Voices echo off the gym walls of the Yerington Paiute Center as people gathered for a prayer run. The run, hosted by Prayer Horse Inc. and Taboosi Dikudu No’Obatu Numma Cooperative, was recently organized to raise awareness about the proposed sale of Anaconda Copper Mine. The mine is one of many development projects of growing concern for the Yerington Paiute Tribe.
“That's not the way that we treat our earth. Our earth is a source of life. It's not a resource to be made money off of,” said Vernon Rogers of the Taboosi Dikudu (Yerington Paiute) Tribe.
Rogers has spent nearly a month at an action camp with other tribal advocates protesting a new fast-track energy project called Greenlink, a transmission line that will span 235 miles from Ely to Yerington. But this morning, his priority was to voice his opposition to the sale of the mine to the Atlantic Ritchfield Company.
Outside, neon green tape tied to posts marked the eight-mile route from the gym leading to the mine’s overflow ponds where the run ended.
The mine is currently not in operation, but tribal advocates stress that the tribe was not properly consulted, and the proposed land sale of the site for $0 is a major concern.
“In order for the federal government to do a land sale like this, they have to demonstrate that it's in the public interest, and they also have to have a fair market value of the land,” said John Hadder, director of Great Basin Resource Watch.
Josh Dini, of Prayer Horse Inc., said he is concerned about what a sale could mean for the future cleanup of the site, and impacts on the surrounding tribal community.
“No, it's not a sale. It's a giveaway because they figured that it's going to cost too much for the cleanup…but as it sits right now, it's supposed to be a Superfund site. So the state is supposed to be paying to clean it up,” he said.
Superfund sites include abandoned factories, military bases, and mines containing traces of hazardous waste that are required to be cleaned up under federal law.
Tribal advocates stressed that cleanup of the site has not taken place since responsibility was passed over to the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection Agency.
Runner Alec Morgan said his understanding of the proposed land sale boils down to corporate interest.
“It's like someone stole your car and crashed it, and then is offering to buy it from you for $1 because it's crashed,” he said.
As runners headed towards the mine’s lookout point, the group chanted “Stop! Land Sale!” In the distance, colorful neon inflatables surrounded a contaminated pit lake. They flail in the cold breeze, deterring birds and jutting out against the muted greys and yellows of the site.
“I pray that our prayers are heard, and the injunction and the land sale does not go through for the best interest of all the people in this community. All the people who drink the water, the four-legged, the two-legged, the winged ones, they're all at risk. We're all at risk,” said Johanna Emm of the Taboosi Dikudu Tribe, and organizer with the Taboosi Dikudu No’Obatu Numma Cooperative.
She said the public health risks that have resulted from years of contamination hit close to home. According to Emm, hazardous remnants from the mine have been found under foundations of homes in the area.
She said years of exposure to harmful levels of uranium, arsenic, and a variety of harsh metals are a growing concern. Although a future assessment of the soil and groundwater is on the list of priorities, she said getting approval from the EPA has been challenging.
“The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, all these treaties; they're peace treaties to remain peaceful, so there's no more wars,” she said, “And we believe that they've been declaring war on us all this time, but through paperwork, not physical combat.”
Corporate interest in reopening the mine for mineral exploration is also of major concern. Soon after the injunction was announced in July, Singsate Peak Services LLC filed a motion to join the case to further develop plans for copper exploration.
There was a lingering atmosphere of anger, grief, and determination as the prayer run came to an end. For advocates like Izzy Guerrero, the run offered solid ground and motivation for what’s ahead.
“If I'm asking for prayers any time I want to sacrifice something or give something, and this is definitely something that I can give. I can give my legs, my lungs, and just, you know, put prayers down and have good thoughts for the land that's really needed right now, especially out here,” she said.
Another hearing is expected to take place early next year.
