Local opinion: We fight for the Santa Ritas to Preserve culture, water and life, Austin Nunez

Local opinion: We fight for the Santa Ritas to Preserve culture, water and life

Austin Nunez Special to the Arizona Daily Star

The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:

Austin Nunez, San Xavier District Chairman, Tohono O’odham Nation

Since time immemorial the Tohono O’odham have lived in harmony and abundance with the Santa Rita Mountains — which we call Ce:wi duag (Long Tall Mountain) — rising high above the desert south of Tucson. These mountains are not just a beautiful backdrop to our lives; they are integral to our health, culture and spirituality. I pray the Santa Ritas will continue to sustain and inspire many for generations to come. But their future is in grave jeopardy.

After nearly two decades of legal battles with tribes, local governments and environmental groups, the Canadian mining company Hudbay Minerals is dangerously close to mining these sacred mountains. On Jan. 2 the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality — an agency that claims its mission is “to protect and enhance public health and the environment in Arizona” — issued a deeply flawed air-quality permit for the Copper World mine. This is the final permit needed to begin mining operations in Ce:wi duag.

The Tohono O’odham connection to this landscape transcends the transactional and shortsighted profit-driven motives of the mining industry. For thousands of years our people have lived here, gathering medicines from these mountains, clay for pottery and materials for basketry. Ce:wi duag is a place for vision quests and a refuge where our warriors would cleanse themselves after battle. It’s the resting place of our ancestors, who lived well and died in the embrace of these mountains for at least 4,000 years.

Many ancestral graves have already been excavated on the east side of the mountains, where the next phase of mining operations is planned. How many more of our ancestors’ burial sites will be disturbed?

Beyond concerns of cultural desecration are the myriad ecological threats. Large-scale industrial mining could scar this land for generations. The Santa Rita Mountains are a cradle of sacred plants and animals like jaguars, called o:shad in our language. Jaguars and our people have coexisted in these mountains for millennia and are an important figure in O’odham Himdag (Way of Life) and spiritual practices. Mining operations in Ce:wi duag, including several open pits, could destroy the powerful yet delicate webs of life in this sanctuary.

Mines poison water. We’ve seen this firsthand at nearby operations like the Cyprus Tohono Mine, where the EPA estimates it will take 30 years and $126 million to remediate groundwater contamination from perchlorate, uranium and sulfate. And there’s the Mission Mine — now owned by Grupo Mexico — which will eventually contaminate groundwater near our communities because the mine tailings weren’t lined to prevent sulfate migration. Likewise, in the Santa Ritas toxic mine waste could leach into the watersheds that sustain the Santa Cruz River and Cienega Creek, critical lifelines for people, plants and animals in the arid desert.

Copper mines also pollute the air. The dust from industrial mining is laden with fine particulate matter, heavy metals and other toxins that increase the risk of respiratory illnesses. This endangers the health of people who live nearby, including children, elders and those who are already sick or weakened.

This is not just a Tohono O’odham fight. The Santa Ritas are critical to the wellbeing of all who live in the region. As chairman of the San Xavier District of the Tohono O’odham Nation, I call upon all Arizonans to join us. Stand with us to defend Ce:wi duag and the future of this land. Support the Tribe and organizations like the Center for Biological Diversity and Save the Scenic Santa Ritas, who are working tirelessly to protect this sacred and vital landscape. Together, we can leave a legacy of preservation, not destruction, that endures for generations to come.