Dine' CARE: Navajo president plans Navajos as test subjects

Obama Beware: 'Shirley's fraudulent action not only breaches federal trust responsibility, but he invites testing non-existent technology on innocent test subjects, the Navajos'

By Dine' CARE
Dine' Citizens Against Ruining our Environment

In December 2008, Navajo President Shirley sent the Obama-Biden transition team a federal agenda that outlines 27 recommendation policies and requests for $2.9 billion in funding through Obama's $775 billion stimulus program.
Some of these priorities include research funding for water rights, health issues and medical facilities on the Navajo Nation. These issues require an attentive eye from Obama; however, Shirley concealed the proposed Desert Rock power plant and carbon capture sequestration, or CCS, technology as riders in the agenda. In effect, Shirley's fraudulent action not only breaches federal trust responsibility, but he invites testing non-existent technology on innocent test subjects, the Navajos.
Two things are important to note on Shirley's request for federal funds to test for CCS technology:
First, the agenda states "CCS is expensive and unproven in a commercial capacity power plant" and adding CCS components would add $450 million to each of Desert Rock's two furnaces. So far, Desert Rock costs are projected at $4 billion without the consideration of CCS. Sithe Global LLC has stated that it invested about $20 million in the project and that the tribe loses $5 million every month. Should the federal government expend an additional $1 billion atop erroneous business endeavors such as Desert Rock when it is clearly losing millions per month?
Second, the agenda states that the Navajo Nation is willing to host a commercial scale CCS component since the proposed Desert Rock location is ideal to test carbon storage. Unfortunately, none of Desert Rock's public hearings, primary and legal documents (Air Quality Permit and Draft Environmental Impact Statement) include any analysis of CCS for Desert Rock. Inevitably, to consider CCS technology in Desert Rock would require developers to restart the entire federal permitting process. Is it not a business cliché that "Time is money"?
Altogether, Desert Rock's 20-year lack of achievement and $4 billion price tag is deviously embedded in the federal agenda. What is most disturbing, however, is the notion that Navajos are expendable guinea pigs to non-existent technology. In 2009, we hope that the legal, political and economic tangles will hasten the demise of Desert Rock.
DAILAN J. LONG
Burnham
LUCI A. WILLIE
Burnham
SARAH JANE WHITE
Sanostee
Diné Citizens Against Ruining our Environment (Diné CARE)
Dáilan J. Long
Community Organizer,Diné CARE
(505) 801-0713
dailan.jake@gmail.com
www.desert-rock-blog.com