http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nonukesaz/message/674;_ylc=X3oDMTJxZ29oZWcyBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzE5NjA4MzQ4BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA4MzI2OQRtc2dJZAM2NzQEc2VjA2Rtc2cEc2xrA3Ztc2cEc3RpbWUDMTIwNzIxMjg0Nw--NEWS FROM THE NAVAJO NATION
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT & VICE PRESIDENT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 30, 2008
NAVAJO PRESIDENT JOE SHIRLEY, JR., TELLS CONGRESSIONAL
SUBCOMMITTEE
NATION WILL NOT WATCH ANOTHER GENERATION HARMED BY URANIUM MINING
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley, Jr.,
told a
Congressional subcommittee here Friday that the Navajo Nation
remains
opposed to uranium mining on or near its land, and will take
whatever action
necessary to prevent it.
"It is unconscionable to me that the federal government would
consider
allowing uranium mining to be restarted anywhere near the Navajo
Nation when
we are still suffering from previous mining activities," he said.
"In
response to attempts to renew uranium mining, the Navajo Nation
Council
passed, and I signed into law, the Diné Natural Resources
Protection Act.
This law places a ban on all uranium mining both within the
Navajo Nation
boundary, and within Navajo Indian Country."
Testifying at a joint oversight hearing before the Subcommittee
on National
Parks, Forests and Public Lands at the Flagstaff City Council
Chambers,
President Shirley said Navajos "do not want to not sit by,
ignorant of the
effects of uranium mining, only to watch another generation of
mothers and
fathers die."
"We are doing everything we can to speak out and do something
about it," he
said. "We do not want a new generation of babies born with birth
defects. We
will not allow our people to live with cancers and other
disorders as
faceless companies make profits only to declare bankruptcy and
then walk
away from the damage they have caused, regardless of the bond
they have in
place."
The hearing was held to gather testimony on "Community Impacts of
Proposed
Uranium Mining Near Grand Canyon National Park." In December
2007, the U.S.
Forest Service authorized VANE Minerals, LLC, to conduct
exploratory
drilling for uranium three miles south of Grand Canyon National
Park. The
Park Service used Categorical Exclusion Category 8 to approve the
drilling,
which covers short-term investigations and which had limited
public
involvement. Consultation with tribes amounted to sending a
letter.
On March 6, Subcommittee Chairman Congressman Raul Grijalva wrote
to U.S.
Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer to ask that the Forest Service
re-initiate
the process "to ensure a more rigorous public involvement and
environmental
analysis process."
About 200 people filled the council chamber at the Flagstaff City
Hall. Also
presenting testimony during the first morning panel with
President Shirley
was Kaibab Paiute Tribal Chairwoman Ono Segundo and Havasupai
Tribal
Chairman Don Watahomigie. Both also testified that their tribes
are opposed
to renewed uranium mining in and around the Grand Canyon region.
Appearing with Congressman Grijalva was Arizona Congressman Ed
Pastor and
California Congresswoman Grace Napolitano.
President Shirley said that as the Cold War raged more than 50
years ago,
the United States government began a massive effort to mine and
process
uranium ore for use in the country's nuclear weapons programs.
Much of that
uranium was mined on or near Navajo lands by Navajo hands.
"Today, the legacy of uranium mining continues to devastate both
the people
and the land," he said. "The workers, their families, and their
neighbors
suffer increased incidences of cancers and other medical
disorders caused by
their exposure to uranium. Fathers and sons who went to work in
the mines
and the processing facilities brought uranium dust into their
homes to
unknowingly expose their families to radiation."
"The mines, many simply abandoned, have left open open scars in
the ground
with leaking radioactive waste. The companies that processed the
uranium
ore dumped their waste in open – and in some cases
unauthorized – pits,
exposing both the soil and the water to radiation."
Asked by Congressman Pastor whether the Navajo Nation sees any
benefits to
come from uranium mining, President Shirley the opposite has been
true in
the past.
"Many of my people have died. Many of my medicine people have
died,
Congressman," he said. "And as a result, our culture has gone
away, some of
it. Some of the medicine people with the knowledge they have,
when they go
on, it's just like a library has gone on. You lose a lot of
culture. That
has happened to my people."
He said the tragedy of uranium's legacy extends not only to those
who worked
in the mines but to those who worked and lived near the mines
that also
experienced devastating illnesses. Decades later, families who
live in those
same areas continue to experience health problems.
"The remnants of uranium activity continue to pollute our land,
our water,
and our lives," he said. "It would be unforgivable to allow this
cycle to
continue for another generation."
He explained that in recent years, many companies have approached
the Navajo
Nation with promises of riches.
"They have promised us newer and cleaner methods of mining that
they say
will not harm the land, the water, or the people," he said. "We
have
repeatedly declined their offers."
He said the Nation has been told that in situ leach mining is a
process that
injects a solution into the ground to separate the ore from the
surrounding
rock.
"These companies claim the process is harmless," President
Shirley said.
"The science on this process is, at best, inconclusive, and, at
worst,
points to increased radioactive contaminants in the groundwater
after the
mining operations cease."
He said he cannot believe the claims of safety "when history and
science
establish a different record."
"The Navajo people have been consistently lied to by companies
and
government officials concerning the effects of various mining
activities.
Unfortunately, the true cost of these activities is understood
only later
when the companies have stolen away with their profits leaving
the Navajo
people to bear the health burdens."
Asked by whether he was contacted by the Forest Service about
allowing VANE
to conduct exploratory drilling near the Grand Canyon, President
Shirley
said no. He added that any Navajo official or division director
who may have
been contacted would have given the Forest Service the same
answer.
"Every testimony coming from the Navajo Nation, whether it's
through me, any
of our council delegates, any of our legislators, it's no, we do
not want
the further mining of the uranium ore on Navajoland or on land
contiguous to
Navajoland," he said. "So if there's any conversation that took
place with
any of the U.S. Forest representatives, that's what they've
heard."
"We just don't want it," he said. "We have a law in place, and
that's the
Diné Natural Resources Protection Act that says no way will we
allow, no way
will the Navajo Nation or any of its departments or any of its
staff allow
the further mining of uranium ore on Navajo land."
CONTACT
George Hardeen, Communications Director
Office of the President & Vice President
The Navajo Nation
DESK 928-871-7917
pressoffice@opvp.org
<illegal codetop.opencompose('pressoffice@opvp.org','','','')>
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