FOI Request Filed on Desert Rock

desert-rock-blog.com :

By Kathy Helms  Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — A Farmington resident who has been an active opponent of the Desert Rock energy project for several years has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documents with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Steve Cone says he is not representing any particular group, "though I am in complete solidarity and accord with the action of the Navajo resistance groups, and I'll support them in every way possible." "I am a concerned citizen of the San Juan Basin and active opponent of this project since it began to rear its ugly head in the Four Corners some two to three years ago," Cone said. According to the Desert Rock blog page (http://www.desert-rock-blog.com), Navajo citizens are being told they cannot get National Environmental Policy Act documentation for the water drilling activities on the proposed Desert Rock Energy Facility site without a FOIA request. Resisters claim the main issue is that drilling activities to determine water quality, quantity and flow characteristics should be part of the overall Environmental Impact Statement being prepared for the project; however, the BIA has reportedly issued developers a categorical exclusion. Prove itCone, members of Dooda Desert Rock and Din Care want to see the paperwork. Cone submitted a formal FOIA request to BIA Dec. 16 regarding documentation of certain activities related to the Desert Rock Energy Facility by Sithe Global Power LLC and Din Power Authority. In the FOIA, Cone requested the following:

Applications or permits submitted or issued to or from Sithe or DPA to or by the BIA related to drilling for water testing in connection with Desert Rock;

Applications or permits submitted or issued to the two parties by BIA related to surveying of Navajo Nation land in connection with Desert Rock;

Documents related to any categorical exclusion issued by the BIA for on-site drilling or survey work;

Applications submitted by Sithe or EPA for permits under Sections 401, 402, and 404 of the Clean Water Act;

Permits issued by BIA to Sithe or DPA under Sections 401, 402, and 404;

Correspondence between BIA staff and Sithe and/or DPA staff from Oct. 1 to date.

Comments

[Michelle Meaders]

"Prove itCone, members of Dooda Desert Rock and Din Care want to see the paperwork. "

Is this what you meant to say?