Navajo Looks To Desalination To Combat Water Woes

By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – Tolani Lake Chapter is sitting on a gold mine – the Coconino Sandstone aquifer, one of the most extensive sources of groundwater in the state of Arizona. Unfortunately, it tastes so bad nobody can use it. But that could change soon.

Tolani Lake Chapter, working with the Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources, is planning to pursue a grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for development of the Southwest Navajo Rural Water Supply Project.

At a meeting Sept. 17 at Tolani Lake, Thomas Walker Jr., chairman of the Health and Social Services committee, said tests of three well sites in the area confirm that Leupp has the highest grade of water from the Coconino aquifer. At Tolani Lake, a short distance away, things are different.

“The raw water is brackish; it's low-grade. That's backed up by hydrology studies. But now we have a proposal, an idea to reclaim that water to make it usable for the community for agriculture, livestock and future development of the Navajo Nation,” Walker said.

Tolani Lake has experienced severe drought conditions and water shortages for the last 20 years. In past years, the Navajo Nation government declared an emergency for the area due to severe water shortages. An existing waterline from Leupp Chapter serves approximately 300 to 400 people within 35 miles of Tolani Lake Chapter, including Navajo Partitioned Land, the former Joint Use Area, and a small portion of the former 1934 Bennett Freeze area.

But the rest of the estimated 300 community members living on the chapter's outskirts are not served by a waterline and have to resort to hauling water 40 miles to where they live. Some haul daily just to have water for their livestock.

In addition, nearby wells and unregulated water sources such as those in Box Springs and Black Falls are contaminated with uranium and arsenic. Though not meant for human consumption, they still are used because no other source of water is available.

Tolani Lake previously initiated a program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to bring water from Leupp for livestock purposes but only about 1 percent of the community was served before the program ran out of funding.

According to a study cited by the chapter conducted by Errol L. Montgomery & Associates Inc., entitled “Desalination of Brackish Groundwater in Arizona,” reclaiming brackish and saline groundwater is integral to Arizona's future water supply. Not only is municipal demand increasing rapidly in the state but water demand for power production is expected to increase at a rate of about 18,000 acre-feet per year.

The Central Arizona Water Conservation District, which administers the Central Arizona Project, has embarked on a program to identify and prioritize groundwater basins where desalination is most feasible.

Areas of interest include the Picacho Basin near Casa Grande along the Gila River, the Safford Basin, the Wilcox Basin, and the Coconino aquifer of the Little Colorado River Basin both on and off the Navajo and Hopi reservations, because “this area comprises the most extensive and potentially most important brackish and saline groundwater resource in the state.”

Brackish groundwater is defined as having 1,000 to 10,000 milligrams per liter of total dissolved solids. More than 600 million acre feet of brackish groundwater is estimated to be stored in Arizona aquifers, generally at depths of less than 1,200 feet.

“One reason we want to develop the C-aquifer and run a big water line is because we have a system that starts from Greasewood and Greasewood isn't producing water from some alluvial wells,” said Najam Tarriq, Water Resources branch director for Technical Construction and Operation.

“That alluvial aquifer is limited. Right now, it is under very high stress. It does not have the capacity to carry any more homes. It does not have the capacity to deliver water for a new clinic in Dilkon area. There is no water available at this time for any industrial development, or any economic development, or any residential development. This is maxed out.”

In addition, he said, if something goes wrong with the Greasewood system, there are over 4,000 customers that could totally run out of water. “So considering that, this project is actually essential not for our present needs, but for our future, residential, industrial, municipal and agricultural needs.”

Freddie Howard, Tolani Lake Chapter president, said there is going to be a lot of competition for the grant money, “but I think we have the edge in it because the money's available for rural communities under 50,000. The area we're going to be developing water in has just about that population going from Leupp all the way to Dilkon.

“I think when you look at all the requirements, this area almost fits like a glove to use that money. The other thing it's going to help is the hospital that's going to be built in Dilkon would have assured water. Right now, there's a lot of questions about the alluvium that that water is coming from in Greasewood. It's not guaranteed water. Sometimes they run short.”

Howard said it also will help Navajo in its claim for water rights. “Right now we're going through the Little Colorado litigation and what this will do is it will enhance our wet-water rights. It won't be paper water anymore. We're going to be using that water.”

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October Uranium Forum - SMSC Donates Life Saving Equipment

CORNWALL BRIDGE REOPENS: CONFLICT NOT OVER
See 'Native Pride’ at end of column

Uranium Forum To Be Held At Acoma
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – Indigenous Peoples from all over North America will converge at Acoma Pueblo this fall to join in an inter-tribal campaign to end the latest uranium boom threatening communities throughout Indian Country.

The 7th Indigenous Uranium Forum will take place Oct. 22-24 in Acoma Pueblo at Sky City Hotel.

The forum began in 1987 with a series of conferences on the environmental and health impacts of uranium development in the Grants Mineral Belt in New Mexico.

Over the last 22 years, the forum has grown into a vehicle for strategy development and coordination of communities affected along the entire lifeline of nuclear power – from uranium mining in the Grants Mineral Belt to nuclear waste storage at Yucca Mountain.

“For the first time in 60 years, indigenous peoples in North America have the greatest opportunity to stop further uranium/nuclear development and to promote renewable energy,” said Anna Rondon, forum organizer, adding that the political climate is perfect for organizing nationally.

“We hope to leave the forum with clear actions as we continue the resistance of corporate/government invasion of nuclear developmental terrorism on our homelands,” she said. The forum is spiritually based and will have private ceremonies.

Historically the negative health, economic, and social impacts of nuclear power have fallen on the back of Indigenous Peoples.

Although the forum will focus attention on the uranium developments being proposed at Mount Taylor and throughout the Grants Mineral Belt, it also will provide education on a variety of topics, from the health effects of uranium mining to the implications of U.S. energy policy to the opportunities provided by the emerging green economy.

Most importantly, it will provide an opportunity for communities to network, organize, and strategize, Rondon said.

Information: http://www.siuf.net/index.html

SMSC Donates 34 More Automatic External Defibrillators To Local Law Enforcement, Government Units
Program Works to Save Lives
By Tessa Lehto
Prior Lake, MN – Lives are being saved by law enforcement officers using Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) donated by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s Mdewakanton LIFE Program. The SMSC has given away 574 AEDs since the program began in 2004. The SMSC announces the recent approval of the donation of 34 more AEDs to Minnesota organizations and departments.

The Mdewakanton Emergency Services Department administers the Mdewakanton LIFE Program which donates defibrillators to organizations including law enforcement programs, charitable groups, and schools.

SMSC Chairman Stanley R. Crooks commented on the AEDs recently approved for donation, “While we hope that these AEDs won’t ever be needed, if they are, it is our hope that they will be used to save lives. We are happy to be able to help keep our area residents safe.”

