[News] Mining Giant Rio Tinto Hit By Legal Battle Over Sacred Apache Site

[Anti-Imperialist News]

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Mining Giant Rio Tinto Hit By Legal Battle Over Sacred Apache Site
By Francesca Washtell, This Is Money.
August 7, 2022
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Above Photo: Clash: Wendsler Nosie of the Apache Stronghold is fighting Rio
Tinto and BHP.

The serene Oak Flat upland lies in the heart of Arizona. With its beautiful
peaks and forest, it is a beloved spot for campers, hikers and rock
climbers.

Above all, it is the center of the San Carlos Apache tribe’s religion, a
place of devotion where their gods dwell and they still perform traditional
ceremonies.

But it is now at the center of a dispute between the tribe and FTSE 100
giant Rio Tinto. It is also shaping up to be an acid test of the mining
group’s claims that it is determined to respect sacred sites.

Wendsler Nosie Sr of the Apache Stronghold – a coalition of Apaches and
non-Apache supporters that is bringing the case – describes it as the ‘most
sacred site where we connect with our creator, our faith, our families and
our land’.

He says: ‘It is a place of healing that has been sacred to us since long
before Europeans arrived on this continent.’

Members of the tribe, which was famously guided by Geronimo in the 19th
Century, have referred to it as their equivalent to Mount Sinai and
describe rock paintings and carvings as the footprints and spirit of their
ancestors.

In 1955 President Eisenhower signed an order declaring Oak Flat, which is
in the Tonto National Forest 60 miles from state capital Phoenix,
off-limits for mining.

But since 2004 there has been a bitter struggle by Rio Tinto and fellow
mining group BHP – through their Resolution Copper joint venture – to
access the metal lying under Oak Flat, in opposition to locals.

The project is now set to be at the center of a Supreme Court battle that
threatens to tarnish Rio’s already damaged reputation.

The company was the target of global outrage after it blew up two
46,000-year-old sacred Aboriginal caves in Western Australia two years ago
to expand a lucrative iron ore mine, despite knowing their archaeological
and religious value.

The destruction resulted in an Australian parliamentary inquiry, a
re-evaluation of heritage laws and a boardroom clearout – which included
then-chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques.

Chairman Simon Thompson promised that the company would ‘never again’
destroy sacred sites, and new boss Jakob Stausholm has made a point of
investigating toxic culture and practices.

But the plight of the Apache tribe seems in direct contradiction to these
aims.

Resolution Copper, by its own admission, says the type of mining it plans
to use could result in an almost two-mile-wide crater in Oak Flat,
destroying the land.

Roger Featherstone, director of campaign group the Arizona Mining Reform
Coalition, says: ‘One cannot forget Rio Tinto and BHP both promised the
world they would never again allow the destruction of an indigenous sacred
place after Rio Tinto blew up sacred rock shelters in Australia for a mine
expansion – the Resolution Copper mining plan would do exactly that.’

Locals also insist the huge amount of waste created and water required for
the project could imperil the state’s resources.

Featherstone adds: ‘With Arizona in the middle of the worst drought we’ve
faced in 1,200 years, there is not enough water for this project unless
farmers, communities, our public lands, and other industry give up water to
allow it.’

Resolution Copper’s attempt to get hold of the land has involved a
complicated legal process – hinging on a land swap with the National
Forestry Service. That was waived through in January 2021 under the Trump
administration.

The Apache tribe immediately filed an injunction to halt the project
altogether on the grounds that it would harm their religious freedom. In
June, a federal court rejected this injunction in a 2-1 ruling – with the
dissenting judge Marsha Berzon calling the conclusion ‘absurd’.

However, the controversial land swap is on pause and still the subject of a
federal investigation. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court appeal, expected to be
lodged next month, will again make the case that the Apaches’ religious
freedom will be crushed by the mining plans. The case is between the Apache
Stronghold and the US government – but Rio could be called in as a witness.
Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at the Apaches’ legal
group Becket Law, said: ‘In law, principle and common sense this is one of
the most straightforward cases I’ve ever worked on.

‘Legally, for the Apaches themselves, this is a matter of life and death,
it is about whether their tribe as a people could continue to exist for
centuries.’

A Rio spokesman said the company has already scaled back its plans and
excluded some sensitive areas. Rio added: ‘We respect the sovereignty of
tribal communities. Resolution Copper is committed to preserving Native
American cultural heritage while developing partnerships and bringing
lasting benefits to our communities.’
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