Carol Berry Members of the Black Mesa Water Coalition, Flagstaff, Ariz. and others, including residents of Navajo and Hopi communities in northern Arizona, rallied Dec. 8 outside the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement in Denver, where a meeting took place with OSM over a permit for Black Mesa Mine. Federal officials listen but reject tribal members’ concerns about aquifer use
By
Carol Berry, Today correspondent
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A study in contrasts
A group of Navajo and Hopi pickets and their supporters walked quietly in front of the skyscraper that houses the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement with signs deploring coal mining and environmental degradation. The customary drumming and chanting that sometimes accompany Native rallies and marches were absent – the Hopi delegation from northern Arizona reassured Navajo counterparts of their support, but said they had to avoid noise and disruption because for them this month marks the time of earth’s renewal. Several speakers at an impromptu gathering Dec. 8, including Ben Nuvamsa, Hopi tribal chairman, stressed that December is a “very sacred time for us, and people have taken a great risk to be here.” Others said many of the representatives of families, clans and villages were women because many of the men were taking part in ceremonies in Arizona.
Representatives from Hopi, Tewa and Navajo communities met with OSM to protest its pending decision to approve a request by Peabody Western Coal Co. to include Kayenta and Black Mesa mines under a single, long-term permit, triggering fears that pristine aquifers may be tapped for industrial use. It was a study in contrasts – one group gave their clan and village, the other their job and job title. One group was emotional and open, the other restrained and silent.It was a listening event, as the government heard some often-tearful entreaties to save the water for future generations, but also a closed one. The decision has been made. Wahleah Johns, Navajo, a co-director of the Black Mesa Water Coalition, acknowledged at a panel the day before that some people had to work in coal mining to provide for their families. But she described it as a terrible tradeoff. This group was aware of potential financial loss if the project did not go forward, but were unabashedly opposed. Some of their voices:
• “We have rights as American citizens, as tribal members, and we are exercising that right. Our Hopi traditions center on water – our songs, our prayers,” Nuvamsa. • “With a life-of-mine permit, Peabody can mine as much as they want as long as they can. They used pristine water (for coal slurry) – 4,600 acre-feet per year; 3.3 million gallons per day. It was an abuse to our sacred water,” Johns. • “We’re the only species that needs energy to survive – and there are other energies besides coal and uranium,” Shannon Francis, Hopi/Navajo, the Denver coordinator for the Black Mesa Water Coalition delegation. • “We are not in favor of it. The (Hopi) Tribal Council cannot show us any resolution that has been passed in support of this. If the EIS sanctions Black Mesa, it will be an abrogation of the rights of the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” Maxine Wadsworth, Hopi, Shungopavi, Ariz. • “It is our children that will be experiencing these disrupting impacts on our resources,” Samantha Honani, Hopi, First Mesa, Ariz. • “We have to be strong and say ‘No’ to that white man who tries to give us money for our land,” Dale Jackson, Hopi, Old Oraibi, Ariz. • “We’ve been manipulated and deceived. They don’t live there, so they don’t care. Corporate America needs to change their ways,” John Benally, Navajo, near Big Mountain, Ariz. • “They’re there for the almighty dollar – I see that in Black Mesa,” Gordon Isaac, Navajo, Gulf War veteran. |
Because the tribal council is split, primarily over the Peabody mine issue, “we cannot take an official position as a tribe.”
Nuvamsa requested a delay in the permit approval until the new administration is sworn in, but said, “We are prepared to take further action if the Record of Decision is approved.” He questioned the need for haste, noting, “There is plenty of coal up to 2026” without Black Mesa Mine.
The meeting included Hopi and Navajo people who made a 12-hour trip to Denver by van; OSM officials, including Klein and Dennis Winterringer, leader, Black Mesa Project environmental impact statement; and a representative of the Department of Justice’s community relations division. A security guard was outside the room and police watched sign-carrying supporters on the sidewalk below.
OSM listened through the three-hour meeting, and Klein said near the end, “We as professional government employees are responsible for administering leases.When a coal company brings us a permit application – and if they have a lease – we must process that application.” He pointed to a thick book of regulations held by another employee.
“We don’t control the process – we have to make sure we fulfill these regulations,” he said, and noted that the agency is going forward with the Record of Decision, which allows the project to proceed.