Dramatic “Saves”On July 12, 2009, a life was saved by State Patrol Trooper Michael Olson who used an AED donated by the SMSC to save the life of a 68-year-old man who was slumped over the wheel of his car in a ditch at the Century Avenue Exit in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. This was believed to be the first “save” by an AED donated by the SMSC to the Minnesota State Patrol as part of a program to equip all State Patrol cars with the devices. Through that program the SMSC donated 200 AEDs to the state.

In 2008 the Scott County Sheriff’s Department had three dramatic saves using AEDs donated by the SMSC in 2007. In each instance officers arrived on the scene to a patient already receiving CPR. Using the AEDs kept in their patrol cars, in three separate incidents, the officers applied one shock with the AED which was successful in resuscitating the patients that ultimately saved their lives. Over the years, the SMSC has donated 28 AEDs to the Scott County Sheriff’s Department.

Mdewakanton Emergency Services has also used an AED to successfully resuscitate at least two patients on the reservation in recent years. AEDs are located in 27 locations around the reservation and its enterprises.

Twin Cities Metropolitan Area: 23 AEDs DonatedTwenty-three AEDs will go to organizations in or near the Twin Cities. Two AEDs each will go to the Hopkins Fire Department, Echo First Responders/Police Department; Cologne Fire and Rescue, Ramsey County Sheriff's Department, Regions Hospital St Paul Emergency Medical Services, and the Sterns County Sheriff's Office.

One AED each will go to Belle Plaine Public Schools, City of Falcon Height, Chanhassen Fire Department, Medicine Lake Fire Department, LeCenter Fire Department, Minneapolis Police Reserve, Dodge Center Fire Department, Medford Fire Dept, Pickwick Volunteer Fire Department (Winona), Grant County Emergency Management, and Nativity of Mary Church (Bloomington).

Tribal: 11 AEDs DonatedEleven AEDs will go to tribal entities. Five AEDs will go to the Grand Portage Band of Chippewa in northern Minnesota for use by their health department. The units will be mounted in the new daycare/Headstart Building (which the SMSC helped fund), the Community Building, two churches, and a fitness center.

Four AEDs will go to the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe Indians: two each to Bois Forte Tribal Health Services in Nett Lake and the Nett Lake Tribal Police Department. One AED each will go to the American Indian Magnet School of St. Paul, Minnesota, and Nazlini Community School (Navajo) Ganado, Arizona, on the Navajo Reservation.

BackgroundA shock from an AED is the best way to prevent permanent damage or death if delivered in the first few minutes after collapse from sudden cardiac arrest. For years the SMSC has used defibrillators on the reservation. Mdewakanton Emergency Services and Mystic Lake Casino Hotel Security officers receive training in the use of AEDs.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death among adults in the United States. It can also affect children and teenagers. When someone collapses from sudden cardiac arrest, damage to the brain and other vital organs begins in as little as four minutes. Often the heart does not stop completely but goes into ventricular fibrillation, in which the heart quivers rapidly but does not pump blood. This is where an AED can help by restoring a normal heartbeat.

In 2008, the SMSC donated 215 AEDs to local fire and police departments, schools, and other organizations. In previous years the SMSC has donated defibrillators to local schools, tribes, fire departments, nursing homes, the Minnesota State Patrol, and other organizations. The SMSC has given away 574 defibrillators since 2004*. (*Though some of these AED donations were approved for fiscal year 2009, some AEDs may not be distributed until fiscal year 2010.)

To ApplyPriority is given to American Indian tribes in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Wisconsin, first responding agencies, and governmental agencies. Although the SMSC receives many worthy requests, currently, because of the large volume of need, requests from agencies serving less than 50 clients, churches outside of Scott County, and non-profit organizations outside of the five-state area are not eligible for consideration.

Organizations which meet the above criteria and are in need of an AED may send a written request to the Mdewakanton LIFE Program, Mdewakanton Emergency Services, 2330 Sioux Trail NW, Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372. Inquiries may be made to 952-233-1077. A downloadable application form is also available at www.mdfire.org. About Mdewakanton Emergency Services and the SMSCMdewakanton Emergency Services, a full-time, professional fire department staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, is owned and operated by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, a federally recognized Indian Tribe in Minnesota. Each month the department responds to an average of 200 calls and conducts an average of 60 patient transports in its ambulances.

About the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux CommunityThe SMSC utilizes its financial resources from gaming and non-gaming enterprises to pay for all of the internal infrastructure of the Tribe, including but not limited to roads, water and sewer systems, emergency services, and essential services to its Tribal members in education, health, and welfare. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community has a charitable giving program which comes from a cultural and social tradition to assist those in need.

Over the past 12 years the SMSC has donated more than $162 million to charitable organizations and Indian Tribes, including more than $20.9 million in fiscal year 2009. The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, a federally recognized Indian Tribe in Minnesota, is the owner and operator of Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, Little Six Casino, Playworks, Dakotah! Sport and Fitness, The Meadows at Mystic Lake, and other enterprises on a reservation south of the Twin Cities.

This press release and other information may be downloaded from the SMSC website at www.shakopeedakota.org.

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Relationship Of Kidney Disease, Diabetes To Uranium Mines - SMSC Mobile Health Unit Fall Schedule

Kidney Study Shows Proximity To Uranium Mines Increases Health Risk
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
ALBUQUERQUE – Residents living close to uranium mines, especially large mines, are more likely to have kidney disease, hypertension, diabetes, and autoimmune disease, according to a University of New Mexico health researcher.

Johnnye Lewis, Ph.D., principal investigator for the DiNEH Network for Environmental Health Project and director of the Community Environmental Health Program at the UNM Health Sciences Center, briefed a joint state Indian Affairs/Radiation and Hazardous Materials Committee Thursday at UNM on results of an ongoing study.

The University of Texas, Southwest Research and Information Center in Albuquerque, and Lewis' program at UNM are collaborating on the project with 20 chapters from the Eastern Agency of the Navajo Nation. The study was initiated at their request, Lewis said.

“They were concerned about the high levels of kidney diseases in the chapters and wondered if uranium, which is a kidney toxicant, could be contributing.” At present, there are about 1,200 participants in the study.

The National Institutes of Health and the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences funded and peer-reviewed the work. The results also have been reviewed for scientific merit and for protection of human subjects by the Navajo Nation Human Research Review Board, which also reviews for protection and respect of Navajo culture, and the University of New Mexico Human Research Review Board.

“We knew there was significant exposure potential due to – at least on Navajo – 1,100 waste features that have not been remediated, where we have exposed materials that community members in their day-to-day activities could be coming into contact with; that those exposures could have been relatively enduring over the last 40 years; and that we had a relatively stable population that did not move at the frequencies that populations around most of the country did.”

Data from the DiNEH Project and various agencies have shown that about 75 percent of the Navajo people continue to haul water from unregulated sources. Of those sources, about 10 percent exceed the maximum contaminant levels in groundwater for heavy metals, including uranium.

“We know that much, but not all, of that hauled water is used for drinking in spite of stated Navajo policy that it is to be used for livestock only,” Lewis said. “I don't believe that the full 75 percent are using that for drinking, but a substantial amount of it is.”

