The desertous and otherworldly Oak Flat in Arizona has been a highly contested area for more than two decades. Photo courtesy of Russ McSpadden/Center for Biological Diversity
Tipping Point covers environmental justice stories about and, where possible, written by people in the communities experiencing the stark reality of our changing planet.
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In 2012, a Senate hearing addressed the issue of the Apache peoples’ fight against Resolution Copper. “Senator (Jon) Kyl and I (are constantly) urging that the San Carlos Apache Tribe just sit down, just listen to the Resolution Copper,” Senator John McCain said. “They refuse to do it.”Two years later, McCain pushed for the land transfer to Rio Tinto, through one of his infamous “midnight rider” maneuvers. Although the Obama administration protected the Oak Flats through a “Historic Places” designation in 2015, this does not override the 1872 General Mining Law, which includes a provision that favors industry over environmental concerns when it comes to mining. Despite Resolution Copper’s promise that it will bring great economic benefits to the Apache community and that it is working with locals to ensure it respects sacred land, the Guardian reported that Rio Tinto destroyed an ancient Aboriginal site in Western Australia earlier this year even after it claimed it had been working with Native people for decades.“We deeply regret the events at Juukan Gorge and have unreservedly apologised to the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) people,” the company wrote in a public statement.
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