HERE AT NAVAJO COUNCIL HEALTH, EDUCATION AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE WHERE CONCERNED GROUPS AND INDIVIDUAL COMMENTING TO COMMITTEE ABOUT HRI/URI’S PROPOSED URANIUM MINING.
THE HEHS COMMITTEE REACHES A QUORUM WITH THE ARRIVAL OF HEHS COMMITTEE MEMBER DELEGATE DWIGHT WITHERSPOON. HEHS COMMITTEE MEMBER DELEGATE WALTER PHELPS DOES THE INNOVATION.
DURING ANNOUNCENTS, HEALTH, EDUCATION AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE MEMBER JOSHUA BUTLER INTRODUCED RITA CAPITAN, CRONWPOINT CHAPTER VICE PRESIDENT, AND EASTERN NAVAJO DINE’ AGAINST URANIUM MINING
THE HEHS COMMITTEE IS REVIEWING AGENDA AND ADOPTS AGENDA.
Since Committee has official started meeting,
HEHS COMMITTEE MEMBER DELEGATE JOSHUA BUTLER
We seem to all understand except one of our colleagues from the Far East. I want to get down to specifics: what do u need? how can some of us help you? What you are talking about is what we have heard so we need timeline.
BECENTI CHAPTER VICE PRESIDENT JONATHAN PERRY
WE’D LIKE community to be involved and Legislation 0373-13/RDC 69-13 to be rescinded because of questions regarding it. We’d also like Committee to support legislation 0091-140091-14 opposing it.
Church Rock sitting on contaminated land from former uranium mining, especially Red Pond cummunity. Those families are repeatedly moved annually and they are being asked to move again so their area can be cleaned. We also want more water studies in area. There are two aquifers in area. There are some health studies but need more so we use statistics to address remediation and health issues.
DINE’ NO NUKES MEMBER LEONA MORGAN
one of main concerns brot up by Delegate Leonard Tsosie is that URI/HRI cud sue Navajo Naion. Understand. Section 17 needs to be cleaned and we know that URI/HRI wants to water down requirements. We’d like to have tribal government help us with public forum to address holes in tribal laws regarding former uranium mining and clean up. We need to look at URI/HRI financial reports if URI/HRI sues Navajo Nation to get access to Section 18, which is their land. And Nose Rock is where URI/HRI wants to do conventional uranium mining. And uranium waste piles don’t have air regulations so we need to examine what URI/HRI plans and have independent study of economic feasibility of URI/HRI project. But they have to mine more than Section 8. We know that Section 8 won’t produce enough uranium to be profitable. And Texas won’t allow URI/HRI to do uranium mining there. We’d also like URI/HRI to do clean up of Section 18, which is what they promised.
COUNCIL DELEGATE DANNY SIMPSON
like what Delegate Butler said about the impact of former uranium mining. It is devastating. These closed mines are still affecting our people. We want to enhance our laws, make our laws stronger – Dine’ Protection Act and Uranium Transportation Act so there’s no more 0373-13 because of loop hole. I said that 0373-13 is illegal and that is why Legislation opposing 0373-13 is going thru legislative process. We need to pressure federal government to clean up Navajo Reservation cuz former uranium mining contamination is not just in eastern part of the reservation. So we ask you to support Legislation 0091-14.