More than 30 percent of Navajos do not have access to regulated water. That number compares to 12 percent of all tribal populations across the US and 0.6 percent of the U.S. population as a whole.

“We were concerned about the potential sensitivity of these populations to kidney disease,” Lewis said, adding that the prevalence of kidney disease is substantially higher for Native American and Hispanic populations than for a non-Hispanic white population.

“Looking at non-cancerous lung disease in people who were occupationally exposed to uranium, what you see is that for any duration of exposure, the Native American population was much more susceptible,” due in part to the shape of the lung and the deposition of particles, she said.

In addition to a higher prevalence of kidney disease, Native American and Hispanic populations in New Mexico also have a higher prevalence of hypertension and a higher prevalence of diabetes. The exposure factor increases the likelihood that you're going to have those diseases, she said. “The surprising factor that we found is that it is also a very good and significant predictor of autoimmune disease.”

The higher the dose, the more likely there will be damage. However, Lewis said she believes the damage is caused by the heavy metal, and not by the radiation.

“The exposure variable was showing up as an important predictor in disease even with as few as 300 people in our survey. What we have found consistently though is that if we go back and take the location of their home and look at that in relationship of the location of mines, that's an even better predictor.

“Many people don't know where these mines are. We ask people, 'Do you live within 2 miles of a mine?' We find that about 20 to 25 percent of the people who answer that question say no. We go back and look at the data that we have on where these mines are, and they actually do live within 2 miles of a mine.” She showed pictures of an abandoned mine site which one might walk right over top of and never notice.

“In trying to evaluate our exposures, we've also looked at water that's being pumped from unregulated wells. We've now sampled 108 wells. We find that about 17 of those 108 are showing exceedences for at least one primary maximum contaminant level for drinking water by U.S. EPA, many of those for uranium,” Lewis said. Researchers are only now beginning to incorporate that data into the analysis.

There are numerous questions that have not yet been addressed, some of which will be addressed by the DiNEH Project in the future as it moves into the phase of medical records review and clinical assessments.

“I think one of the questions that remains is what happens if you're exposed to more than one metal, because we see different things showing up in the water,” she said, for example, uranium and arsenic.

“The other question is what happens if you live in a house that was built with contaminated material, you interact with waste, and you drink the (contaminated) water. Or what happens if you have two of those and not the third. I think those are all questions that we still need to ask. We don't have those answered yet,” Lewis said.

Steve Dearwent, Ph.D., with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry in Atlanta, told the committee that ingestion and inhalation are the primary exposure routes for uranium.

“Ingestion could come from drinking contaminated drinking water or eating contaminated food. Inhalation could come through many different routes – such as children playing on waste piles or living in structures constructed of uranium-contaminated materials.

“There are some well-established health outcomes associated with uranium exposure, primarily kidney disease and lung cancer,” Dearwent said. “There is limited scientific evidence that there are other potential outcomes associated with uranium exposure: developmental delays, it's possibly an endocrine disrupter much like other heavy metals, and it could lead to DNA damage as well,” he said.

SMSC Mobile Unit Schedule Announced For Fall, '09
American Diabetes Association Event, Twin Cities Marathon, Others Planned
Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Communty
tmailto:tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org

Prior Lake, MN – This fall the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Mobile Unit will be kept busy providing services to Minnesota residents. In addition to the already announced collaboration with Scott County, the Mobile Unit will travel to northern Minnesota tribal communities on several occasions and provide services in the Twin Cities as well. The SMSC announces the upcoming fall schedule for its Mobile Unit, a combined project of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community's Health Department and Mdewakanton Emergency Services.

The SMSC Mobile Unit is both a mobile medical clinic which provides health screening, mammograms, prevention and education, and treatment services as well as a mobile incident command center which can be used to handle tactical emergency situations like search and rescue.

On Saturday, September 26, 2009, the Mobile Unit will travel to a special event held by the American Diabetes Association at General Mills World Headquarters in Golden Valley, Minnesota. The Mobile Unit will serve as on site medical support, command central, and the visual media point for the ADA’s 2009 Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes. The Walk to Fight Diabetes is an annual event to raise funds for research to find a cure for diabetes and for programs to improve the lives of people with diabetes.

“We’re happy to be able to provide our Mobile Unit to assist the American Diabetes Association with their event. Diabetes is reaching near epidemic proportions, particularly among American Indian people, so it is important to support efforts for research to help fight this often debilitating disease,” said SMSC Chairman Stanley R. Crooks.

Since going into service in the fall of 2007, more than 800 patients have received mammograms aboard the Mobile Unit at locations across the state. In addition, health screenings, dental services, and a diabetes management clinic have been held. The Mobile Unit also provides services to SMSC Community members, Native Americans who live in Scott County, and employees during monthly health screening events.

Another event the Mobile Unit will support is the Twin Cities Marathon on October 4, 2009. The Mobile Unit will be parked in front of the State Capitol and from the Unit SMSC Emergency Medical Services staff will provide Command Communications. During the marathon 11,000 runners from across the nation and 300,000 spectators will gather at the event which is a Boston Marathon qualifier and a US Olympic Team Trials - Marathon qualifier for both men and women.

The Mobile Unit will also be at the Mahkato 37th Annual Traditional Pow Wow in Mankato, Minnesota, September 19-20, 2009, where it will provide first aid and medical response as needed.

For more information about the SMSC Mobile Unit, go to www.smscmobile.org or call SMSC Mobile Unit Coordinator Christine Michael at 952-233-2964.

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Clark Out As President And CEO Of Uranium Resources - Healing Circle: A Native Soap Opera

URI President Steps Down: AngloGold Attorney Named Successor
Editorial Comment - ( I find the last paragraph of this story to be very interesting - BHO)
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – David N. Clark has stepped down as president and chief executive officer of Uranium Resources Inc., parent company of Hydro Resources Inc., which has proposed uranium mine operations in Churchrock and Crownpoint.

Clark also stepped down as a director of the company effective Sept. 3, according to Paul K. Willmott, URI executive chairman of the Board of Directors. The board has appointed Donald C. Ewigleben to succeed Clark and also named him as a director to fill the board vacancy created by Clark’s resignation.

“In order that he may resume his writing career, Dave had asked the board to find a successor to execute the company’s strategic plan, which includes the continued focus on and development of the company’s extensive New Mexico assets,” Willmott stated in a press release.

“As he moves on, we wish Dave all the best in his writing career which he put on hold for us these last three years. We also thank him for his time, effort and dedication to URI.” Clark has agreed to remain on as a consultant until March 2010.

Clark has served as a director since June 2006 and as president and chief executive officer since August 2007. Prior to that he was principal owner of Ux Consulting Co. LLC, which publishes the Ux Weekly and the UxC Market Outlook Reports that cover the complete nuclear fuel cycle including uranium, conversion and enrichment, according to Forbes.

Clark co-founded the consulting company in March 1994 as an affiliate of The Uranium Exchange Co., a uranium brokerage and consulting company he founded in 1987.

