Black Mesa Trust is working on these very important projects and initiatives.

October 2023- FUNDRAISER FOR HOPI AND TEWA

Many homes on Hopi do not have central heating and now rely solely on wood for heat. Historically, families relied on coal, which was an inexpensive heat source. However, due to the coal mine closure in 2019, wood has now become a more expensive yet vital necessity. We are fundraising to provide STOVE READY Wood, an essential resource for warmth, comfort, and safety, that will allow Hopi families to live on their ancestral lands and continue to practice Hopi ways of life.

CHAPEL OF THE HOLY DOVE MEADOW RESTORATION & BEAUTIFICATION PROJECT
PIKYANIVI WOOD HAULERS -WARMTH FOR HOPI & TEWA IS SEEKING VOLUNTEERS ON
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2023 FROM 9:00 am TO 3:00 pm MST TO HELP MOVE LIMBS FROM FELLED TREES TO CREATE SLASH PILES

Pikyanivi Wood Haulers – Warmth for Hopi & Tewa is working with the Flagstaff Ranger District to thin 12 acres of encroaching Ponderosa pine. The felled Ponderosa pine will be harvested for Hopi communities to heat their homes.
Please dress appropriately in pants, long sleeve shirts, gloves, and a hat
Lunch will be provided
Donations of water and snacks are greatly appreciated

DOWNLOAD the Information on our Dove Chapel Project Day HERE (2)

MESSAGE US!
FACEBOOK – PIKUNIVIWOOD HAULERS

TEXT 928.450.7565 OR928.457.6616

EMAIL DRM28@NAU.EDU

May 2022 – Black Mesa Trust is working on a bill to protect the rivers and groundwater in rural regions of Arizona. Our focus is to protect our sacred Hopi land, water, cultural and historical sites for future generations. for more info or to set up an interview contact Vernon Masayesva at kuuyi@aol.com

Mine Reclamation:

In both the Reclamation work and Just Transition work, we’ve been working with a broad coalition of groups, known as the NGS Transition Coalition. This group include representatives from Tó Nizhóní Ání, Diné C.A.R.E., Grand Canyon Trust, Sierra Club, Western Clean Energy Campaign, Western Resources Advocates, Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, and many individual advocates, lawyers, and other supporters.

BMT wrote a letter to OSMRE requesting a “significant permit revision” for Kayenta mine. Aside from lengthy litigation, this permit revision is the only process that will ensure a full EIS—inclusive of opportunities for public input, accountability for aquifer reclamation, and accountability for restoration of cultural resources. We are also hopeful that a significant permit revision will open the door to pressuring a review of the totally inadequate reclamation of Black Mesa Mine. Their letter has since led to the following:

A direct response from OSMRE Western Regional Director David Berry which was, unsurprisingly, dismissive. Ben is currently writing a response back.
Representative Grijalva submitted a letter to OSMRE in support of Vernon and Ben’s requests and the U.S. House Natural Resources committee staff have also pressured OSMRE to address their concerns. With the incoming Biden-Harris administration and nomination of Representative Haaland to Secretary of the Interior, this is an important precedent to have set and will be momentum we will build upon.
Interest from the Hopi Tribal Council which led to a 3+ hour presentation to the Council on mine reclamation issues on November 13^th. This was a crucial opportunity to educate the Council on the ongoing issues and the need for the Council to pressure OSMRE to hold Peabody accountable. For details, see the attached Powerpoint. Ben has also submitted a draft Resolution to the Council in the hopes that they will use it to take action. The Council’s action is very important as the federal government tends to prioritize government-to-government relations. The Council’s involvement is also an important action in that it will likely pressure the Navajo Nation to take a similar action, which furthers the likelihood that OSMRE will be forced to act.

