What's New
Grand Canyon National Monument Wins House Support
On June 25, our campaign to protect the Grand Canyon from toxic mining won a significant victory. Led by Rep. Raul Grijalva (Az.), the House Natural Resources Committee voted 20-2 to protect the lands near the the Grand Canyon from toxic mining waste. With prices for gold and uranium soaring, mining companies have staked more than 1,100 claims within five miles of the canyon—placing this national treasure at unprecedented risk from cyanide and other toxic chemicals used in mining. Click here to read our press release.
Brief Summary
Mining companies know that it’s against the law to set up operations in the Grand Canyon, or any national park for that matter. Yet, incredibly, the law does allow them to mine the land right next door to our national parks. Now, with the price of gold rising and demand for uranium growing, the mining industry is hoping to take advantage of the last year of the industry-friendly Bush administration, filing claims close enough to the Grand Canyon to threaten one of the worlds’ greatest natural treasures.
In the last five years, mining companies have expressed the desire to mine on 800 claims within five miles of the Grand Canyon—close enough that the cyanide and other toxic chemicals they use to separate ore from rock could run off into the streams that feed the Colorado River and the trails and wild lands that surround it. According to the EPA, mining waste has polluted 40 percent of the watersheds that provide Western communities with drinking water.
In November, the U.S. House of Representatives moved to stop toxic mining from contaminating the Grand Canyon and other treasured lands by passing the Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2007 (H.R. 2262). The Senate is currently writing their version of the bill.
On June 25, Rep. Raul Grijalva (Az.) responded, invoking the the House Natural Resources Committee’s authority to directly order the Secretary of Interior to cease mineral leasing in the area. The move will protect the Grand Canyon for three years, giving us time and momentum to seek permanent protection during the next administration.
Environment America is working to make sure that visionary protections for national parks become a reality by asking the Senate to follow the lead of the House and include strong protections for our national parks in their version of the Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act.
