Oak Flat (Arizona)

Oak Flat is a controversial area of land that is held as sacred by Native Americans from the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation. Oak Flat has been subject to attempts by the federal government to sell it to mining interests, against the wishes of the tribe.

Mine controversy

In December 2014, President Barack Obama signed the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, which would give land sacred to the Apache in Arizona to Resolution Copper Mine [RCM], a joint venture owned by Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. The Act cleared the way for the land swap in which Resolution Copper would receive 2,422 acres of National Forest land in exchange for deeding to the federal government 5,344 acres of private land.[1]

A proposal or rider in Section 3003 of the Act, titled "Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act", would allow RCM to develop and operate an underground copper mine 7,000-feet deep (approximately five Empire State buildings) in the publicly owned Tonto National Forest near Superior, Arizona. The mine would excavate an area set aside in 1955 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower during an expansion of the Tonto National Forest. The land contains more than 2,400 acres of the Oak Flat Campground, an area dotted with petroglyphs and historic and prehistoric sites.[2] Said former San Carlos Apache tribal chairman Wendsler Nosie Sr. of the Act's attached rider: “This is Congressional politics at its worse, a hidden agenda that destroys human rights and religious rights."[3]

Tonto National Forest

The San Carlos Apache Tribe, under the leadership of Chairman Terry Rambler, has led a strong opposition to the RCM land exchange. Both the National Audubon Society in Tucson and the Grand Canyon Chapter of the Sierra Club in Arizona along with the National Congress of American Indians have joined in the fight to Resolution's land grab.[2] Native American groups and conservationists worry about the impact to surrounding areas, including the steep cliffs at Apache Leap.[4] James Anaya, former United Nations special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, said that without community and tribal support, Rio Tinto should abandon its Resolution Copper mining project.[5] United States Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell said she was "profoundly disappointed with the Resolution Copper provision, which has no regard for lands considered sacred by nearby Indian tribes".[6]

By January 2015 over 104,000 had signed a petition to President Obama, "We the People|Stop Apache Land Grab". Jodi Gillette, Special Assistant to the President for Native American Affairs, quickly gave an official White House response, vowing that the Obama Administration will work with Resolution Copper's parent company Rio Tinto to determine how to work with the tribes to preserve their sacred areas.[7]

In March 2016, the Forest Service added Oak Flat to the National Register of Historic Places.[8] Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosar, who has characterized the dispute with the San Carlos Apache as "bogus," condemned the Historic Places designation by the Obama Administration and the Forest Service as "sabotaging an important mining effort."[9]

The project meets all federal surface water and groundwater requirements according to a draft environmental impact statement released in late 2019 by the U.S. Forest Service. Hundreds of Apache tribe members and supporters walked 45 miles (72 km) in February 2020 for four days from San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation to Oak Flat marking the sixth annual march.[10]

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References
  1. Arizona Geology, “Resolution copper land swap bill signed into law,” 23 Dec. 2014.
  2. "San Carlos Apache Tribe Announces Towns of Superior and Queen Valley Join Opposition to H.R. 687 Southeast Conservation and Land Exchange Act of 2013". NewsRx. April 7, 2013.
  3. "Once Again, The Fight for Religious Freedom in America Begins". The Apache Messenger. December 22, 2014. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  4. Bregel, Emily (December 11, 2014). "Apache Tribe Distressed by Privatization of Sacred Land". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  5. Anaya, James (December 28, 2014). "Copper Mine Will Hurt Tribes and the Environment". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
  6. U.S. Department of the Interior (December 9, 2014). "Statement by Interior Secretary Sally Jewell on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015". Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  7. "White House Responds to 'Stop Apache Land Grab' Petition". Indian Country Today Media Network. January 13, 2015. Archived from the original on January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  8. "Oak Flats Listed on National Register of Historic Places". DAILY KOS. March 11, 2016. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  9. "Congressman Gosar Claims Oak Flat Has Never Been a Sacred Site, Wants to Kick Out Apache Stronghold Protesters". Tucson Daily. March 16, 2016. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  10. O'Brien, Brendan (February 28, 2020). "Apache tribe marches to protect sacred Arizona site from copper mine". Reuters. Retrieved 2020-02-29.
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