PHOTO: The public voiced their concerns and support during a public meeting held by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service in Flagstaff, Arizona, on July 18, 2023. The public meeting was to hear comments on the proposed Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Grand Canyon National Monument. (Shondiin Silversmith/Arizona Mirror)
This story by Shondiin Silversmith appeared in the Arizona Mirror on August 9, 2023.
After months of advocating from several tribal nations, Arizona is home to a new national monument, as President Joe Biden officially designated Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni on Tuesday, effectively barring mining on roughly a million acres of land near Grand Canyon National Park. The new monument spans 917,618 acres of public lands managed by the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management and the Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Forest Service.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to honoring and respecting Tribal sovereignty, protecting Tribal homelands, and incorporating Indigenous Knowledge and robust Tribal consultation into planning and decision-making,” White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory said.
The Grand Canyon is the ancestral homeland of multiple tribal nations across the Southwest, and tribes still rely on the canyon for natural and cultural resources that are significant and sacred to their communities.
“Today’s designation supports tribally-led conservation efforts and helps address injustices of the past, including when tribes were forcibly removed from lands that later became Grand Canyon National Park,” Mallory said.
In April, tribal leaders, alongside state and federal officials, launched an effort to sustain the natural resources of the Grand Canyon by calling on Biden to designate land surrounding the Grand Canyon National Park a national monument by using his authority under the Antiquities Act of 1906.
Their efforts have succeeded, as the White House announced Tuesday that Biden designed the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Grand Canyon National Monument. The name is a mixture of the traditional Havasupai and Hopi languages. Baaj Nwaavjo means “where tribes roam” for the Havasupai Tribe, and I’tah Kukveni means “our footprints” for the Hopi Tribe.
On Tuesday evening, the president was due to travel to Arizona to sign the proclamation at Red Butte, a sacred site known as Wii’i Gdwiisa by the Havasupai Tribe, which towers above the southern portion of the monument.
“Establishing the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument honors our solemn promise to tribal nations to respect sovereignty, preserves America’s iconic landscapes for future generations, and advances my commitment to protect and conserve at least 30% of our nation’s land and waters by 2030,” Biden said in an announcement.
New national monument earns accolades from tribes, environmental advocates
Tribal leaders celebrated the announcement.
“Designating areas like Red Butte as a national monument will help protect them from contamination, destruction, exploitation, and the other harmful effects of mining,” said Havasupai Tribe Chairman Thomas Siyuja Sr. “The threat of contaminating our water is real and current. The pure water that flows through Supai Village is under constant attack by uranium mining. We know the threat is real, but with these protections, our suffering from the harmful effects of mining is lessened.”
The Hopi Tribe said it was committed to safeguarding the land for future generations: “Life continues here at Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni. Hopi would like to recognize all those in support of protecting itah tutskwa (ancestral land) and preserving sacred places. Hisat Sinom (ancestors) have left us connected to songs, dances, and ceremonies since time immemorial.”
Environmental advocates also praised Biden.
“National monuments protect the landscapes and ecosystems that make up this country, but they also preserve the stories, sites, and practices that tell us who we are. For the 12 tribes who have called the Greater Grand Canyon area home for centuries, it is the center of the universe,” said Chris Hill, the Sierra Club’s chief conservation officer. “Today, we celebrate President Biden’s protection of this treasured place, and we urge him to continue to build his monumental legacy by protecting more of the lands and waters that we hold so dear.”
“With this historic designation, President Biden is permanently safeguarding the magnificent rimlands that flank the Grand Canyon, their rich biodiversity, and life-giving springs and aquifers,” said Taylor McKinnon, southwest director at the Center for Biological Diversity.
Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukvenis marks the fifth national monument created under Biden’s administration. Last year he established the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument in Colorado. Mallory said it will conserve nearly one million acres of the greater Grand Canyon landscape sacred to tribal nations and Indigenous peoples.
“From Day One, I have taken action on the most ambitious climate and conservation agenda in our country’s history, and my administration will continue to deliver on these unprecedented goals,” Biden said.
The new monument protects thousands of cultural and sacred sites precious to tribal nations in the Southwest, the White House stated. The tribal nations include the Havasupai Tribe, Hopi Tribe, Hualapai Tribe, Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Las Vegas Paiute Tribe, Moapa Band of Paiutes, Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, Navajo Nation, San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe, Yavapai-Apache Nation, Pueblo of Zuni, and the Colorado River Indian Tribes.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland commended the monument’s creation, saying it builds upon the decades of tribal and community-led efforts to protect these landscapes’ historic and scientific resources.
“The Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument protects and preserves the rich cultural, ecological, scientific, historic, and scenic value of the greater Grand Canyon landscape,” Haaland said.
The monument designation protects the tribes’ sacred places for cultural and spiritual uses, Haaland said, and it also respects the existing livestock grazing permits and preserves access for hunting and fishing.
“The national monument designation recognizes and respects valid existing rights,” Haaland said. The proclamation outlines that maintenance and upgrades to water infrastructure will continue, and utility lines, pipelines, and roads will be maintained.
“Existing mining claims — predating a 20-year mineral withdraw initiated in 2012 — will remain in place,” Haaland said, and the two approved mining operations within the monument’s boundaries could operate.
“The national monument only includes federal lands and does not include state and private lands within the boundary or affect the property rights of the state or private land owners,” she added.
From 1944 to 1986, nearly 30 million tons of uranium ore were extracted from Navajo lands under leases the federal government made with the Navajo Nation. Navajo people often worked in the mines. Some Navajo workers would live and raise their families close to the mines and mills.
“Today the mines are closed, but a legacy of uranium contamination remains, including over 500 abandoned uranium mines (AUMs) as well as homes and water sources with elevated levels of radiation,” the EPA stated on its website.