Ewigleben brings over 30 years of corporate leadership experience to URI, most recently serving as executive officer of Sustainability & Legal Affairs for AngloGold Ashanti Americas, as well as, president and CEO of AngloGold Ashanti North America.

Ewigleben held various executive management positions after joining AngloGold in 2000 as vice president, general counsel and chief environmental officer. Prior to his career at AngloGold, he held senior management positions at Echo Bay Mines, AMAX Gold and AMAX Coal Industries.

Ewigleben is a director and executive committee member of the National Mining Association and was previously a member of the boards of the Mining Association of Canada and several industry associations at the state level. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Indiana University School of Law after receiving his undergraduate degrees from Ball State University.

“We expect that Don’s extensive experience in the mining industry, and in dealing with similar challenges that we face both as an industry and as a company, will help to accelerate our progress toward realizing our inherent value,” said Willmott.

Ewigleben contributed $1,000 to the 2008 election campaign of U.S. Rep. Steve E. Pearce, (R) N.M.-District 2, and $1,000 to the 2008 and 2004 senatorial campaigns of Ken Salazar, (D) Colorado now U.S. Secretary of the Interior.

Native Radio Theater Presents: A Community Radio Workshop
Healing Circle: A Native Soap Opera

Dear Native Unity Readers -
From Eric Martin
You are invited to the Healing Circle Community Radio Workshop taking place at the Nativo Lodge in Albuquerque, New Mexico on October 10-13, 2009.

Apply to attend the workshop!
Deadline: Sept. 25th, 2009

Healing Circle: A Community Radio Workshop
Contribute to the development of an innovative health promotion radio drama, Healing Circle (working title), being created for distribution on Native radio stations across the country. Following the principles of Entertainment Education, Healing Circle blends important health messages into an entertaining format.

Learn how to use the unique and entertaining format of a story filled radio drama to inspire healthy lifestyles in your Native community. Work with acclaimed professionals to learn more about the principles of entertainment education, contribute to the development of Healing Circle and discuss your community's health priorities.

The workshop will also feature the Healing Circle head writer, Arigon Starr, Kickapoo musician and writer. Starr has created scripts that address Native issues- across the generations- in a light-hearted, but serious way. Guest appearances by some of NV1's radio hosts are also scheduled!

Register Online Today!
If you and/or your colleagues are interested in attending the workshop, please fill out and submit the interest form. The interest form is found here: https://nsaie.wufoo.com/forms/workshop-interest-form/

People with backgrounds in American Indian health, community development, media, radio or an interest in Entertainment Education are all invited! All ages and backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Deadline to apply: September 25th, 2009.
*Please note: Space is limited. Apply early.
For more information, please contact:
workshop@mediaforhealth.org205-870-9422

We look forward to seeing you in Albuquerque.
Sincerely,
Healing Circle Partner Organizations

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Still 'No Emergency' For Forgotten People - Sioux Make 'Blue Ribbon' Honey

Go Figure? No Emergecy Declaration Yet For Black Falls/Box Springs
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – Forgotten People representatives scraped together gas money and a vehicle that would make the trip from Black Falls/Box Springs to meet Tuesday with the Commission on Emergency Management in hopes of securing a state of emergency declaration for residents drinking uranium- and arsenic-contaminated water.

There were no commissioners present. Instead, Emergency Management Director Jimson Joe informed the Forgotten People that before the commissioners can be called together in a meeting, the group will need to provide assessments of the 70 families living in the area so they will have an idea of how many people need water and approximately how much it's going to take. Joe offered to help collect the data.

Of course there are other logistics to be worked out as well, such as where the safe drinking water is going to come from, who is going to haul it and in what, which roads will be used to truck it in, who is going to make the washboard roads drivable – and on and on.

It is a somewhat different approach than that taken earlier this summer during two other Navajo Nation water emergencies.

When Dilkon ran out of water in July, the chapter passed a resolution July 11 declaring a state of emergency. An emergency meeting was held July 14 with Navajo Tribal Utility Authority representatives, police and health officials, and the Department of Emergency Management swung into action.

“This is an emergency response operation, gentleman and ladies. No meeting. We need to help ourselves,” Joe said when it looked like the day was going to get bogged down in presentations while people went without drinking water.

Navajo Department of Transportation was called to deliver water from Fort Defiance. Three 5,000 gallon water tankers were set up throughout the Dilkon area to ease the hardship of NTUA customers who found no water in their taps. When one of the tankers experienced problems, the Bureau of Reclamation in Denver was called on to assist with a 10,000 gallon tanker.

Patricia Nezzie, a Nizhoni Professional Home Care official, concerned for her clients, began doing assessments the moment she found out about the water crisis and was able to direct emergency workers to high-risk patients right away.

There have been no health care professionals going door to door assessing the numerous cancer patients in the Black Falls/Box Springs area to see whether they need drinking water. In fact, one of the questions asked Tuesday by the Forgotten People was “Where are the health officials?” Leupp Chapter requested a state of emergency declaration for the area in mid-August.

In another scenario, on July 22, NTUA received its first complaint that an oily residue had turned up in Sanostee residents' water supply. The main waterline from the offending well, which recently had been turned over to NTUA by Indian Health Service, was flushed for an hour and the well then shut off.

For the next two days, flushing and sampling was conducted and on July 25, NTUA Shiprock District began hauling potable water from a neighboring water system and providing bottled water for affected residents. NTUA said there were several hundred customers on the system.

Public notices were distributed to inform community residents. One issued July 30 noted that NTUA Shiprock District would continue to provide water via two tankers parked at convenient locations in the community and that the First Alert Team also would continue to distribute bottled water.

There is no NTUA drinking water infrastructure in the Black Falls/Box Springs area where some residents possibly have been drinking contaminated water for 40 years. Instead, residents have been getting their water largely from four unregulated water sources with uranium levels that exceed the federal safe drinking water standard.

Last summer, Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency with assistance from the DiNEH Project and U.S. EPA installed permanent warning signs at the contaminated springs. Joe said Tuesday that he doesn't believe the signs go far enough because they don't tell people not to drink the water. The Catch-22 is that if the contaminated water sources are capped, residents would have no other water sources available nearby.

In February, Indian Health Service constructed an Upper Black Falls water line extension with a safe water hauling point at Black Falls Bible Church. The $830,000 project was funded by U.S. EPA with grant money secured by Navajo EPA, and included water-hauling containers for residents.

“The watering point at Black Falls Church, they say it's still not drinkable, but it's good for livestock,” Joe said. He visited the area a couple weeks ago and inspected the water station. “The access to get the water out is not functional, so I couldn't verify whether it's dispensing water.

“If it is an emergency, if they know that it's not good drinking water, they should have an alternative source that the community can haul water from. This is a very life-supporting element. There has to be another place for these people to haul water from, but I don't see any indication of that.”

Not all of the money for the Black Falls water line project was used, so in June the Navajo Nation, Indian Health Service, and U.S. EPA executed a memorandum of agreement to use the remaining funds to construct pilot solar pump cisterns for up to nine homes within the immediate vicinity of three unregulated water sources in Black Falls.

