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Indian Country Today May 29th, 2006
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E.V. hazardous waste plant raises concerns By Brenda Norrell SONOYTA, Mexico - O'odham in Mexico joined a 120-car caravan to oppose a planned hazardous waste dump in O'odham territory south of the international border, near the O'odham sacred site of Quitovac. Ofelia Rivas was among the O'odham in the auto-caravan protest to the municipal government offices in Sonoyta, south of Lukeville, Ariz. ''The proposed site is near our sacred ceremonial grounds in Quitovac,'' Rivas told Indian Country Today. ''The O'odham in the surrounding communities were not involved in the decision-making and strongly oppose this project. The chemical waste site not only will impact the environment, but it would bring health risks to the poor people living in the region, O'odham and Mexicans,'' Rivas said. O'odham affected by the planned hazardous waste dump voiced opposition during the protest. Julian Rivas, from Cu:Wi I-gersk community, delivered the O'odham opposition statement, joined by O'odham community representatives from Nepodagk, Wa:pk, Shon Oidagk, Totssagi, S-Ck Su:dagi, Hodai Ku'uk and Wak. While plans for the hazardous dump site have been carried out largely in secret, Pima county officials in Arizona said Mexico violated an international treaty when it failed to notify the United States of plans to dump tons of hazardous waste near the U.S. border. The Pima Association of Governments in Tucson said officials were never notified as required by international treaty about the La Cholla Hazardous Waste Facility, which would be located 125 miles southwest of Tucson. ''Under treaty requirements, the Mexican government was to notify the U.S. government about the facility due to its proximity to the border; however, it failed to do so,'' according to the city of Tucson's April 27 written report. CEGIR (Centro de Gestion Integral de Residuos S.A.), previously known as La Cholla, plans to build the hazardous dump site in Mexico's state of Sonora, roughly 37 miles (60 kilometers) south of Sonoyta and 18.6 miles (30 kilometers) from Quitovac. It would be located just over a mile (2 kilometers) east of Mexico Highway 2, around milepost 195. In Arizona, tribal and county officials are looking for answers. ''There has been a lot of concern,'' said Tibaldo Canez, Arizona Border Indian Tribes coordinator for the U.S./Mexico Border 2012 initiative, which was designed to address environmental concerns along the border. Canez said CEGIR plans to store hazardous waste. It is not permitted, however, to store biological waste, radioactive waste or polychlorinated biphenyls, known as PCBs. What it would store, Canez said, would be ''everything else.'' Everything else, he said, is definitely the problem. ''It is not very clear what would be included, what would be dangerous or what the risks would be,'' Canez told ICT. The 246-acre site has been permitted by the Mexican federal government and the state of Sonora to treat many types of hazardous materials. The municipal government of Sonoyta, however, has not issued local land use permits. While local O'odham have not been informed about the hazardous dump site, Alfonso Flores, Mexico's secretary of the environment and director of hazardous wastes and materials, spoke of the proposed hazardous waste site during a session of the U.S./Mexico Border 2012 Waste Policy forum meeting in Monterrey, Mexico, on Feb. 7. Flores said the site would separate and treat up to 45,000 tons of hazardous waste per year, including asbestos, organochlorides and waste sludge from industries, according to the session's published report. Everyone is looking for answers, including Pima County officials in Arizona, as reported by the city of Tucson and the Pima Association of Governments. ''Because the facility is located close to the Tohono O'odham community of Quitovac, the [Tohono O'odham] nation has made several requests for public hearings involving the nation, Sonoyta and plant consulting firm officials, as well as the general public,'' according to the city of Tucson's local report on April 27. ''Those requests have not been met; however, two meetings between the nation and Mexican government officials have taken place.'' With an election in Sonoyta looming in early July, the report states, it is expected that the current leadership in Sonoyta will not reach an agreement on the permits. Meanwhile, just south of the border, the United Citizens Organization of Sonora organized, with O'odham and the people of Mexico united to voice opposition during protests in April and May. Residents in Sonoyta said they do not want to become the ''waste baskets'' for the states of Mexico to dump their hazardous waste. O'odham protesters said they fear for the health and safety of more than 200 school students in the area of the proposed dump and the release of toxins into the land, air and water. O'odham living in the area are among those who obtain their water from underground wells. Further, O'odham fear the biodiversity of a natural lagoon nearby could be destroyed. Sonoran residents dependent on tourist dollars pointed out that the hazardous waste dump would repel vacationers who frequent nearby Puerto Penasco, known as Rocky Point. The Pacific waters of the Gulf of California flow along the northwestern coast of Mexico, creating a unique land where the ocean borders the Sonoran Desert. It is a favorite beach holiday destination for Phoenix and Tucson residents, especially university students. Tohono O'odham Nation Chairman Vivian Juan-Saunders did not return a request for comment by press time. |