OCR Text |
Show tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiifiiiiiiiiiiitriiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiittiiiiniiiMMffiiiftfiiiifffitnnmnfirimiiiiiffiiiiifiiitiiiiiiitf Western Resources WRAP-UP Wednesday, March 28, 1984 Verflfll ExpfBSt 3 Utah gravestone art on display at library Indian mining bill By Helene C. Monberg Vernal Express Washington Correspondent Washington Seven Western Indian tribes, led by the coal-producing Navajo and backed by the Environmental En-vironmental Policy Institute, are prodding prod-ding Congress to get moving on implementing im-plementing their authority to control mining on Indian lands. All other lands went under regulation in 1977. The tribes want the right "to regulate mining and reclamation on reservation lands," Harold Tso, director direc-tor of resources for the Navajo Tribe, told a Congressional hearing on March 19, with federal aid. And they want to participate in cutting cut-ting up a growing pie in the reclamation reclama-tion fund. The Administration estimates that $651 million will be available in fiscal year 1985 from the reclamation fund created by the Surface Sur-face Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) (PL 95-87), of which it has sought $299 million in Congressional Con-gressional funding in 1985 for reclaming reclam-ing old and abondoned mines. Of that sum, it proposes to provide $263 million to the states in grants and $24 million for federal lands but nothing for Indian lands, according to Interior budget officers. The tribes want to be masters of their own lands where surface mining of coal is occurring. The Hopi Indians of Arizona are tired of being regarded regard-ed as "Visitors on our own lands," David Talayumptewa, chief administrative ad-ministrative officer of the Hopi Tribe, testified at an oversight hearing on the Indian provisions of SMCRA before the House Interior Committee on March 19. They are so treated now at mines on Hopi land, he said. Although at least 25 Indian tribes have coal resources on their lands, only the Navajo of Arizona and New Mexico and the Hopi of Arizona have coal production on-going on their tribal lands. Leonard Robinson of the Navajo Coal Commission told Western Resources Wrap-up (WRW) coal mining min-ing is currently going on at five mines on Indian land in the Southwest. They are at Black Mesa and Kayen-ta Kayen-ta in Arizona, both operated by Peabody Coal Co., and three mines in Northwestern New Mexico operated by Utah International, Consolidation Coal Co., and Pittsburg and Midway Coal Coin Co-in addition, Westmoreland Resources operates a mine in Montana which is on land that the Crow Tribe ceded to the United States in 1904. How much of the mineral estate under the ceded land still belongs to the Crow is now in litigation in federal court in Montana. In 1980 OSM and several other agencies agen-cies within the Interior Department started to hold meetings with seven major coal-owning tribes to discuss issues concerning the regulation of surface coal mining on Indian lands and legislation "Designed to allow Indian In-dian tribes to elect to assume full regulatory authority over surface mining min-ing of coal on Indian lands," as directed by the 1977 law. The tribes, in addition to the Navajo, Nava-jo, Hopi and Crow, included the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota, the Northern Nor-thern Cheyenne of Montana, the Northern Nor-thern Ute Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation in Utah and the Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado. The Council of Energy Resources Tribes (CERT) completed a study in 1979 deatiling the coal resources of 25 tribes and the issues involved in the control and reclamation of surface mining on Indian lands. But it took the advent of William P. Clark as Secretary of Interior late last year to jar the Interior Department to present its findings and recommendations to Congress early this year. Instead of making legislative recommendations, the Department offered options which satisfied no one. BALL BACK IN CONGRESS' COURT At the March 19 oversight hearing before the House Interior Committee, Edwards S. Grandis, director of the Citizens Mining Project for the Environmental En-vironmental Policy Institute (EPI), testified that Interior, with OSM as the tlead agency on the Indian lands study, S'UnA thni.im "tks Kntl kanlr tr Pnn. fcgress" to solve several critical issues, t including a definition of Indian lands. "It is our view that Indian tribal primacy," which he and several other witnesses defined as the right of In-f In-f dians to regulate mining and reclama tion on their lands, "cannot wait for all the issues to be resolved. Coal mining has been occurring on Indian lands for years and the coal companies do not intend to delay new mining while the Interior Deaprtment of Congress wrestles with these issues," Grandis testified and repeatedly underscored in Q&A with Reps. Bill Richardson, D-N.M.,.who chaired the hearing, and John F. Selberling, D-Ohio, who was a principal prin-cipal architect of the 1977 strip mine control law. John T. Atkins of Utah International and Chris Farrand of Peabody strongly strong-ly urged the Committee to clarify the definition of Indian lands in the 1977 law. And Atkins, who also represented the Joint National Coal AssociationAmerican