Last week, when the Black Falls/Box Springs issue was before the Resources Committee, Navajo Nation Council Delegate Jack Colorado, who represents Cameron/ Bodaway/Coppermine chapters, told the committee that the grant has to be used before the end of the year. “IHS needs to speed up the process,” he said.

Colorado also mentioned that back in 1997 his chapters requested Navajo EPA, U.S. EPA, and IHS do a water study. Studies also were conducted by Northern Arizona University. “Now they have announced that the water is contaminated,” he said.

Residents such as Milton Yazzie have questioned why it has taken so long for the information to come to light, and why residents weren't warned about the health risks when data collected years ago showed the water was contaminated.

Navajo Department of Water Resources is expecting an award of $1.6 million from U.S. EPA to implement a three-year water hauling feasibility study and pilot program, with an additional $1 million provided in 2010. One of the trucks is expected to serve the Black Falls area. At the end of the pilot project some entity must assume responsibility for the project. The lucky party has not been determined.

Joe said Tuesday that the most important thing for the Department of Emergency Management to address is the “immediate need” and defining how they are going to get water into the homes. “We're trying to get specific information on how many gallons of water are sufficient to last families over at least a 10-day period ... so that we don't overextend the cost as well as the equipment and the service.”

The immediate solution also has to have some connection to the next step and cross over into the long-term solution, he said. “It's important for the short-term to have a strong solution in order for the long-term to happen.”

After visiting with Black Falls/Box Springs residents, Joe said one thing especially bothered him about residents who possibly have become ill from drinking the contaminated water.

“A lot of the people don't feel that there is a future. They don't want to have families. I am very concerned about that. Water is a necessity. The 'Forgotten People' is a very strong statement to me. That means that they have lost trust in their government.”

Tribal Honey Takes Blue Ribbon
Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
E-Mail: tessa.lehto@shakopeedakota.org

Prior Lake, MN – Honey produced and bottled by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community recently won a blue ribbon at the 2009 Minnesota State Fair. The blue ribbon was awarded in the light amber novice class. SMSC Honey also came in fourth in the white honey novice class.

This was the first time SMSC Honey was entered in the State Fair. The honey was judged on its container (appearance and cleanliness), its color (conformity to schedule), the volume (accuracy and uniformity of the fill of the container), absence of impurities, percentage of moisture, clarity (absence of crystals and bubbles), and flavor (absence of off-aroma or flavor). The honey was collected and bottled by staff in the SMSC Land and Natural Resources Department.

More than 3 million honeybees in the 60 hives maintained by the SMSC produced 400 gallons of excess honey during the summer of 2009 which was extracted for bottling. The 40,000-60,000 honeybees in each hive feed primarily on sweet and red clover as well as alfalfa but they also pollinate apples, plums, cherries, raspberries, and some native prairie plants. The hives are located in six different natural areas of the reservation not easily accessible to the public.

Bees make honey to use as a food source to get them through the winter. It is their excess honey that bees store in boxes placed above their hive which is harvested by SMSC staff and Community youth. In 2001 the SMSC Land and Natural Resources Department started the honeybee program with four hives.

The success of those hives resulted in the creation of new hives from splitting the existing hives and acquiring new ones available commercially. Staff tend to the hives on a regular basis to maintain a healthy hive and harvest honey as needed. The SMSC hives are healthy and have not been impacted by colony collapse disorder, which has affected honeybees in many areas of the country.

Honey is available for sale at several locations - in Prior Lake at the Shakopee Dakota Convenience Stores and Mystic Lake Casino Hotel Gift Shop. In Minneapolis it is available at The Wedge Co-op and Linden Hills Co-op. The 24 ounce plastic bottle sells for $7.00 while the 32 ounce jar sells for $8.00.

The SMSC produces pure, raw honey. SMSC Honey is filtered twice through stainless steel mesh baskets. It is not pasteurized, hydrogenated, or mixed with other honey from other areas. SMSC’s natural processing results in honey with high quality taste and a full complement of natural enzymes associated with antiseptic and healing properties.

Much of the honey produced today throughout the country is not pasteurized; for this reason, infants under one year of age should not eat it. On a cool shelf, (50-60 degrees) honey has a shelf life counted by years, not weeks or months. If the natural sugar in it starts to crystallize, simply put the container in a pan of warm water and let it sit until it dissolves. It is not recommended to boil or use a microwave to dissolve crystals in honey.

As a steward of the land, the SMSC engages in a number of restoration activities to preserve and protect the land for future generations. The SMSC Land and Natural Resources Department has re-established native prairies on more than 500 acres of former farmland. Prescribed burns are used to maintain and improve native prairie conditions on the reservation. Wild rice is sowed in Community wetlands. Staff also maintain native maple-basswood forests from which they produce maple syrup that is sold at the same locations as SMSC honey. Trees and other native flora are planted.

Environmental specialists are also active in restoring and managing wetlands, surveying wildlife, and taking an inventory of existing natural communities. Staff have documented some of the positive effects of these activities by water quality improvements. Hydrologists assess water quality, coordinate the Community’s Wellhead Protection Program, plan projects to improve water quality, and implement erosion control.

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Echohawk Hopes To Make A Difference - Tim Giago On Lakota Spirituality

Echohawk Commits To Spending Time On Navajo
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independemt
WINDOW ROCK – Assistant Secretary of the Interior Larry Echohawk grew up in the Navajo Nation border town of Farmington from the time he was a year old. He learned first-hand about the issues on Navajoland, and now he hopes to make a difference.

Echohawk recently visited Window Rock with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar of Colorado and Solicitor Hilary Tompkins, a Navajo originally from Ramah.

He told members of the Intergovernmental Relations Committee that he would be in Flagstaff in September and has committed to spending two full days on Navajo seeing “whatever you think you would like me to see or whatever you want to talk about.”

Echohawk, a former Farmington Scorpion, said his father is pretty well known in Navajo Country because he was a land surveyor.

“That's the person that went out and located oil and gas wells. Many of those oil and gas wells were within the bounds of the Navajo Nation. He liked to take his children with him to work to teach us how to work. I have been all over Navajoland and it has some wonderful memories for me,” he said.

As assistant secretary for Indian Affairs, one of the first things Echohawk realized was that it would not be proper for him to think he could do the job sitting behind a desk at the Interior building in Washington.

“There are important things that we do there, but what we need to do is travel in Indian Country and meet face to face with tribal people, travel through their lands, listen to their concerns so that we can properly serve in a nation-to-nation relationship with the people that we serve.”

During a recent budget discussion with Secretary Salazar, Echohawk said the Secretary told his budget staff, “I want you all to know that when it comes to the Obama Administration there will be no daylight between the assistant secretary and the secretary of Interior, and there will be no daylight between the secretary of Interior and the president of the United States.