In the meantime, no further reclamation has occurred to our knowledge. OSMRE has pushed back the deadline for permit revision without specification, citing COVID issues. We’re aware that OSMRE may still not take meaningful action, despite these efforts. However, all of these actions and documents will potentially be very useful as evidence for future litigation. We have simultaneously continued discussions about the best strategic timing for pursuing a Citizen’s Complaint to OSMRE about Peabody’s violations of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). While a Citizen’s Complaint does not (in my understanding) carry the same legal force that the “significant permit revision” does, it would allow a site visit to the mines for in-person evaluation of the lack of progress and would also be another piece of evidence of significant community concern in the face of agency inaction. It is also an opportunity to document and elevate the concerns of Hopi Sinom, separate from the Tribal Council.

Just and Equitable Transition

Black Mesa Trust provided multiple comments to various utility company (e.g., Arizona Public Service [APS] and Tucson Electric Power [TEP]) rate cases that are ongoing with the Arizona Corporation Commission [ACC].

Their comments, collectively with similar comments from NGS Transition Coalition members, have led to a major shift in the ways that APS and TEP are incorporating Just Transition funding and development for Hopi and Navajo (and other coal communities). Additionally, Ben also wrote a letter to the Hopi Tribal Chairman which led to the Tribe being an official intervenor in the APS rate case. This ensures Hopi has a seat at the table. There are many details on each utility company’s Just Transition proposals, some of which still have to be voted on by the ACC. Here are just a couple examples: 1. APS’s new Tribal Energy Efficiency Program has committed to investment in energy efficiency improvements (~$9000 limit per home and additional funding for schools, governments, etc.) for Hopi APS customers. Importantly, the ACC for the first time ever took official action recognizing that utilities have a responsibility to provide funding and assistance to communities impacted by early power plant closures. This is an extremely important precedent; 2. APS has proposed a multi-million dollar transition package in support of tribal communities that is currently being reviewed by the ACC. Again, it’s a huge precedent.

Black Mesa Trust has also been developing its “Colorado Plateau Clean Energy Initiative” proposal, of which we’re currently discussing getting funded by Western Resource Advocates. This proposal concerns developing a professional task team (in partnership with NAU’s Institute of Tribal Environmental Professionals, to collaborate with and advise the Tribal Council and utility companies to create a glide-path from a coal-based economy to renewable energy. It specifically proposes a 20-megawatt Hopi Solar Project I. The unit is proposed to be constructed on Black Mesa Mine reclaimed land. Ultimately, BMT seeks collaboration with the Hopi Chairman and Hopi Tribal Council to finally create Hopi Solar power.

Saving Sípàapu

Black Mesa Trust has continued coordinating with various supporters, including Arizona Faith Network, to bring public awareness to the injustice of the LCR Adjudication and to build a campaign to bring great protection to Sípàapu. BMT is also beginning to collaborate with a new initiative at the Grand Canyon Trust and American Rivers that seeks to prevent the proposed hydro-electric dams while protecting the Little Colorado River, sacred springs in the lower gorge, and unsustainable groundwater use in the watershed. Vernon has also recently submitted a letter to President Elect Biden about the importance of Hopi and all Native Sciences with the intention of elevating both the need to use Native Sciences and the need to protect Sípàapu.

Additionally, there have been multiple op-eds, press releases, and contributions to various articles. It’s hard to keep track of them all but there’s been at least 10+ media releases attached to Black Mesa Trust, Vernon, and Ben’s work. We are also developing a reclamation and just transition packet for the Biden-Harris transition team.

Finally, we are coordinating with a variety of funders to support this work and build upon it into 2021. Western Mining Action Network provided a $3000 mini-grant for mining-related advocacy and community education for 2020. Western Clean Energy Campaign provided $5000 for reclamation and just transition work for 2020 and $7000 for continued reclamation and just transition work into 2021. Western Resource Advocates is currently exploring the possibilities of a 2-year grant to fund a coordinator for the Colorado Plateau Clean Energy Initiative. Finally, Rachel is funded by the Grand Canyon Trust and American Rivers to develop the LCR protection initiative, in which the protection of Sípàapu plays a central role.

Siipa’puni is one the holiest places on earth and is therefore worthy of protection. Siipa’puni means umbilical cord in the Hopi language. Hopi people refer to it as the Place of Emergence from the Third to Fourth World.

