Discussion: The Dark Side of Mineral Mining

Minerals are essential to our lives, therefore, mining is essential too. However, there is a dark side to mining. There are negative environmental and health effects associated with mining, both in the past and the present. As with many environmental and health issues, these do not usually impact different groups of people equally. What do I mean by this? Certain high-risk activities are more likely to be located in poor communities and communities of non-white Americans. This is true for Native Americans and mining. Certain Native American tribes are located on lands that are valued for their mineral resources. The articles below discuss some of the conflicts that have arisen between Native Americans and mining interests. Read one of the articles for your discussion posting. Below each article, I have listed some discussion points and questions for you to answer. You do not have to answer all of the questions, or even use my discussion points if you do not want to. You can comment on another aspect of your article instead if you so choose. Just make sure your initial posting is at least 100 words. Then respond to someone else's posting with 2 or 3 sentences comparing your issues or contributing a new thought or insight.

Article 1:

Lopez, M. (2020). Tribal Rights: The 1872 Mining Laws Past and Future. Natural Resources & Environment, 34(3), 5355.

Summary:

The article discusses the General Mining Law of 1872 and its impact on tribal rights in the U.S. Also cited are the law's aim to regulate hardrock mineral development on federal public lands, the pollution caused by the abandoned mines in surface water and groundwater, and the effects of the mines to the health of indigenous peoples, like the Nez Perce Tribe.

Questions to Answer:

What and when was the Steal Treaty? And what were its impacts on the Nez Perce people? What is the General Mining Law of 1872 and what is its impact? Upon what lands does it regulate mining? What is a "legacy" hardrock mine? What environmental/health impacts are associated with these mines, and what groups of people do they impact? Several specific examples of conflict between mining and Native American tribes are discussed. What happened at the Gold King Mine is 2015? What is the Bears Ears National Monument and what happened to it in 2017? What has happened in the Rosemont Copper Mine in Arizona? What is happening on Nez Perce tribal lands? What recent developments support Native American rights in these matters? What are the mining law changes proposed at the time of the article?

Article 2

O'Connor, M. C. (2014, Summer). It's a hardrock life: in Wisconsin's picturesque Northwoods, a big battle over iron-ore extraction is pitting environmentalists and Native Americans against mining companies and their political allies. Earth Island Journal, 29(2), 30+.

Questions to Answer

What region is the article about? What are the natural resources present in the area? What is going to be mined? Who are the stakeholders in this controversy? What are the potential environmental impacts? How long has mining been going on in this region? What positive impacts has mining brought to this region? What negative impacts are experienced when mines shut down? What economic costs will be incurred to accomplish the newly proposed mining (in other words, what has to be built, used,or upgraded)? What did the 2013 mining legislation change in the state of Wisconsin? How are the people in the upper watershed and the lower watershed impacted differently by the proposed mine? In which area do the people of the Bad River tribe live? What environmental impacts concern them? How did the company, GTac and its lobbyists address the opposition to mining in this area? How did the 2013 mining bill change mining law? What positive impacts would the mining provide to the community? What is the main natural resource that is potentially endangered by the mining? How so? What is acid mine drainage? What problems does it cause? What creates it? How can mining companies mitigate that? What actions did the Native Americans take to protest the mining?

Article 3

Donohue, D. J., & Ettinger, D. P. (2020). Navigating Tribal Opposition to Permits for Great Lakes Mining Projects: Obstacles and Opportunities. Natural Resources & Environment, 35(1), 4144.

Summary

The article discusses the opposition of tribes to the issuance of environmental permits to Great Lakes-based mining projects. It explored the environmental degradation associated with acid rock drainage from mines, the way the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community challenged the state mining and groundwater discharge permits issued to the Eagle Mine/Humboldt Mill in Michigan, and the environmental concerns raised by the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin over the proposed zinc and gold mine in Michigan.

Questions

What is the area under discussion? What types of materials have been mined in this area? How long have they been mined? Is mining still going on? What kind of mining goes on today? What groups of people (stakeholders) have a vested interest in the review and permitting of new mines (it's not just Native Americans)? What are the environmental concerns with current mining projects? What are some of the positive impacts of mining for a community? Choose one of the current mining projects and summarize the discussion. What is being mined? What is the controversy? What groups of Native Americans became involved? Why? What were their concerns? Were the concerns addressed? How? Is there ongoing controversy? What is the status of the mining at the time the article was written? From the Native American stakeholders' standpoint, what is the advantage of federal involvement in mining decisions? What are some general practices that are advisable for mining companies when dealing with stakeholders?

Article 4

Williams, F. (2008). On Cancers Trail. High Country News, 40(10), 1227.

The article discusses the efforts of Navajo biologist Stephanie Raymond-Whish to find the link between the occurrence of breast cancer among Native Americans and the heavy metal uranium. With a history of breast cancer running in her family, Raymond-Whish, together with her co-workers in the Northern Arizona University (NAU) campus, discovered through laboratory animal tests that uranium at low dose can act as an artificial estrogen. Uranium tailings were found to pockmark Navajo lands in the U.S. since they were once a target of frenzied uranium ore mining during the time of the Cold War. The heavy metal appears to alter mammary cells at very low doses and interfere with normal hormonal signals.

Questions

This article is a pdf and the print is too small for me to read. Therefore, I am not coming up with questions for this one, but read it and summarize part of it for us if you're interested in this topic.