“In other words, as I took it, we need to be unified and together in what we're doing to serve Indian Country, and it is my full-time responsibility. I don't have any other thing that I was supposed to be doing other than serving in Indian Country as a trustee, and I need to know what your concerns are,” Echohawk said.

“Unless I travel in Indian Country and I listen to what you have to say, then I cannot properly advise the secretary and he cannot properly advise the president.”

Evelyn Acothley, a member of the Health and Social Services Committee representing Western Agency, told Echohawk that the Nation is hoping for amendment and enhancement of the Indian Health Improvement Act.

Also, as a representative of Cameron, she said, “We are dealing with water shortage, drought. The small amount that we have is affected by uranium. The legacy of uranium mining on the Navajo Nation has caused much pain, suffering, and death.”

She said they would like to press for funding of a comprehensive health study, cleanup, and also funding for water development in that area. “We don't have any water.”

Leonard Tsosie told Echohawk that the Navajo Nation Council passed legislation seeking assistance from the Obama Administration with the San Francisco Peaks litigation. “There was no assistance provided. This impacts the Navajo people.

“The same thing happened with the U.S. vs. Navajo Nation trust litigation. There were no shots fired from the BIA corner to assist the Navajo Nation and so we respectfully ask, since the Solicitor is here, to establish some type of policy that when the Indian tribes, especially the Navajo Nation, are asking for assistance, to help us, be on our side so that we can then convince the U.S. Supreme Court to see it our way,” he said.

Norman John II, a member of the Resources Committee said the Navajo Nation has made huge strides toward a brighter future for the Navajo people. He said the Desert Rock project is the best candidate in the United States for carbon capture and sequestration.

“The future of the Navajo Nation depends on the timely completion of the Desert Rock project and the Navajo Transmission Project. We have prepared an application to the U.S. Department of Energy for stimulus funding to apply CCS on one of the units of Desert Rock.

“There is no more room for delay. We need assurance that the Department of the Interior and the Solicitor's Office will continue to work with the Navajo Nation and our project developer, Sithe Global, to conclude the EIS review and get the final EIS out by the end of September 2009.”

John urged the Solicitor's Office to work with Desert Rock project staff to resolve administration record-of-decision issues on the transmission project and to meet with the Desert Rock project staff in Washington to discuss the matters and reach resolution as soon as possible.

Resources Chairman George Arthur reiterated a message that was delivered at a White House conference on renewable energy in Indian Country. He said the group expressed a desire to have the Administration revisit certain components, such a shortening the National Environmental Policy Act process and amending the laws to make them more “Native Country-friendly.”

Arthur also asked that the time frame on stimulus funding for clean energy projects be extended. “There is a major stress on some of our projects that we know we can benefit from through this type of initiative but it is being challenged by the time frame that is required to go through the process.”

Tim Giago: They Could Not Kill The Lakota Spirituality
Monday, September 7, 2009
Indianz.com - Opinion
When I was five-years-old we lived in the village of Pejuta Haka (Medicine Root) on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. The village had been re-named Kyle by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

One July, in the late afternoon, my father came home from his job at Chris Dam’s Trading Post, with several boxes of groceries. He spoke to my mother in the Lakota language telling her that he had to deliver the groceries and he wanted me to ride along with him. This would have been in the summer of 1939.

This incident was very vivid in my memory for most of my life and just before the death of my father, I spent some time with him and I asked him about what happened that night in order to check it against my memories.
When I told him what I remembered about that day he was surprised that I could recall so much because I was so young at the time. He said that I was pretty accurate in my recollections of what occurred.

I remembered that we climbed into my father’s Model A Ford and headed for the village of Potato Creek, between Kyle and Wanblee (Eagle Nest). It was dusk when we arrived. We stopped at the house of a family by the name of Under Baggage. My father went into the house and returned shortly, drove the car on a road that ran behind the house and there I saw several elderly (in their 80s and probably some in their 90s) Lakota men seated around a fire. My father visited with the men and they were all speaking in Lakota while a couple of the younger men unloaded the groceries.

My father joined the circle of men and a cannunpa wakan (Sacred Pipe) was lit and handed from man to man, each puffing on it in turn. I noticed that two of the men had very smokey or clouded eyes and when the pipe came to them they held their hands out until it was placed into them. Later my father told me they were blind.

He said they were preparing to have a Sundance, one of the most sacred rites of the Lakota, and it was outlawed by the United States government so they had to do it in secret or they could be put into jail. Traditionally the Lakota celebrated their spirituality with song and dance each adapted to the sacred rite they wanted to honor. He said the two blind men had danced in the Sundance many times.

My father told me that all of the men seated in that circle had been Lakota warriors. They had fought in the final wars against the United States of America. Some had fought in the battle on the Rosebud where the U. S. Army had been severely thrashed, and others at the Greasy Grass (Little Bighorn) where Custer met his demise.

He said the warriors I saw that night had scored major victories over the United States Army and each year they met in secret to celebrate the Sundance and each year their numbers became less and less.

Like my father, all of the Lakota men seated in the circle smoking the pipe that night are all dead. They were the warriors who had fought and died defending a way of life that had existed from time immemorial for the Lakota people. I believe that the reason that memory has never left me is because of the deep feelings of sadness I felt that night as I watched these elderly warriors smoke their pipe and pray for their people.

And the spirituality of the Lakota nearly died after that summer night in 1939, pushed to a waiting grave by the Christian ministers urging the federal government to end the Sundance and other Lakota rituals. But it didn’t because Lakota families like the Under Baggage family, the Little Wounds, and the Bull Bears, took it underground and kept it alive.

These strong Lakota warriors with their equally strong winyan (women) at their sides knew that if the Church and government killed their religious practices and their language, they would no longer exist as a people.

The government and the religious organizations gave it their all, but the spirit of the Lakota would not die and the return to their traditions, language and culture is ongoing and it has never been stronger.
I saw it alive in that circle of elders in 1939 when I was five and I see it now 70 years later. It will take more than a Church and a State to kill the spirituality of a people.

Tim Giago, an Oglala Lakota, is the publisher of Native Sun News. He was the founder and first president of the Native American Journalists Association, the 1985 recipient of the H. L. Mencken Award, and a Nieman Fellow at Harvard with the Class of 1991. Giago was inducted into the South Dakota Newspaper Hall of Fame in 2008. He can be reached at editor@nsweekly.com.

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'Green Jobs' Petition: Please Sign - HRI Gets Hearing On Uranium Mining

Green Jobs Movement
September 6th, 2009
Dear Bobbie,
Late last night, Van Jones resigned from his position with the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Many of us are left with pain and anger after seeing a leader of integrity, vision, and commitment targeted by hateful personal attacks. Van stepped down in service to our movement. He felt that fighting the attacks would draw attention to him and detract from our mission.

Now, our challenge is to turn our disappointment and anger into action and renewed resolve for our common goals.

Like the great social justice movements of the 20th century, our movement for an inclusive green economy is based in the most fundamental American values: equality, justice, and opportunity for all.

That's why our opponents reduced the debate to fear, hatred, and division. They cannot win a debate about values. They cannot win a debate about solutions.

