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- By Jenna Kunze
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The Biden administration broke with the norm last week when it acknowledged tribal sovereignty in its allocations of money under the new bipartisan Infrastructure Law to 22 states plus Navajo Nation, and possibly tribal lands in Oklahoma.
Last Tuesday, the Department of the Interior AnnouncementIt would spend close to $725million over the next decade to revitalize old mining communities across the United States. The money will be spent in the states and territories most affected by abandoned coal mining. It will be used to hire workers from the former coal industry who will then do environmental cleanup and create other economic development opportunities in Abandoned Minelands (AML).
AML funding will allow states to clean up abandoned mines that leak methane, a key contributor to climate changes, DOIs press release stated.
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The Interior selected the states and tribes based upon the number of coal-producing areas in each state and territory before August 3, 1977. This was when the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act was adopted, which regulates the environmental impacts of coal mining.
The law regulates environmental effects of coal mining in America in two programs: one for regulation of active coal mines and another for the reclamation of abandoned mine lands.
According to the DOIs calculations, Pennsylvania and West Virginia are eligible to receive the largest funding amount at nearly $250 million and $140 millions, respectively.
Navajo Nation was granted a line item of $1.7 million to reclaim its four abandoned coal mines located on its vast territory that straddles Arizona and New Mexico.
Jonathon Nez, President of the Navajo Nation, stated in a statement that funding has set a new standard for Nation-to Nation relationships with the White House.
Nez wrote that funding for the Navajo Nation, along with other states, is precedent and demonstrates that we are viewed in the Biden-Harris Administration’s eyes as a sovereign institution. The economy of the Navajo Nation was heavily dependent on natural resources in the past. Many Navajo families lost good-paying jobs after the closing of the coal mines. The surrounding communities were also affected by high unemployment. Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed by President Biden, will help to revitalize local economies and families and address environmental impacts.
The Department of the Interiors announcement also highlighted its nod towards the Supreme Court McGirt decision, which according to their press release precluded the state of Oklahoma from receiving any of the $3.5 million allocated for the area in the bill.
A spokesperson for DOI stated that Native News OnlineThe state of Oklahoma has abandoned mine lands that are on tribal lands. Therefore, the state is not eligible to receive funding for the bills.
The Cherokee Nation is located near Tahlequah (Oklahoma) and is seeking consultation with the Department of the Interior in order to access federal funds under this initiative. Native News Online.
The federally funded Cherokee Nation also completed a reclamation project at an abandoned coal strip mine in Porum last year. The tribe partnered up with the Department of the Interiors Office of Surface Mining Control and Recommendation, and the Oklahoma Conservation Commissions Abandoned Mines Program.
The Cherokee Nation applauds Department of [the]In a statement to Native News Online, Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. stated that Interiors has committed to funding reclamation of abandoned mines sites throughout the country and within Cherokee Nation Reservation. All abandoned coal mines in Oklahoma that are subject to reclamation are on tribal reservations. Federal funding will be used to reclaim these sites, with tribal input. These projects will be completed in collaboration with the Department of the Interior.
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Native News: 11 years
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About the Author
Staff Writer
Jenna Kunze reports for Native News Online, Tribal Business News. Her bylines have appeared on The Arctic Sounder (High Country News), Indian Country Today, Smithsonian Magazine, Anchorage Daily News, and Indian Country Today. She was one of 16 U.S. journalists chosen by the Pulitzer Center in 2020 to report on climate change in Alaska’s Arctic region. She was previously the lead reporter at Chilkat Valley News, Haines, Alaska. Kunze is based New York.
