#triballands — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #triballands, aggregated by home.social.
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#Lithium drilling project temporarily blocked on sacred #TribalLands in #Arizona
The case is among the latest legal fights to pit #NativeAmerican tribes and #environmentalists against President Joe #Biden’s administration.
By Scott Sonner, Associated Press
"A federal judge has temporarily blocked exploratory drilling for a lithium project in Arizona that tribal leaders say will harm land they have used for religious and cultural ceremonies for centuries.
"Lawyers for the national environmental group #Earthjustice and Colorado-based Western Mining Action Project are suing federal land managers on behalf of the #HualapaiTribe. They accuse the U.S. Bureau of Land Management of illegally approving drilling planned by an Australian mining company in the #BigSandyRiverBasin in northwestern Arizona, about halfway between Phoenix and Las Vegas.
"The case is among the latest legal fights to pit Native American tribes and environmentalists against President Joe Biden’s administration as green energy projects encroach on lands that are culturally significant.
"U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa granted a temporary restraining order late Monday, according to court documents. Humetewa is suspending the operation until she can hear initial arguments from the tribe, #ArizonaLithium Ltd., and the bureau at a hearing in #PhoenixArizona on Sept. 17.
"The tribe wants the judge to issue a preliminary injunction extending the prohibition on activity at the site pending trial on allegations that federal approval of the exploratory drilling violated the National Historic Preservation Act and National #Environmental Policy Act.
"'Like other tribal nations who for centuries have stewarded the lands across this country, the #Hualapai people are under siege by #mining interests trying to make a buck off destroying their cultural heritage,' Earthjustice lawyer Laura Berglan said in a statement Wednesday.
"The tribe says in court documents that the bureau failed to adequately analyze potential impacts to sacred springs the Hualapai people call Ha'Kamwe,' which means warm spring. The springs have served as a place 'for healing and prayer' for generations.
"The tribe and environmental groups also argue that a 2002 environmental review by the bureau and the U.S. Energy Department determined that the land was eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places as a traditional cultural property.
"Arizona Lithium plans a total of 131 drilling sites across nearly a square mile (2.6 square kilometers) to obtain samples to help determine if there's enough lithium to construct a mine and extract the critical mineral needed to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles [#EVs], among other things."
#ProtectTheSacred #WaterIsLife #HaKamwe #SacredSite #CulturalGenocide
#EnvironmentalRacism
#NoMiningWithoutConsent
#LithiumMining #NoLithiumMining
#EarthJustice #BigSandyRiver
#WesternMiningActionProject #CorporateColonialism -
GOOD!
State agency in Maine rejects #Canadian #mining company’s rezoning application
February 14, 2024
BREWER, #Maine (AP) — A state agency on Wednesday rejected a Canadian mining company’s zoning application for a proposed mine on #PickettMountain in northern Penobscot County, near #BaxterStatePark and the #KatahdinWoods & Waters National Monument.
"The Maine Land Use Planning [#LUPC] Commission voted 5-2 against #Wolfden's request to rezone on 374 acres (150 hectares), which would've been the first of several hurdles to building a #MetallicMine in the #Katahdin region.
"The panel had numerous concerns including the economic feasibility of the proposed mine. The panel also considered the impacts on #TribalLands, #wildlife, #water resources, the outdoors economy and other factors.
#EnvironmentalGroups and the #PenoboscotNation opposed the project.
"'This ruling is a great victory for the precious waters and lands of the Katahdin region and the people that rely upon them for sustenance and well-being,' said Penobscot Tribal Chief #KirkFrancis.
"Wolfden withdrew its first application after the commission’s staff pointed to multiple errors and inconsistencies with its proposal. It was resubmitted in January 2023 with a goal of addressing the concerns."
#WaterIsLife #WabanakiNations #Environment #CorporateColonialism #NoMining #ZincMining