Our allies and friends may be redirected by these attacks, and focus on the rants of those who fear our vision. For Green For All, our struggle must be defined by the issues our opponents refuse to debate: ending global warming; lifting people out of poverty; restoring the economy; and bringing health to our communities. These are the challenges that matter the most.

This moment reaffirms our commitment and makes us more steadfast in pushing for our goals, including a climate bill that delivers on the promise of a clean-energy economy. We will not be led astray. We will not let our anger cloud our vision.Instead, it is the time to come together around the values our movement stands for: clean air; healthy communities; good jobs; and opportunity for all.

Please sign our Petition in support of the Green Jobs Movement.

Then pass it on to 10 friends. Let's use this opportunity to grow in numbers and strength.

In the face of tactics intended to frighten and divide, we must stand strong around our core values and renew our commitment to our shared vision.

Thank you for taking a stand with us.
Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins

Chief Executive Officer
Green For All

HRI Granted En Banc Rehearing On Indian Country Issue
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
WINDOW ROCK – The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in an order filed Monday granted Hydro Resources Inc. a full court review of an April 17 opinion that the company's Section 8 mine is in Indian Country.

Uranium Resources Inc., parent company of HRI, announced in June that it was filing a petition for an en banc, or full court review after the three-judge panel upheld a Feb. 6, 2007, land status determination by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that HRI's land in the checkerboard area of the Navajo Nation's Churchrock Chapter, lies within a dependent Indian community.

The Navajo Nation is an intervenor in the case.

The ruling subjected HRI’s proposed in-situ leach uranium mine to EPA regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act rather than under the jurisdiction of New Mexico Environmental Department, which originally issued the company an underground injection control permit – the final permit needed before mining can begin.

Rick Van Horn, chief operating officer for HRI/URI, said at the time of the filing that the company decided it was in its best interest to have the case heard before the full court. “We wanted to do that to preserve any rights that we might have,” he said. The company's other option was to apply to EPA for the permit.

Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley Jr. reaffirmed the Nation's commitment to a ban on uranium mining and processing on July 16 in a ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of the Churchrock uranium tailings spill.

“I want to reaffirm the resolve of the Dine' and our elected leaders in enforcing to the fullest extent possible, the Dine' Natural Resources Protection Act of 2005,” Shirley said, adding that the Nation will stand its ground until the terms of the act are met. That includes cleanup of legacy waste, which is only now beginning to be addressed.

According to Monday's order, all of the materials by the parties involved were submitted to the active judges of the court, with the exception of Judge Harris L. Hartz, who is recused in the matter. Hartz previously was in private practice in New Mexico and formerly served on the New Mexico Court of Appeals. A poll was then called and a majority voted to allow the en banc rehearing.

HRI is to file a supplemental brief by Oct. 8. The Navajo Nation and EPA have until Nov. 19 to file responses and then HRI will be allowed to file a reply by Dec. 11.

The court anticipates settling the matter during the week of Jan. 11, 2010.

URI recently announced that it has agreed to purchase 113,000 acres of mineral rights in the Crownpoint area and Hosta Butte, southeast of Crownpoint, for future uranium production and has begun taking applications for future employment.

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Northeast Churchrock Mine Cleanup - Shakopee Tribe Donates For Abuse Victims

No Easy Options For Northeast Churchrock Mine Cleanup
By Kathy Helms
Dine Bureau
Gallup Independent
CHURCHROCK – Twenty-seven years ago United Nuclear Corp., a subsidiary of General Electric, stopped mining at the Northeast Churchrock Mine. Until an emergency soil removal action at nearby residents' homes in 2007 there had been no cleanup of legacy waste from the mine site, where radium-contaminated soils are about 400 times safe levels.

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted a public meeting at Churchrock Chapter to respond to residents questions about an Engineering Evaluation and Cost Analysis, commonly referred to as the “EE/CA,” which lists five alternatives for cleaning up the waste.

EPA's preferred alternative, known as Alternative 5A, is to move the estimated 870,000 cubic yards of waste from the mine site and place it in a lined disposal cell on top of an unlined cell at the former UNC mill, a short distance away.

By disposing of the waste in this manner, responsibility for monitoring the disposal cell for leaks over the next 1,000 years would fall to the U.S. Department of Energy rather than to General Electric and EPA.

The alternative calls for cleaning up all soils to a level considered safe, or 2.24 picocuries per gram. It also calls for removal of all “principal threat waste” – mine waste soils with radium concentrations greater than 200 picocuries per gram or uranium content greater than 500 milligrams per kilogram.

Andrew Bain, remedial project manager for EPA's Superfund Division, told the audience that in some areas of the mine, the radium concentrations are 800 picocuries per gram.

“If it's that high, why did it take so long to get to this point?” asked Nadine Padilla, coordinator for the Multicultural Alliance for a Safe Environment. Bain said one of the reasons is because it's a big site.

The 2007 emergency removal action addressed windblown waste around residents' homes on Red Water Pond Road. EPA now has begun a five-month, $5 million interim-removal action of 97,000 cubic yards of radium-contaminated soil at the homes, taking in the area just outside the 2007 footprint.

The 6,500 cubic yards of highly contaminated soils removed in 2007 went to U.S. Ecology in Grandview, Idaho, and it is anticipated that 10,000 cubic yards of principal threat waste from the mine cleanup also could be shipped there, or possibly even be reprocessed.

Bain said the federal agency will choose an alternative after the deadline for comment ends Sept. 9. “We've come up with what we think is the best plan, but we have not made the decision,” he said.

The Navajo Nation and community residents have asked that the waste be removed outside reservation boundaries, however, those comments have been met with numerous reasons why EPA doesn't think that's the best choice.

General Electric would pay $44.3 million for EPA's preferred alternative, compared to $293.6 million for the clean closure preferred by Navajo Nation EPA. GE announced first-quarter 2009 earnings from continuing operations of $2.8 billion, according to Bluewater Valley Downstream Alliance, which is supporting Navajo in its call for clean closure.

Stephen B. Etsitty, executive director for Navajo EPA, told Bain that his agency made a presentation in February to the EPA Superfund National Remedy Review Board. “We stated our position at that time, which was the position that we crafted prior to the 2007 emergency removal action at Red Water Pond Road and it's been consistent ever since then.

“It was articulated on July 16 by President (Joe) Shirley, where to the fullest extent possible, we're going to work toward our goal of having all these uranium-contaminated materials removed completely out of Navajo Indian Country. We've been pushing for option 2 in the beginning and that's our preferred option,” he said.

EPA put together a comparison of Alternative 2 and Alternative 5A when community residents at previous meetings voiced support for total removal, Bain said.

“In Alternative 2, all of those materials are taken to an off-site disposal facility many miles away. Alternative 5, they're taken about half a mile away but they're put in a covered, lined enclosure that would be equally protective. Alternative 2 would take nine years, we estimate, because the amount of material we're talking about – 870,000 cubic yards – is a significant amount of material.

