Do Charles and David Koch want to mine the Grand Canyon for uranium?
A "dark money" organization tied to the billionaire Koch brothers is allegedly aiding Arizona politicians' and special-interest groups' efforts to block a bill that would ban uranium mining around Arizona's iconic landmark, The Phoenix New Times reports.
According to the Grand Canyon Trust, here's what Grand Canyon National Heritage Monument Act would do:
- Protects 1.7 million acres of tribal homeland around the Grand Canyon, including water sources and sacred sites
- Bans new uranium mining claims (making the current 20-year ban permanent)
- Still allows hunting, grazing, recreation and other uses to continue under existing law
The proposal, in so many words, deems the area around the Grand Canyon a national monument. The bill is supported by 80 percent of Arizonans as well as a number of environmental organizations and native tribes.
However, pro-mining Arizona Chamber of Commerce and the Koch-linked Prosper Foundation have co-authored a report calling the efforts a "monumental mistake" and that monument designation for the Grand Canyon "will only hurt—not help—Arizona."
The proposed Grand Canyon Watershed National Monument is a monumental mistake. Read more: https://t.co/iyQ4aLm0NI https://t.co/5iegWjaock— Prosper (@Prosper)1460757624.0
As it appears, the Prosper Foundation receives nearly its entire budget with funds from the Koch-backed American Encore, according to 990 tax forms seen by Greg Zimmerman, the policy director at the Center for Western Priorities.
As Zimmerman explained on ThinkProgress:
Prosper, which was formed in 2013, covers nearly its entire budget with funds from Koch-backed American Encore—formerly known as the Center to Protect Patient Rights. According to tax filings, American Encore has funded 83 percent of Prosper Inc.’s total budget since its creation, donating over $1.5 million to the organization in 2013 and 2014.
Despite vast public support for permanent protection of the area, Zimmerman pointed out that "most of Arizona’s congressional delegation—including Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake, and Representatives Paul Gosar, David Schweikert, Trent Franks and Matt Salmon—want the gateway to the Grand Canyon open to uranium mining."
The state of Arizona has mined for uranium—the raw material needed to make nuclear power—since the early 1900s. Though it has created an industry for the state, the process "has caused cancer in miners who breathed it or the many Native Americans who drank it after their water became contaminated by it," Arizona's 12 News noted.
Still, Republican lawmakers have long been opposed to conservationists' efforts to protect the Grand Canyon from the uranium mining. McCain and Gossar proposed legislation Oct. 12, 2011 to open 1 million acres of public lands that form Grand Canyon National Park’s watershed to new uranium mining. The bill would have overturned an existing moratorium on new mining and mining claims and block Interior Sec. Ken Salazar’s proposal to extend those protections for the next 20 years.
In November, Gosar issued a scathing statement against the current Grand Canyon National Heritage Monument proposal that was introduced by U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz.:
“Rep. Grijlava’s bill, pandering to extremist environmental groups, will kill jobs, stifle development, permanently prevent mining and future grazing leases, impose significant OHV road closures and significantly restrict hunting, timber harvesting and commercial recreational activities on 1.7 million acres in northern Arizona. I encourage the southern Arizona Congressman to focus on killing jobs and locking up millions of acres of land in his own district.”
Reps. Raul Grijalva, Paul Gosar at odds over uranium mining ban near Grand Canyon https://t.co/Ng8tn8jwAo— azcentral - politics (@azcentral - politics)1446829417.0
Grijalva's act would pave the way for President Barack Obama to declare a national monument in his last year in office.
"One of the complaints you hear from members, particularly on the Republican side, is the president shouldn't use his executive authority, that this is something we should do as law," Grijalva told The Arizona Republic. "Well, you've got a law in front of you. ... At some point, if the lack of response by the Republicans ... continues, then obviously the appeal is to the president to consider this legislation for a presidential designation of a monument."
Zimmerman has also expressed frustration at the GOP over the obstruction. “The thing that’s so fascinating to me is that the polls show [the monument] is overwhelmingly popular across Arizona, and yet the political establishment in the state is so diabolically opposed to it," he told The Phoenix New Times.