At the outset, Enei Begay, a co-director of the Black Mesa Water Coalition, Flagstaff, Ariz., read a statement drafted by the delegation to express united concern about the project and to represent families, clans and communities “to protect our shared land and water.”
Wahleah Johns, Navajo, of Horse Lake on Black Mesa, also a co-director of the Coalition, said hers is “a different way of life – we respect everything” including the mesa, which is “the female mountain within our four sacred mountains.”
Black Mesa “is alive, she’s breathing, but the elders are worried that she’s getting sick,” Johns said, noting that the Diné Hataalii (Navajo traditional practitioners) Association said the project will have a “devastating effect on the cultural survival to the future generations of both the Navajo and Hopi people.”
Esther Kootswatewa Honyestewa, Hopi, Hotevilla, Third Mesa, Ariz., handed Klein an ear of corn and said, “Maybe you can see what it’s like to be a farmer” as she is.
Water is part of birth and funeral customs for the Hopi, she said, and “maybe it’s nothing to you, but it means a lot to us.”
“We don’t have water in our homes, yet you’re taking our water to light up Los Angeles and Las Vegas,” Honyestewa said.
Dale Jackson, Hopi, Old Oraibi, Ariz., described the process as “really sickening,” and said “it should all be stopped.”
“We don’t want people to export coal to China and other countries,” he said. “The land is not for sale.”
The practical and cultural importance of water was stressed by most of the delegates, one of whom, Kevin Nash, Hopi, First Mesa, Ariz., said “It’s not about just waking up and taking a shower.” If the project was short of water for any reason, “they will fall back on Navajo Aquifer water and we don’t want any more used for mining purposes.”
Maxine Wadsworth, Hopi, Shungopavi, Ariz., said water from the springs on Black Mesa is critical for ceremonial use and “nothing will ever replace it.”She added, “You are asking us to make a decision on our lives – to deprive our children and our grandchildren,” a theme repeated by many of the participants who stressed planning for future generations.
Gloria Johns, of Horse Lake near a Peabody mining operation, decried “decisions you’ve already made” and said humans “were given the opportunity to speak on behalf of all that is created” but it is “hard for non-indigenous people to understand.”
Nuvamsa, who described years of working for the BIA, urged OSM officials to do as he had to do: “Look deep inside yourself and ask that question – is this decision going to be good for Tewa and Hopi? Because you have that responsibility.”
OSM was presented with a number of documents, including letters from Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and the Diné Hataalii Association, Lukachukai, Ariz. to Dirk Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior, asking for a suspension of the Black Mesa Project approval process; letters and petitions from tribal members; and a resolution from the Hopi village of Tewa.
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Saturday, Dec 20 at 8:41 AM Anonymous wrote ...
I have been following the fight to stop mountaintop removal for coal back east, and am very concerned that this may be where Peabody is going with this. The coal companies are trying to devestate as much as possible, after the environmental laws have been relaxed by Bush. There is a site called ilovemountains.org that is put together by a coolition of people who reside in the Appalachain Mountains and are trying to stop them. There is a is also a National Memorial for the Mountains.
13927773Tuesday, Dec 16 at 12:08 PM lesnar wrote ...
I just don't understand why more people don't stand up to protect a resource like water. Most political scientist predict that water will be even more valuable than oil in the near future. The reason being that it will be a scarce resource. Those that allow it to be taken away for profit will have to move eventually due to lack of water in the area-probably with no money either.
13688219Monday, Dec 15 at 1:46 PM Fran Whittle UK wrote ...
My thoughts are with the people trying, at this sacred time, to preserve such a precious resource as water and to stop it being polluted and used in such a wasteful way. I have visited your beautiful land and know how much it means to you. I hope the new government may hear your pleas and help you.
13632729Monday, Dec 15 at 7:53 AM Jerry Holloway AKA shadowwalker wrote ...
I agree they should leave it for the tribe I'm cherokee. they have abused Native American for over 500 years and looks like they will not stop
13612739Sunday, Dec 14 at 2:48 PM Anonymous wrote ...
I'm sure you all have thought of this question, but thought I'd pose it anyway....what percentage of the coal that would be mined is for US use??? How much is going for export to other countries.... That may help in presenting your case to Peabody to retain your water rights...or is there any other issue involved besides the resource issue???
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