Environmental Awareness

There are natural gas wells in the San Juan basin - South of Durango into New Mexico past Gobernador Knob. It significantly impacts the air quality due to the poisonous fumes they emit once dug into and exposed. Truck traffic adds to pollution and social imposition. Because of the economic downfall, some sites have closed down and there is less production. Government agencies, however, have continually failed to regulate ground level ozone – key ingredients of smog, and these agencies continue to grant more leases for additional oil and gas wells. There are more than 20,000 oil and gas wells in the San Juan basin and companies plan to expose 15,000 more. The EPA may be forced to address the air quality in the regions.

There are also two coal burning power plants between Shiprock and Farmington. Another in Navajo Country in Arizona. The plants are dirty, unfiltered, without scrubbing. Coal mining is done right near the power plant. One of these plants is approximately the second most polluting in the United States. It effects air quality for miles. Ute Mountain Ute people living West of Cortez, Colorado, have set their own air quality standards, but have not yet been able to bring about governmental cooperation. The San Juan power plant East of Shiprock has emitted 14,500 tons of sulfur dioxide in one year. 25,000 tons of nitrogen oxide, and 750lbs of Mercury has been released into the air. Vallecito is a reservoir NE of Durango that tested positive for elevated levels of mercury, in which Navajo and Ute people were warned in 2006 to retreat from fishing large catch.

Uranium mining has been done on the Navajo reservation and other tribal areas. Many Navajos of my grandparent’s generation were those performing mining labor. 4 million tons of uranium has been extracted in the past several decades. Many Navajos have suffered repercussive illnesses or death. Left over rocks from the mines was used to build houses, and many Navajo homes will be demolished and reconstructed this upcoming year. The EPA is determining whether or not the uranium mining corporations can be held responsible for the fatalities and negative health effects.

Usually problematic in urban centers, the four corners have been facing comparable levels of air pollution. Each of these issues culminates into an acute overload environmental contamination. San Juan County, New Mexico, home to the Navajo and Apache tribes as well as all residents of Farmington, is “currently on the brink of violating federal health limits for ozone air pollution. If the region falls into violation of federal limits, the largely rural region will be declared ‘dirty air’ area, a designation usually reserved for cities like Los Angeles and Houston” (Wild Earth Guardians). If the levels continue to rise, the government will be forced to address the issue of industrial activity.