Latest news with #SanCarlosApacheTribe
Associated Press
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Attorneys get more time to argue over contested copper mine on land sacred to Apaches
A U.S. district judge in Arizona has opened the door for the next round of legal wrangling as environmentalists and some Native Americas seek to stop the federal government from transferring land in Arizona for a massive copper mining project. Judge Dominic Lanza in a ruling issued Monday denied motions that sought to halt the transfer pending the outcome of the case. However, he did preclude the U.S. Forest Service from proceeding with the land exchange until 60 days after the agency issues a required environmental review. Lanza said that would give the parties more time to analyze the environmental report and file amended complaints. He said granting a preliminary injunction now would be premature since the review will differ in some ways from the one that spurred the legal challenge four years ago. 'It is unfortunate that the result of this order will be to force the parties to engage in another stressful, abbreviated round of briefing and litigation activity' when the new review is issued, he said, acknowledging the unusual circumstances. Attorneys for the federal government and the mining company agreed during a recent hearing to the 60-day delay. That time frame also is specified in the legislation that Congress passed and then-President Barack Obama signed in 2014 authorizing the exchange. The group Apache Stronghold, the San Carlos Apache Tribe and others welcomed more time to fight for Oak Flat, an area they consider as holy. 'In this critical moment, we call on the Trump administration and Congress to halt the transfer to a Chinese-owned mine, and honor what is sacred,' said Wendsler Nosie Sr., leader of Apache Stronghold. 'As we continue to fight in court, know this: Nothing will turn us away from defending the spiritual essence of our people, the lifeblood that connects us to the creator and this land.' A statement from Resolution Cooper said the ruling is consistent with prior decisions and gives the parties time to review the final environmental impact statement that will be issued later this month. 'We are confident the project satisfies all applicable legal requirements,' said Resolution president and general manager Vicky Peacey. She added that years of consultation with tribes and communities resulted in changes to the mining plan to reduce potential effects. The fight over Oak Flat dates back about 20 years, when legislation proposing the land exchange was first introduced. It failed repeatedly in Congress before being included in a must-pass national defense spending bill in 2014. San Carlos Apache Chairman Terry Rambler said Monday that the bill was not in the best interest of the American people, Arizona or his tribe. He said concerns persist about the mine's use of groundwater and the pending obliteration of the culturally significant site. Apache Stronghold and the tribe sued the U.S. government in 2021 to protect the place tribal members call Chi'chil Bildagoteel, which is dotted with ancient oak groves and traditional plants the Apaches consider essential to their religion. The U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected an appeal by the Apache group, letting lower court rulings stand. The project has support in nearby Superior and other traditional mining towns in the area. The company — a subsidiary of international mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP — estimates the mine will generate $1 billion a year for Arizona's economy and create thousands of jobs.
E&E News
09-06-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Judge declines to block Arizona copper mine
A federal judge on Monday declined to intervene in the advancement of a massive copper mine in Arizona opposed by tribal members but did give opponents some breathing room. Judge Dominic Lanza in the District Court for the District of Arizona denied two requests for a preliminary injunction to halt a federal land swap that would lead to the mine being built. But Lanza also ruled that the Forest Service cannot move ahead with the land exchange until 60 days after completing and issuing a final environmental impact statement. 'The Court concludes that, under these unusual circumstances, the appropriate course of action is to preclude the Forest Service from proceeding with the land exchange until 60 days after the issuance of the FEIS,' Lanza wrote. 'The legal basis for this order is simple—during oral argument, all defendants agreed to (or agreed not to oppose) such a period of delay.' Advertisement Lanza's ruling is the result of a legal fight that the San Carlos Apache Tribe and groups like the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition have led since 2021 in hopes of killing the mining project, which they say will destroy a holy site known as Oak Flat in the Tonto National Forest. The land exchange was originally included in the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act and championed by the late Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How an Apache language teacher found herself on a Kevin Costner film set
FORT THOMAS, Ariz. — Sixteen kids bent over worksheets, laboriously writing out words in Ndee biyátiʹ — Apache — as their teacher recited them in English. "Scorpion," she said. Tsédag histasí. "Tarantula," she said. Biganłané. A group of bright purple posters displayed the numbers one through 10 in Apache with common items to spur memories. Data'a — one San Carlos Apache Tribe flag. Naki — two moccasins. Tąągi — three cradleboards. Colorful posters sporting other common Apache terms lined the classroom walls. There were even terms for television and TV table. It was another day in Aurelia Bullis' fourth grade Apache language class. Bullis has spent most of her life in the Fort Thomas school district. A native of Bylas, a nearby community, Bullis attended school in the district and now teaches the Apache language to pre-kindergarten through high school students. Lately, she's also been instructing actors to speak her native tongue and filmmakers how to avoid stereotypical syntax. Bullis started working over the summer after graduating from Fort Thomas High School. "There was a program where you could work during the summers or just to make a little bit of money," she said. Bullis worked at the local Head Start, where she moved up from volunteer to supervisor. After a short time as both a bus driver and teacher, Bullis saw a sign recruiting for an Apache language teacher. "I said, 'Oh, I might as well try,'" said Bullis, whose first language is Apache. Bullis beat out two older ladies for the job because she was willing to