Closing power plant is first step in new era of energy
Vernon Masayesva
Nov. 3, 2005 12:00 AM
Contrary to the gloomy news article Sunday regarding the adverse
economic impacts of Mohave Generating Station's imminent closure, many
Hopis see it as an unprecedented opportunity to cut our umbilical cord
to Peabody Energy and take control of our resources ("Shutdown of power
plant bringing gloom to N. Arizona," Republic, Sunday).
Since its creation in 1998, Black Mesa Trust has conducted an
aggressive, ongoing campaign to protect the Navajo Aquifer - the
wellspring of life and heart blood of culture for the Hopi and Din?
(Navajo) peoples.
We demanded an end to 40 years of ecological damage and spiritual
disrespect. We demanded that Peabody Energy end its devastating drawdown
of our waters and the transportation of that water from Arizona to
Nevada to slurry coal. (The company draws down 1.2 billion gallons
annually. Compare this to Rio Salado Lake in Tempe, which contains 900
million gallons of renewable water.)
Miraculously, we are close to winning.
On Dec. 31, our small Hopi grass-roots organization will have
accomplished something quite extraordinary: We will have forced the
world's largest coal company to end its plundering of our waters. When
the pumps stop, a beautiful silence will descend upon our sacred land,
and we will rejoice.
In our small way, we changed history. Those who have and would continue
to turn our ancestral homes into lands of national sacrifice were
brought to a halt.
Our voices were heard and, against all odds, the power of our teachings
and our faith in our religion and science prevailed.
We will win - and, as with all victories, there is a price. We cannot
again shrink from our responsibilities; we cannot simply return to
business as usual.
We cannot again fall asleep. We must continue to speak out for balance
and sustainability, for the well-being of a living and sacred Earth. We
fully realize the closures of Mohave and the Peabody coal mine will
cause severe economic consequences for our people.
In anticipation of this, Black Mesa Trust has proposed several economic
alternatives that will make it unnecessary to lay off any Hopi employees
and at the same time increase revenues for village governmental
services.
One ambitious alternative is the Colorado Plateau Clean Energy
Initiative, a proposed consortium of various organizations dedicated to
bringing clean, renewable energy to Northern Arizona, and the
development of regional global-warming reduction plans.
New opportunities include:
- The development and construction of a 1,000-megawatt solar power plant
on Hopi and Navajo land. The construction and operation of the plant
will employ more than 1,000 workers and could generate annual revenues
of more than $10 million. The solar plant will provide much-needed
"peaking power" to Phoenix, Los Angeles and other metropolitan areas in
the Southwest.
- The production of high-value-added biofuels such as ethanol and
biodiesel.
- The gasification of coal to produce syngas that can be methanated into
a natural-gas substitute for coal combustion, using only a fraction of
the water needed to operate coal-fired plants.
- A significant increase in tribal education, training employment and
revenues.
- The establishment of an international clean-energy showcase that
honors the stewardship responsibilities of indigenous peoples.
In March 2006, 15 Hopi runners will help celebrate our victory by
bringing a gourd of water gathered from our sacred springs to the Fourth
World Forum on Water in Mexico City. We will tell the world government
ministers that all waters are one, a singular life-sustaining living
organism, the source of life for a living earth.
Along the way we will meet with tribal groups and elders who will add
their spirit and blessing, their energy and hope, to our Run of Respect
for Water and All Life.
They will add words to the messages and prayers, and we will invite them
to run with us.
The writer, a former chairman of the Hopi Tribe, is founder and
executive director of Black Mesa Trust. Further information on the
mission of Black Mesa Trust and the Hopi Run is available.
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Last updated on November 06, 2005