Native Americans camp on land leased to mining company

Photo courtesy of Flickr: savethewildUP

Since Saturday Native American activists from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and elsewhere have been camped out on public land that has been leased by the state to a transnational mining corporation for development of a nickel and copper mine.

The protesters are gathered on Eagle Rock, a bedrock outcropping in the Yellow Dog Plain about 25 miles west of Marquette.

“I’m here because this is a sacred spot to our people,” Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Charlotte Loonsfoot, 37, of Baraga told Headwaters News. “They’re going to drill underneath that rock. I’ve seen the spot, it’s like feet from the rock and it’s huge – the hole is huge.”

The protesters say that they will camp in the area indefinitely in an attempt to prevent the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Co., a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, from developing the mine.

On a blog set up for the protest, supporters are asked to, “Visit the activists at Eagle Rock, and show your support by donating food, water, and wood to keep the sacred fire burning.” They are also asked to contact the Environmental Protection Agency and the Marquette County Commission with concerns about the planned mine.

Mine opponents say that the project will damage the watershed, flora and fauna, and disrupt the hunting and gathering rights guaranteed by treaty. They also say it will disrupt traditional religious practices.

Last week, Cynthia Pryor of the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve was arrested for trespassing on land leased to Kennecott and spent two days and nights in the Marquette County jail. The case generated significant local media coverage and has energized mine opponents.

So far there have been no further arrests, a development that may indicate the mining company’s sensitivity about engaging in a direct conflict with the local Native American community.

Though the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community contends that access to the rock is necessary for ceremonies and cultural activities, Kennecott has funded experts that have minimized the cultural significance of the rock and state officials decided that Eagle Rock did not qualify for protection as a place of worship because only buildings are recognized as places of worship under state law.

According to Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment spokeswoman Mary Dettloff, the state lease with Kennecott contains no provisions for access to land including for ceremonies at Eagle Rock.

Rio Tinto spokesman Matt Johnson did not explain why Kennecott has chosen not to pursue charges against the protesters who are camped out on the land.

In an e-mailed response to questions Johnson said, “Prior to the recent protest by some [Keweenaw Bay Indian Community] members, numerous attempts have been made to invite the tribe to conversation. Unfortunately, they haven’t engaged with us in any discussions. We are always willing.”

The campaign of civil disobedience at Eagle Rock is an element of a larger campaign of resistance to the mine which also includes litigation and petitioning.

The National Wildlife Federation, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve, and Huron Mountain Club are suing the state over the permits issued to the mine. The case is filed in Washtenaw Circuit Court — the National Wildlife Federation’s Michigan headquarters is in Ann Arbor.

Michelle Halley, attorney for the National Wildlife Federation, said that the groups plan to ask the court for a preliminary injunction on mining activities by Kennecott.

Cynthia Pryor of Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve said that her group is beginning to circulate petitions seeking an environmental justice review under Michigan’s newly developed environmental justice law.

She said the group is also asking for a review from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Civil Rights.

Federal involvement appears key to the future of this controversy because Kennecott’s recent activities at the site — clearing trees and brush and bulldozing roads — follows the company’s decision to withdraw an application for a federal waste water permit.

Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, EPA is responsible for regulating discharges into groundwater and Kennecott has stated that it plans to discharge up to 504,000 gallons per day of treated industrial wastewater from mining operations.

According to the EPA website about the Kennecott permit process, “Based on the significant volume and the industrial nature of wastewater to be discharged, permit conditions are necessary to protect human health and the environment and to meet the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act and UIC regulations. Kennecott must also provide assurance to EPA that sufficient money has been set aside to properly close the system.”

EPA geologist and permit engineer Stephen Roy had been working with Kennecott on the permit for years when in March the company announced that a change in in the design of its wastewater system meant it no longer needed a permit.

“We were very very far along and were approaching announcing a decision,” Roy said.

According to Roy his office is now working with EPA headquarters in Washington on how to respond to Kennecott.

If the federal permitting process proceeds, it is likely that it will give more attention to arguments about the significance of the mining operations for the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.

Federal regulations require that projects be considered for their potential impacts on cultural resources. Federal law also requires that Native American access to sacred sites be preserved.