“We did a calculation and figured that it's roughly 409 football fields a foot deep. It represents about 20,000 truckloads throughout the life of that cleanup that would all go down I-40 and eventually be hauled to disposal facilities out of the area.”

Bain did not say whether EPA had looked at disposing of the waste in-state and also did not mention whether EPA had looked at moving the waste by rail to cut down on truck emissions. The Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad line is about 11.5 miles from the mine site.

Alternative 5A would require more trips, Bain said, though he did not give a specific number, because smaller trucks would be used. Also, he said, “We think there is a reduced potential for accidents by hauling it less than a mile away. I want to point out that there are significant greenhouse emissions with taking these materials. It's about a 1,400 mile round-trip to the U.S. Ecology facility in Grandview, Idaho.”

Navajo Nation Resources Committee Chairman George Arthur has said repeatedly that if the federal government can move 16 million tons of uranium mill tailings away from the Colorado River near Moab, Utah, it can remove the contamination from Churchrock and the four uranium mill tailings sites on the Navajo Nation now monitored by U.S. Department of Energy's Legacy Management.

Though the intake for the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project is expected to be upgradient of the Shiprock uranium mill tailings pile, the Shiprock site is known to be leaking into the San Juan River, water source for the Navajo-Gallup project.

In April, the first shipment of uranium mill tailings was moved from the Moab project site by train to a location 30 miles away in Crescent Junction for disposal. About 130 acres of the 439-acre site on the west bank of the Colorado River is covered by the tailings pile.

In June, EnergySolutions Inc. was awarded $84 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding to accelerate removal. The company was awarded the initial contract of $98.4 million in June 2007. Currently, 80 containers per day are transported by rail to the disposal site. The stimulus funding will allow disposal of an additional 2 million tons by 2011.

Sofi Martinez of Southwest Research and Information Center told Bain that the Navajo Nation and the community have always stated they want off-site removal. “The carbon footprint doesn't seem to be as important when it's (waste) coming into New Mexico, but when it's going out of New Mexico, it becomes a real big issue.”

Yoshihiko Wada, Ph.D., a research associate with Gund Institute at the University of Vermont, asked Bain, “Have you taken into consideration the contamination going into the groundwater? Uranium-238, the half-life of that material is 4.5 billion years. How many times do you have to replace all these caps? Do you think the company would do the maintenance 1,000 years later?”

Bain said they have not done an investigation of the groundwater at the site and that the design life of the enclosed cell is a minimum 200 years, though it's engineered for a 1,000 year lifespan. “That's well below the 4.5 billion years of uranium ... but that's part of the ongoing operation and maintenance that would be required as part of the remedy. Periodically the company would have to come out and maintain the cap and make sure that it's not posing a release,” he said.

Information: www.epa.gov/region09/NECR

SMSC Awards $320,000 To Support Abuse Victims
Submitted by Tessa Lehto
Communications Specialist
tessalehto@shakopeedakota.org

Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Prior Lake, MN – Family violence is a problem in all communities, according to Robyn Trepanier, Executive Director of the Family Advocacy Center of Northern Minnesota. To help provide services to victims of family violence, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community recently donated $320,000 to the Family Advocacy Center of Northern Minnesota (FACNM) in Bemidji. The donation covers one year of costs not covered by insurance or other reimbursements.

In 2005, the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians; North Country Health Services, a full-service hospital in Bemidji, Minnesota; MeritCare Clinic of Bemidji; Midwest Children's Resource Center of St. Paul, Minnesota; and others joined together to form a non-profit organization to develop and operate a medical-model family violence center to serve the needs of Northern Minnesota to aid victims of child abuse, domestic violence, and sexual assault. The SMSC donated $200,000 to support the start up of the FACNM.

“Those who are most vulnerable need the support of an organization like the Family Advocacy Center. It can help them recover from devastating experiences and hopefully go on to live productive, happy lives,” said SMSC Chairman Stanley R. Crooks.

“Securing these funds means that the FACNM will be able to continue to provide compassionate, culturally sensitive care, empowering victims to help break the individual and generational cycle of abuse, which unfortunately is all too common in some of our communities. The FACNM is extremely grateful for the generosity of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community and for their continued commitment to the work we do,” said Robyn Trepanier, FACNM Executive Director.

“As the Executive Director of FACNM, I have the opportunity almost daily to see the miraculous multidisciplinary team approach at work; the collaboration of professionals from different disciplines working towards the common goal of keeping victims safe. The FACNM makes a difference in the lives of victims,” she continued.

The FACNM serves all people in a 17-county region in Northwest Minnesota. This region includes the Red Lake, Leech Lake, and White Earth Reservations. The FACNM pays particular attention to the victims from the region's Native American communities by targeted outreach and by providing culturally sensitive services. This effort has earned the trust of members of those communities.

The FACNM is one of the very few centers in the nation to focus on the needs of Native American communities and upon their rural, non-Native neighbors. As such, this focus serves the unique needs of Northwest Minnesota.

Between January 1, 2006, and May 31, 2009, the FACNM treated 574 victims of sexual abuse, physical abuse, acute sexual assault, and neglect. Of those victims, 43% are from the Red Lake, Leech Lake, and White Earth communities. And 20% of all victims were “walk ins” who self-referred to the Center rather than being brought in by emergency or medical personnel. Each year since 2006, the number of victims the Center has treated has grown by more than 30 percent.

The Center has the support of, among others, the Cass County Attorney's Office; Itasca County's Health and Welfare Department; the Bemidji Police Department; the US Attorney’s Office; the Itasca County Attorney’s Office; the Beltrami County Attorney’s Office; Red Lake Indian Health Services; Red Lake Children and Family Services; and the Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office.

The medical-model FACNM is located at North Country Regional Hospital, a full- service hospital in Bemidji, Minnesota. Within the hospital, the Center is located near the emergency room facilities. Through the Center, professionals from a variety of disciplines will work together to address the immediate medical, psychological, social service, and law enforcement needs of family violence victims in Northern Minnesota.

At the Center, the medical and mental health conditions of victims are assessed, medical histories obtained, and appropriation referrals made for medical and mental health care. Center staff focus on the medical and medical-health needs of the victims while still providing law enforcement with the opportunity to gather evidence and conduct interviews. The primary focus of the Center's work is the physical and mental healing of the victim, empowering the victim to become a survivor, and helping break the cycle of violence.

The Center encompasses approximately 1,000 square feet and has one examination room, three offices, a conference room, and a reception/waiting room. The Clinicians and Medical Director respond when a victim arrives at the Center.

About the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux CommunityThe SMSC utilizes its financial resources from gaming and non-gaming enterprises to pay for all of the internal infrastructure of the Tribe, including but not limited to roads, water and sewer systems, emergency services, and essential services to its Tribal members in education, health, and welfare.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community has a charitable giving program which comes from a cultural and social tradition to assist those in need. Over the past 12 years the SMSC has donated more than $162 million to charitable organizations and Indian Tribes, including more than $20 million in fiscal year 2009.

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