PROCLAMATION to PROTECT AND PRESERVE SÍPÀAPU

August 5th, 2021

WHEREAS, giving comfort, religious liberty and reassurance of self-governance to Hopi and Tewa Villages is a trust responsibility of Hopi and the U.S. Government; and

WHEREAS, Sípàapu, the holiest of Hopi sacred places, a repository of our cultural pre-history fundamental to protecting our right to practice our religion; and

WHEREAS, Sípàapu is crucial to our living knowledge and wisdom to provide comfort and reassurance as a rooted place between past and future, and a seedbed for historical insight and knowledge, a catalyst of hope for the preservation and revitalization of Hopi civilization in a modern society; and

WHEREAS, the Arizona Court ruling denying Hopi Sinom beneficial right to Little Colorado River (LCR) will have a profound and genocidal effect on the Hopi civilization; and

WHEREAS, Arizona water laws and water code are used in Arizona Court to determine water rights and we had no part in enacting the water law and code; and

WHEREAS, Arizona water law is based on a mindset that treats sacred waters as a commodity, which has no value unless it can be trapped and put to beneficial uses; and

WHEREAS, we, the Hopi Sinom, believe Water is Life, and all earthly beings, humans, birds, insects, reptiles, trees, plants, and animal life have a right to Life and each have a unique role in taking care of nature; and

WHEREAS, over 300 private land owners in the LCR Basin, industrial and commercial companies (i.e. Salt River Project), and municipalities in Apache, Navajo and Coconino Counties have formed a coalition opposing Hopi Tribe’s claim to LCR have prevailed; and

WHEREAS, thereby killing Sípàapu is akin to tearing pages from history books; and

WHEREAS, the Hopi Tribe has contributed significantly to the economy and cultural heritage of Arizona; and

WHEREAS, the Arizona Court did not consider the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (TGH); and

WHEREAS, we believe the Arizona Court decision is premature because our rights to our ancestral homeland are protected under the international law called Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Court said the Treaty is irrelevant. We disagree because the Hopi sinom are unique in that we never signed an agreement or Treaty with the U.S. giving up our land rights granted to us by Spain and later honored by the Republic of Mexico and the U.S. Our rights under TGH have never been tested in a court of law; and

WHEREAS, the Arizona Court ruled Hopi sinom have no claim to LCR due to Hopi Tribal Council accepting $5 million in 1976 from the U.S. Government to extinguish Hopi title to aboriginal lands outside the 1882 Hopi Executive Order Reservation and, therefore, that Hopi Tribe cannot claim right to LCR under the Winters Doctrine. Let it be known that, we Hopi village leaders, were never consulted by the U.S. Agents who drew the boundaries and that the leaders from a majority of the 12 independent villages rejected the land claims settlement. There is ample evidence that the Hopi Land Claims Settlement was done in a fraudulent manner by agents of the U.S. Furthermore, the Hopi Tribal Council has not yet formally accepted the money; and

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, we, members of the 12 independent Hopi villages, respectfully mandate that Sípàapu be protected and preserved using the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the American Antiquities Act of 1906, the Archaeological and Historic Preservation Act of 1974, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) of 1978, the Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979, additional Congressional designations as appropriate to the protection of rivers, springs, and sacred sites, The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo of 1848, and the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights of 1948; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the U.S. Secretary of Interior prepare a Federal Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) to carry out the intent of AIRFA in consultation with Native American Nations; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Secretary designate Sípàapu as a traditional cultural place under the National Historic Preservation Act with a management and monitoring program; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, a study be done by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and/or other agencies within the Department of Interior as applicable under their trust duties in order to produce an LCR management and monitoring program similar to that of Glen Canyon Dam; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that our petition be hand-delivered to Arizona Governor, Doug Ducey, by a delegations of traditional leaders from Hopi villages, various religious faiths, and to the Arizona Superior Court Judge, who is presiding over the Little Colorado River Adjudication; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this Proclamation is made in memory and honor of the ancestors who brought us here to a safe place, a sanctuary for all mankind and to past members of Black Mesa Trust who steadfastly stood up to protect Sípàapu.

Read more here: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/31/a-development-dispute-in-the-grand-canyon/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0