President says Environmental Issues are Priority |
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Date Posted: 11/10/2009 Description: Shoshone-Bannock tribal representatives hope that President Obamas renewed commitment Thursday to ensuring government-to-government consultation with tribes will spill over to Superfund cleanup issues in southeastern Idaho. The Environmental Protection Agencys Region 10 office has done little to advocate on behalf of the Shoshone-Bannocks to ensure adequate cleanup of the Eastern Michaud Flats (EMF) Superfund site, and in some cases the Region 10 office has worked against the tribes, said Paul EchoHawk, tribal legal counsel. The EPA should be an advocate of tribes and help to enforce the trust responsibility. Ive been working on this issue since 2005 and that has not been the relationship with Region 10, said EchoHawk. On Thursday, President Obama signed a presidential memorandum directing federal agencies to him a detailed plan within 90 days on how to improve tribal consultation. In the final years of his administration, President Clinton issued an executive order establishing regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration between your nations and the federal government. But over the past nine years, only a few agencies have made an effort to implement that executive order. And it's time for that to change, Obama told tribal leaders. The regions lack of support for the tribes is especially concerning since the FMC Corporation wants the EPA to certify that the company has met its cleanup obligations at the EMF Superfund site, said EchoHawk. In a recent letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the tribes voiced their objection to closure of the consent decree, saying several requirements had not been met including: " Failure to obtain tribal land use permits for waste storage activities in the years since the FMC plants closure in 2001. The tribal permit issue is currently before the Tribal Court of Appeals. " Failure to allow the tribes access to the FMC site in violation of the consent decree " Failure to allow the tribes to access data and documentation related to the FMC site and waste storage activities " Failure to complete a $1.6 million health student to address the effects of FMCs activities on the health of tribal members and reservation residents The letter further noted that since 2003 the EPA Region 10 office has refused to enforce tribal rights in the consent decree. While in Washington, D.C., tribal representatives also voiced their concerns to Chris Hoff, acting American Indian Education Office director, at a meeting at EPA headquarters Nov. 3. Hoff pulled together a host of EPA officials for the meeting, and had Dan Opalski, acting deputy EPA Region 10 director, in the meeting via conference call. We may continue to disagree, but I think we need to hear each other out in the context of trust responsibility, said Opalski at the meeting. In the context of the mines out there (southeast Idaho), theyve all been challenging. Fort Hall Business Council Chairman Alonzo Coby told EPA officials that tribes frustration goes beyond lack of enforcement of the consent decree to concern about the long term effects of pollution on the local environment. Were worried about the effects on our homelands, our aboriginal areas, said Coby. There are the 21,000 birds that just died; everyone in southeast Idaho is concerned. Their deaths should be a red flag that something is going on. At the Gay Mine, there are huge open pits and nothings been done. Were worried about the effects of these old mining operations on our wildlife, our livestock and our people. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson addressed the tribal leaders Thursday afternoon and following her talk, Chairman Coby said he had an opportunity to share the tribes concerns about the EMF Superfund site and other environmental issues at Fort Hall. He also invited her to visit the community along with Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Larry EchoHawk in February. EchoHawk has asked Sho-Ban to host a listening session for Idaho tribes and he has suggested that the invitation also be extended to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Jackson and other top administration officials. She (Jackson) said she was familiar with the Superfund issues in southeast Idaho and said would like to visit the reservation if the date is open on her schedule, said Coby. The president reiterated Thursday that environmental issues are a top priority of his administration. Following his speech, the president fielded a question from John Berry, chairman of the Quapaw tribe in Oklahoma, who asked if his tribe could have the same authority as the state in dealing with the remediation of a Superfund site on their lands. Obviously, the whole issue of environmental integrity on tribal lands is something that too often has slipped through the cracks or decisions have been made in the absence of consultation with -- with the tribes. So this is going to be a top priority generally -- improving our environmental quality, said Obama.
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