Mining the Grand Canyon – Speak out to protect our common waters
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Here’s how it works:
From February 18- April 4, the Department of Interior is inviting comments on Secretary of the Interior Salazar's proposal to halt the opening or development of any new uranium mines in the area surrounding the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River corridor in Arizona; the administration is considering a variety of approaches – the one most favored by river and canyon advocates is "Alternative B."
You can also refer to the Grand Canyon Trust website for further information.
Comments must be in writing and either mailed to:
Bureau of Land Management, Arizona Strip District
345 East Riverside Drive
St. George, UT 84790
or
Secretary Ken Salazar
Department of the Interior
1849 C Street NW
Washington DC 20240
Comments can also be sent via email to:
NAZproposedwithdrawal@azblm.org
Here's a sample letter that can be copied or paraphrased for your own personalized message:
February 25, 2011
To Whom It May Concern,
Please extend the Dept. of Interior’s current two-year moratorium that bans new mining claims and development of existing claims across the one million acres of watershed around the Grand Canyon. I support that protection for 20 years by withdrawing public lands through "Alternative B” as defined on the DOI February 17, 2011 press release.
This action will prevent new uranium mines that would threaten the Grand Canyon and contaminate underground aquifers that drain directly into the Colorado River–an invaluable water source for 30 million people and 3 million acres of farms. Please place my comments in the official public record of the Environmental Impact Statement.
Sincerely,
[your name, address]
By summer 2011, we can stop more uranium mining. It’s time to demand protection for our river, before it's too late.
Jonathan Waterman is the author of Running Dry: A Journey from Source to Sea Down the Colorado River and The Colorado River: Flowing through Conflict (coauthored with Peter McBride). He is now researching—read: paddling—15 other rivers in the drying southwest, in hopes of alerting the public and affecting public policy before these rivers are lost. For more information go to www.jonathanwaterman.com