A Phoenix-based company has been issued preliminary permits for two proposed hydroelectric projects on Navajo Nation lands mere miles from the national park boundary. Both would flood a pristine section of the Little Colorado River Gorge, muddy its distinctive turquoise-blue waters, destroy areas sacred to Native peoples, and threaten the habitat of the already endangered humpback chub.
In June, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission accepted a third application to dam Big Canyon, a tributary canyon adjacent to the Little Colorado River.
Public outcry from Grand Canyon advocates defeated the proposed Marble Canyon Dam in the 1960s. We can do it again. It's time we raise our voices to stop dams from altering the Little Colorado River forever.
STATUS: Preliminary permit issued
This proposal is less than five miles from Grand Canyon National Park and includes two concrete arch dams, one across a canyon east of the Little Colorado River and another on the Little Colorado River itself. Details ›
STATUS: Preliminary permit issued
Less than a half mile from the boundary with Grand Canyon National Park, this project also includes two dams. It appears the project's lower reservoir would leave a Hopi sacred site underwater. Read more ›
STATUS: Open for public comment
Also on Navajo Nation land, this proposal includes four dams on and above Big Canyon, a tributary to the Little Colorado River. Developers say the Big Canyon project could replace their two prior proposals. Learn more ›
The confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers is sacred to many Native peoples in the region and awe-inspiring to all. These proposed dam projects, like the not-so-distant failed Escalade tramway, threaten to disrupt the spiritual and cultural practices of people who have called the Grand Canyon home since time immemorial. One of the projects (the Little Colorado River Pumped Storage Project), would flood a Hopi sacred site, a place where the Hopi people believe they emerged into this world.
In May 2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued preliminary permits for the Salt Trail Canyon and Little Colorado River projects. These permits are not final approvals but grant the company exclusive rights for three years to investigate data, determine the feasibility of its proposed projects, and apply for final licenses (no other hydropower developer can file a competing license in that window). FERC has opened a 60-day comment period for the Big Canyon project. Voice your opposition by August 3, 2020 ›
In March 2020, Pumped Hydro Storage submitted a third application to study the feasibility of building another set of dams in Big Canyon, a tributary to the Little Colorado just upstream of the other proposed projects. The Big Canyon Pumped Storage project would use concrete arch and earthen dams to create four reservoirs, one of which would flood the bottom of the canyon. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission accepted the application on June 2, opening a 60-day comment period on the scheme. Comment now to protect Big Canyon and the Little Colorado River ›
If built, these dams on the Little Colorado River would:
From mines, to tourist developments, to proposed dams, profiteers have been trying to make a buck off the canyon since the 1800s. The company behind these proposed hydroelectric projects claims they'd be an economic boon to Navajo and Arizona economies, bringing approximately $3 billion in investment to stimulate jobs and growth. But it appears the company may not have yet consulted with the Navajo Nation, much less with other impacted tribes, about its plans.
The Grand Canyon region is too precious to mine. It's time to ban new uranium mines around the canyon forever.
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