“There is a tight-knit community among right-wing Republican leaders who are strongly opposed to public-land protection,” Zimmerman said, adding “what these guys do to move money is incredibly sophisticated.”
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Here are three new films to watch this Earth Week that will transport you from pole to pole and introduce you to the scientists and activists working to save our shared home.
1. The Year Earth Changed
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
When to Watch: From April 16
The coronavirus pandemic has brought home the stakes of humanity's impact on the environment. But the lockdowns also proved how quickly nature can recover when humans give it the space. Birds sang in empty cities, whales surfaced in Glacier Bay and capybara roamed the South American suburbs.
The Year Earth Changed captures this unique year with footage from more than 30 lockdowned cities between May 2020 to January 2021. Narrated by renowned wildlife broadcaster David Attenborough, the film explores what positive lessons we can take from the experience of a quieter, less trafficked world.
"What the film shows is that the natural world can bounce back remarkably quickly when we take a step back and reduce our impact as we did during lockdown," executive producer Alice Keens-Soper of BBC Studios Natural History Unit told EcoWatch. "If we are willing to make even small changes to our habits, the natural world can flourish. We need to learn how to co-exist with nature and understand that we are not separate from it- for example if we closed some of our beaches at for a few weeks during the turtle breeding we see that it can make a huge difference to their success. There are many ways that we can adapt our behavior to allow the natural world to thrive as it did in lockdown."
2. After Antarctica
Where to Watch: San Francisco International Film Festival
When to Watch: 12 a.m. PST April 9 to 11:59 p.m. April 18
In 1989, Will Steger led an international team of six scientists and explorers to be the first humans to cross Antarctica by dogsled. Steger and his team weren't just in it for the adventure. They also wanted to draw attention to the ways in which the climate crisis was already transforming the icy continent and to rally support for the renewal of the Antarctic Treaty, which would keep the continent safe from extractive industries.
In After Antarctica, award-winning filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt follows Steger 30 years later as he travels the Arctic this time, reflecting on his original journey and once again bringing awareness to changes in a polar landscape. The film intersperses this contemporary journey with footage from the original expedition, some of which has never been seen before.
"Will's life journey as an explorer and climate activist has led him not only to see more of the polar world than anyone else alive today, but to being an eyewitness to the changes occurring across both poles," Van Zandt told EcoWatch. "But now, these changes are happening in all of our own backyards and we have all become eyewitnesses. Through my journey with Will, I have learned that although we cannot always control change, we can change our response. I feel strongly that this is a message that resonates when we look at the current state of the world, as we each have power and control over how we choose to respond to hardships, and we all have the power to unite with others through collective action around a common goal."
After Antarctica is available to stream once you purchase a ticket to the San Francisco International Film Festival. If you miss it this weekend, it will screen again at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival from May 13 to May 23.
Tasha Van Zandt
3. The Race to Save the World
Where to Watch: Virtual Cinema
When to Watch: From Earth Day, April 22
While many films about the climate crisis seek to raise awareness about the extent of the problem, The Race to Save the World focuses on the people who are trying to stop it. The film tells the story of climate activists ranging from 15-year-old Aji to 72-year-old Miriam who are working to create a sustainable future. It follows them from the streets to the courtroom to their homes, and explores the impact of their advocacy on their personal lives and relationships.
Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Joe Gantz told EcoWatch that he wanted to make a film about climate change, but did not want to depress viewers with overwhelming statistics. Instead, he chose to inspire them by sharing the stories of people trying to make a difference.
"Unless millions of people take to the streets and make their voices heard for a livable future, the politicians are not going to get on board to help make the changes needed for a sustainable future," Gantz told Ecowatch. "I think that The Race To Save The World will energize and inspire people to take action so that future generations, as well as the plants, animals and ecosystems, can survive and thrive on this planet."
Check back with EcoWatch on the morning of Earth Day for a special preview of this inspiring film!