Associa-tionAmerican Mining Congress Committee Com-mittee on Surface Mining Regulations, went further. He stated, "The coal industry in-dustry contends that something can and must be done immediately to give some direction and focus to the regulation regula-tion of surface mining on Indian lands. The uncertainty that exists on Indian lands because of the lack of well-defined well-defined lines of jurisdiction and authority has made the channels for obtaining the authorization to mine on those lands tortuous at best if not totally total-ly counterproductive." Farrand, especially on the Q&A, pleaded for "one regulatory authority." Peabody has particular problems in mining on the old Navajo-Hopi joint use area in Arizona, he testified. The Navajo's Tso, when asked about the current situation, said he was concerned con-cerned about delay under the present set-up. Now the Office of Surface Mining Min-ing is attempting on an interim basis to control surface mining on Indian lands. Tso complained that OSM doesn't have "a sufficient field staff to handle priority problems." In one instance, in-stance, land subsidence occurred due to mining on Navajo land while OSM considered a regulatory problem, he testified. "It's enough to make you lose your hair," he told the Committee. David Lester of CERT complained about "The insensitivity of OSM." He told the Committee that the "tribes should not be expected to endure the insensitive nature of OMS," and its failure to "appreciate the urgency for passage of... legislation" to allow tribes to regulate surface mining on Indian lands. He said OSM continued to regard Indian lands as private lands, whereas they have a legal status which is different from both federal lands and private lands. WHAT TO DO? At the request of CERT, Chairman Morris K. Udall, D-Ariz., of the House Interior Committee on Feb. 9 introduced introduc-ed a bill (HR 4860) embodying CERT's recommendations to solve the regulatory problems on Indian lands. All of the witnesses understood that the Udall bill was just the jumping off point to get the discussion started in Congress, Seiberling urged action in the Seriate first because he is concerned concern-ed that the Republican-controlled Senate might open up SMCRA to amendment. As chairman of the House Public Lands Subcommittee, Seiberling said he has found that, by and large, "the coal industry is still unreconstructed" when it comes to implementing SMCRA. John North, counsel for the Department of State Lands for the state of Montana, strongly opposed any action on the Udall bill. It doesn't meet state problems, he said. Tso told WRW, Indians had been in contact with Sen. John Melcher, D-Mont., D-Mont., and they hoped he would draft a bill which would resolve some of the more pressing issues. A spokesman for Melcher told WRW on March 20 his staff is now in the process of drafting a bill that Melcher could introduce "in about two weeks" which could be referred to the Senate Select Committee Commit-tee on Indian Affairs. That would insure in-sure the legislation would cover solely sole-ly Indian lands, not be an update of SMCRA generally. North told WRW on March 19 he had not been in contact yet with Melcher regarding the state of Montana's concerns con-cerns about such legislation, but he planned to touch base with the state's senior Senator directly. Grandis offered of-fered to work with Congress to help with bill drafting. Tso indicated the Navajo are particularly par-ticularly interested in getting legislation legisla-tion soon because tribal leaders are currently working with the state of New Mexico and Interior Department representatives on a land selection for the tribe in Northwestern New Mexico which might include 8,000 acres of coal land on which the Public Service Co. of New Mexico hopes to build another power plant. Public Service already has a mine-mouth plant in the area. Among the issues that must be addressed, ad-dressed, according to OSM, are: What lands should be covered by tribal regulatory programs? Should tribes have the option of operating partial regulatory programs as an alternative to taking full responsibility? Should the tribes have authority to impose criminal penalties on non-Indians non-Indians namely coal operators? Should civil suits be permitted against tribal regulators? Should judicial review of tribal regulatory programs and decisions be in tribal courts or federal courts? How tribal regulatory programs should be operated and funded. Utah's Volunteers I I the helping hands J join us During the period between 1847 and the coming of the railroad in 1868, gravestone markers in the Utah Territory Ter-ritory were typically carved by local craftsmen from native stone. The desire of early Mormon pioneers to make Utah their permanent home as well as the availability of fine stone from Utah's canyons, probably accounts ac-counts for the abundance of stone markers in an era when wooden markers were commonplace throughout the west. In building new lives in the west, early pioneers were required to do a variety of jobs in order to accomplish all the things that had to be done. For this reason, most gravestones were carved by men whose primary occupations oc-cupations were masonry, roof slating, woodcarving or cordwaining (working with leather). In spite of the fact that gravestone carving was not