create lesson plans for kids from kindergarten through sixth grade. But then she had second thoughts. "What did I get myself into? How am I gonna do this?" She had never taught older kids before and felt intimidated. Hubby Buz came to the rescue. "He took us to the Twin Arrows Casino for the weekend, just to get away," Bullis said. Soon she hit upon a method to do the job. "I think I know what to do now," she said. "I'm going to do this lesson for this class, this lesson for the older ones, and then it all just came to me and I started putting it together." Bullis sat up all night typing up lesson plans for her new job. Eventually, Bullis' position grew to include junior and senior high classes. She also sponsored the school's culture club, which includes running school royalty pageants. She's never looked back after nine years of teaching both spoken and written Apache in the dialect common to the eastern San Carlos and White Mountain Apache peoples. Hollywood came calling for Bullis through one of Indian Country's time-honored methods: family. Bullis' younger sister, Beverly, lives in the La Jolla Reservation in north San Diego County with her husband, a relative of famed designer and fellow La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians tribal member Jamie Okuma. Okuma's son, Bodhi Okuma Linton, is an actor who has appeared in film and television shows, including "Reservation Dogs" and "Dark Winds." Linton was also featured in the 2024 film "Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1." During the 2022 production, staff from Kevin Costner's production company were searching for a fluent Apache speaker to instruct the Native actors cast for the film, none of whom spoke Apache. "So Jamie asked her nephew, Melvin Nelson to ask my sister." But Beverly can only understand Apache after being barred from speaking the language while attending a religious school. Beverly gave her older sister, Aurelia, a call. "I was teaching a summer class in San Carlos," Bullis said. "She asked if I wanted a job for the summer? It's for a movie." And not just any movie — "Horizon" was created by the Oscar-winning Costner. "You're kidding right?" Bullis said. It was no joke. Bullis was hired to translate the actors' lines into Apache. Next came the call to teach the cast their lines on location in Moab, Utah. "My husband was excited because I told him he's coming along." Bullis said her most thrilling, yet scary day was when Costner himself came to the set. "I couldn't say anything. I was just too scared and in shock." She started digging in her bag just so she wouldn't pass out. "But then he came around, and we got to shake his hand." After several weeks, though, Bullis had to return to Fort Thomas as the school year had started. They created a workaround for that, too. "We used Zoom to teach each actor," she said. Bullis has more movie work in progress. She's working with at least one other filmmaker on a new project. For this job, Bullis' work is more than just translating. "The lines are kind of generic," she said. The writer didn't know how Apache people talked. "It was like, 'Oh spirit, you gave me the mountains' and this and that. "My husband and I both thought it was cheesy." Bullis is now busy rewriting lines to more accurately reflect how Apache people really talk. And she said that when she arrives on the set, the actors had best be dressed properly, "like the real deal that Costner had with their regalia, no generic feathers, that sort of thing." Another film producer is already working to become familiar with Apache culture and the language that expresses that culture. "He's been wanting to come down and see Sunrise Dances and those sorts of things," Bullis said. "We've been talking on Zoom.' Looking forward, Bullis is hard at work teaching younger generations about their culture and language. It was difficult, however, to make Apache her kids' first language. Bullis' husband was also forbidden to speak Apache at school and thus can only understand it, as can her four kids. "I speak to them in Apache and they understand. They'll say a little bit of this and that, but other than that, they just go back to speaking English," she said. Bullis is working to bridge that gap with her four grandchildren. "I teach them here," she said. "It's like Apache is their second language." Her fellow Apache teacher is also teaching her third-grade granddaughter. But her 11-month-old grandson is another matter. "We watch him when I'm not working, and really getting him to 'say this one, say this.' So he's slowly picking up that language." Debra Krol reports on Indigenous communities at the confluence of climate, culture and commerce in Arizona and the Intermountain West. Reach Krol at Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @debkrol and on Bluesky at @ This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: How an Apache language teacher found work on a Kevin Costner film
Washington Post
29-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Appeals court revives Native American challenge to $10B SunZia energy transmission project
A federal appeals court has sided with Native American tribes in their fight against the federal government over a $10 billion energy transmission line designed to carry wind-generated electricity from New Mexico to customers as far away as California. The Tohono O'odham Nation — along with the San Carlos Apache Tribe, the Center for Biological Diversity and Archaeology Southwest — sued the U.S. Interior Department and then-Interior Secretary Deb Haaland in 2024. They argued that the agency failed to properly consult with the tribes on a historic property designation for southern Arizona's San Pedro Valley.
E&E News
29-05-2025
- Business
- E&E News
Legal challenge to SunZia project gets a lifeline
A federal appeals court has revived a legal challenge to a major Southwest electric transmission line, in a win for local tribes and advocacy groups opposing the construction plans for the clean energy project. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court ruling dismissing claims that the Interior Department had failed to properly consult about the potential damage to historical and cultural sites in the path of the 550-mile SunZia line in the San Pedro Valley. The planned transmission line is designed to provide 3 million customers in California and Arizona with mostly renewable power, and would extend from New Mexico to Arizona. Advertisement The appeals court found that Tohono O'odham Nation, the San Carlos Apache Tribe, Archaeology Southwest and the Center for Biological Diversity had 'plausibly alleged' that the Interior had violated a negotiated agreement for the implementation of the project, known as a programmatic agreement or PA.
