Burgum, the case that threatens the long-sought designation of the Chuckwalla National Monument.
In August 2025, five Tribal Nations — the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, the Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe, the Chemeheuvi Indian Tribe, the Colorado River Indian Tribes, and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians — filed a motion to intervene to protect Chuckwalla’s national monument status. For years, the Tribal Nations led the effort to establish Chuckwalla National Monument to protect the landscape’s religious, spiritual, historic, and cultural significance. The Tribal Nations were joined in these efforts by local and state governmental entities, local businesses, California elected officials, and other local organizations. Consequently, in 2024, President Biden designated Chuckwalla a national monument. In May 2025, a Michigan resident who purportedly has a mining claim within the monument boundaries along with a national off-road vehicle special interest group filed this lawsuit challenging Chuckwalla’s status.
“The court’s decision reinforces the Tribal Nations’ ability to protect Chuckwalla for their next generations. The Tribal Nations are the original stewards of the Chuckwalla landscape, and they will vigorously defend against this meritless attack,” said NARF Staff Attorney Lenny Powell.
In addition to granting the Tribal Nations’ motion to intervene, the court granted a motion to intervene filed on behalf of nine nonprofit groups — CactusToCloud Institute, California Native Plant Society, CalWild, Center for Biological Diversity, Conservation Lands Foundation, National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, and Vet Voice Foundation — also seeking to protect Chuckwalla’s national monument designation.
Learn more about Tribal Nations’ advocacy for their homelands in the Chuckwalla region.
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