This map shows the risk of fatal accidents along the more than 300-mile transportation route from Canyon uranium mine (renamed Pinyon Plain Mine) near the Grand Canyon to the White Mesa uranium mill. Four of the five most dangerous sections along the route are on the Navajo Nation. See a photo gallery of the haul route, […]
This map shows active mining claims, including various uranium mines, inside the boundaries of Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Grand Canyon National Monument The map was produced using data from the Bureau of Land Management and updated in June 2024. Download a PDF of the map › Maps and graphs may be used for non-commercial purposes […]
This map shows the route haul trucks will take, traveling about 300 miles through Arizona, the Navajo Nation, Utah, and the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation to deliver uranium ore mined at Canyon Mine (renamed Pinyon Plain Mine) to the White Mesa Mill for processing. Download your copy ›. See a photo gallery of the haul route, with […]
Radioactive waste is shipped from toxic sites across the country and around the world to the White Mesa Mill (not all feeds approved for shipment actually ship). Learn more about White Mesa Mill › As of 2023: 2020 Edition: Download your copy › Previous Edition: Download your copy ›
This interactive map shows the Canyon Mine (renamed Pinyon Plain Mine) haul route, from the south rim of the Grand Canyon to the White Mesa uranium mill in southern Utah. The uranium mine is expected to send about six trucks of uranium ore per day to the White Mesa Mill, through the Navajo Nation and cities, towns, […]
What is LeaderShift? LeaderShift is an immersive environmental justice and advocacy training program for college-age students. With the land as our classroom, we travel across various corners of the Colorado Plateau; sleep under the stars; and spend our days learning from local changemakers and each other. LeaderShift examines the legacy of energy extraction, its […]
Uranium spot prices have flutuated between 1989 and 2024, with notable spikes in 2007 and 2024. Download the graph ›
On April 25, 2024, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) denied the preliminary permit application for the Big Canyon Pumped Storage Project, which would have dammed Big Canyon, a tributary canyon to the Little Colorado River Gorge, mere miles from Grand Canyon National Park. Big Canyon Pumped Storage Project Read the denial › See a map […]
Pinyon and juniper forests cover much of the American Southwest, as this map shows. Download your free copy › Download a PDF copy ›
Pumped storage hydropower dams proposed on the Navajo Nation. “X” denotes project applications denied by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Download your free copy › Download a PDF copy ›
Pumped storage hydropower dam proposals and past coal mining threaten Black Mesa, on the Navajo Nation, as you can see on this map. Download your free copy › Download a PDF copy ›
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Flagstaff, AZ — The Grand Canyon Regional Intertribal Intergenerational Stewardship Expedition (RIISE) is accepting applications from young people ages 16-20 who identify as members of one of the associated tribes of the Grand Canyon for its third annual free nine-day Colorado River rafting trip through the Grand Canyon July 15-23, 2024. Hosted by […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Flagstaff, AZ — The Grand Canyon Trust is now accepting applications for its 2024 LeaderShift Scholars program. Up to 12 LeaderShift scholars will be selected for a free nine-day immersive outdoor environmental justice advocacy training across the Colorado Plateau, August 10-18, 2024. LeaderShift scholarships include $150 stipends, meals, and transportation, with gear-lending available. […]
Tribes have formally opposed a dozen pumped storage hydroelectric projects proposed on or near Native lands. Download your copy of this map › Curious about pumped storage? Here’s how it works › Download your copy of this map ›
Developers have proposed several pumped storage hydroelectric projects on or near Native lands across the Colorado Plateau. Through this interactive map, learn more about each proposal, including the number of reservoirs, proposed water sources, and more. Curious about pumped storage? Here’s how it works › View in full screen (suggested for mobile)
A number of pumped storage hydroelectric projects have been proposed on or near Native lands across the Colorado Plateau. This map shows how much water each project would require to initially fill its reservoirs. Download your copy of this map › Curious about pumped storage? Here’s how it works › Download your copy of this map ›
On November 17, 2023, the Navajo Nation filed a motion to intervene in the preliminary permit proceeding for the proposed Western Navajo No. 2 hydropower project. According to the preliminary-permit application, the planned dam on the Navajo Nation would be located near Page, Arizona, and utilize water from Lake Powell. Read the motion › Download the […]
On October 31, 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) accepted an application by Nature and People First, a company organized by a French entrepreneur, for a preliminary permit for a proposed hydroelectric project called Chuska Mountain Pumped Storage Project on Navajo Nation land. According to the preliminary-permit application, the project would consist of seven reservoirs […]
How does Glen Canyon Dam work? Water levels at Lake Powell determine how much water can pass through Glen Canyon Dam into the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. A minumum amount of water is required for water releases and power generation. The depth of Lake Powell is measured as the elevation above sea level. View […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SALT LAKE CITY, UT — Estonian state-owned oil shale company Enefit American Oil is abandoning its lease to mine oil shale on federal public land in northeastern Utah’s Uinta Basin. The decision marks the end of the George W. Bush-era federal oil shale leasing program and came just weeks before a settlement agreement […]
The Grand Canyon Trust and Deseret Power signed a settlement agreement over a sizable water right (15 cubic-feet per second, or 3.5 billion gallons per year). Deseret Power acquired the water right from Enefit American Oil Co., an Estonian state-owned oil shale company aiming to build a massive oil shale mining and processing facility in northern […]
The Estonian state-owned oil shale company, Enefit American Oil, relinquished a preliminary lease to research the commercial viability of mining and producing oil shale on public land in northeastern Utah. Enefit has proposed a massive development on 13,000 acres of private land and 4,960 acres of federal public land in the Uinta Basin. By relinquishing its 160-acre […]
On July 14, 2023, Tó Nizhóní Ání, Diné Citizens Against Ruining our Environment, and Center for Biological Diversity provided the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) with 17 resolutions from Navajo Nation chapters and agencies opposing the proposed Black Mesa dams; additional resolutions have been passed. The three-part plan for a hydropower project that could string reservoirs […]
On July 12, 2023, Nature and People First, a company organized by a French entrepreneur, submitted a revised application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a preliminary permit for a proposed hydroelectric project called the Chuska Mountain Pumped Storage Project on Navajo Nation land. View the application › Download the PDF ›
On June 9, 2023 Rye Development, LLC submitted an application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a preliminary permit for a proposed hydroelectric dam on Navajo Nation land. The below application for Western Navajo Pumped Storage Project No. 2 is one of two applications. View the application › Download the PDF ›
On June 9, 2023, Rye Development, LLC submitted an application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a preliminary permit for a proposed hydroelectric dam on Navajo Nation land. The below application for Western Navajo Pumped Storage Project No. 1 is one of two applications. View the application › Download the PDF ›
Pumped storage hydropower uses the transfer of water between two reservoirs (dams) to generate electricity. The technology requires a local water source to fill the reservoirs. Download the PDF ›
This report details how the White Mesa Mill, a conventional uranium mill in southeastern Utah a mile from Bears Ears National Monument, became America’s cheapest radioactive waste dump. By transforming its business model, the mill has turned into a commercial landfill for contaminated wastes, placing Utah’s clean air, water, environment, and people at risk and perpetuating […]
On May 2, 2023, Nature and People First, a company organized by a French entrepreneur, submitted an application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a preliminary permit for a proposed hydroelectric project called the Chuska Mountain North Pumped Storage Project on Navajo Nation land. View the application › Download the PDF ›