Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act of 2011

Floor Speech

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Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Chair, as a member of the Native American Caucus, I rise today in strong support of the amendment to H.R. 1904, the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act of 2011, offered by Congressman Luján of Arizona.

The Luján Amendment exempts Native American sacred and cultural sites from inclusion in the land transfer proposed by this bill.

As it stands, H.R. 1904 is fundamentally unfair to the San Carlos Apache Tribe and other tribes in the region, who have inhabited this land for thousands of years. This bill waives compliance with federal statutes that require timely consultation with affected tribes, who now face the prospect of witnessing their ancestral lands of unique archaeological and religious significance fall victim to destructive mining practices.

These techniques involve utilizing controlled cave-in deep underground, which can cause massive depressions at the surface and forever scar the landscape. Archaeological sites and religious lands would be forever ruined and unrecognizable.

Other surveys have identified Civilian Conservation Corps sites and structures eligible for inclusion in the National Register for Historic Places which could also be destroyed by the proposed mining project.

Mr. Chair, H.R. 1904 has been called a ``special-interest'' bill whereby a private company, Resolution Copper, which is actually a joint subsidiary of two foreign-owned mining companies. Resolution Copper would receive federal land worth billions of dollars without having to pay royalties on any mineral wealth it extracts.

Furthermore, there are no guarantees that the company would even hire locally, process the ore in the United States, or purchase equipment made in America.

H.R. 1904 excludes the one special interest with an undeniable right in this debate--the Native American tribes--from a decision that affects their community at the absolute deepest level.

I strongly support the Luján Amendment and oppose the underlying bill. I urge my colleagues to do the same.

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