their primary occupation, many beautiful stones were carved. Some of the markers, most often those that were artistically designed and executed, were signed by their creators. The symbols used on these early Utah gravestones were most often of traditional Western Europe origin such as the doves, lamb, or flowers. Also common were symbols which had taken on special meaning to Mormons, such as clasped hands. After the coming of the railroad, carloads of uncut marble and granite were available from the east and monument companies were established establish-ed that used this imported stone. One such company was started in Brigham City by an English immigrant, John Henry Bott, who had learned stone carving as a young boy while working on the construction of the Salt Lake Temple. Botts three wives and 17 children all played a part in his family fami-ly business and his work became well known throughout northern Utah and Southern Idaho. Around the turn of the century, monument companies in the east offered of-fered pre-carved gravestone markers. The purchase of these pre-cut markers, chosen from pattern books distributed by the companies, became widespread in Utah as well as the rest of the nation. These markers utilized traditional European symbolism, greek revival urns, swags and willow trees that were then popular throughout the country as well as some regionalized designs such as the Salt Lake Temple. They arrived by train finished aside from the addition of the name and dates of the deceased. The next developmental gravestone carving occurred in the 1940's when sandblasting techniques became commonplace. com-monplace. Not only did this modern method of incising change the look of gravestone markers, it also heralded a change in gravestone imagery. Whereas hand carving had encouraged encourag-ed the mastery and repetition of traditional tradi-tional symbols and the pre-cut monuments chosen from pattern books had continued this trend, sandblasting sand-blasting allowed more freedom in design resulting in the increased use of regional and personal symbols. As Austin Fife explains in Utah Folk Plea changed in felony case Frank D. Morgan of Vernal, who earlier pleaded not guilty to a third degree felony charge of distribution of a controlled substance during Law and Motion Day, Jan. 10, has recently changed his plea. Morgan entered his amended plea before 7th Circuit Court Judge Richard C. Davidson March 23. Sentencing in the case was placed in abeyance for 18 months, and Morgan was placed on probationary status. Under the terms of his probation Morgan must enter into an agreement with Adult Probation and Parole (APP), he must not break any laws, pay $500 in costs and spend one year in the Uintah County Jail. The jail term, however, was suspended. If Morgan complies with the order, the charge will be reduced to a Class A misdemeanor and judgment of sentencing will be entered accordingly. Man dies from gunshot wound The body of Randall James Terry, 37, of Vernal was discovered by Utah Highway Patrol officer Gary Cutler, Friday at 4:30 p.m. at the Scenic Overlook on U.S. Highway 40 west of Vernal. Officer Cutler discovered the body while on routine patrol of the area. Terry apparently died from a self-inflicted self-inflicted gunshot wound. Investigation into the incident is currently underway by the Uintah County Sheriff's Office. Art: A Catalog of Material Culture (BYU Press, 1980,) "As for the new images reflecting the new ethnic arrangements ar-rangements of the West we find the theology of Mormonism; the imigra-tion imigra-tion of the West with homesteading, ranching, farming, cow-punching, and other aspects of the pioneering experience ex-perience and a renewed cult of nature, the out-of-doors and sports." Gravestones can be beautiful examples ex-amples of folk art as well as monuments to the lives of those who have died. Many stones are destroyed by weather or vandalism, but one way of preserving their beauty is by taking rubbings of the stones. A collection of 14 panels documenting Utah gravestone art is now on display in the Uintah County Library multi-purpose room. These are part of a large collection collec-tion donated to the State Folk Art Archives Ar-chives and are exhibited through the Utah Arts Council. The Utah Gravestone Art Exhibit can be seen now through April 22 at the library during regular library hours. I v : TOMBSTONE DISPLAYED in the Uintah Coun- by a U.S. marshall while under indictment for a ty Library described the deceased as being shot misdemeanor anti-polygamy law. IJIIIIIII..I.III i ii iiimiiiiii 'ii .in i imiii r ; f 111 11 "m iir 1 "" i 885 S: -5 : "l I i ''"iTt) ' ' Zr 1 I'll.'.:, .. LMr Banks open to In Utah, there are many successful people. One thing they all have in common is a good relationship with a bank. Because a bank can open many doors for you. More doors than any other financial institution. Loans. Savings. Retirement. Financial Planning. Checking. And the security of being Federally Insured. A MESSAGE HEADSTONE FOR Pete Johansen as County Library illustrates his expert the doors success. If you want success, get to know your banker. Develop a relationship. "A friend at the bank" can open the doors you need to help you acliieve the success you want. FROM YOUH UTAH HILL SERVICE BANKS Members FD1C displayed in the Uintah horsemanship. |