Colorado River Native Nations Alliance
Fort Mojave • Chemehuevi • Quechan • Cocopah • Colorado River Indian Tribes


HELP STOP THE PROPOSED RADIOACTIVE WASTE DUMP!

November 23, 1998 - Press release

WARD VALLEY COALITION CONFERENCE

November 20, 21 and 22
Ward Valley And Parker, Arizona

The Ward Valley Coalition, including the Colorado River Native Nations Alliance, is planning a conference to celebrate our victories, develop strategies for the future and discuss decision-making process and coalition building.

We will gather at Ward Valley on Friday, November 20 at "ground zero" for an informal gathering and social time and to camp for the night before heading on to the Ahakhav Tribal Preserve in Parker, Arizona for the conference meeting the next day. Bring camping gear, food and water to be self-sufficient. The weather is most likely to be very pleasant but be prepared for cold and wind.

Ward Valley is located 22 miles west of Needles, California. Take the Water Road exit from Interstate 40 and travel about one mile south to the Tortoise Gate, then turn right. Be aware of tortoises on the road. On Saturday, November 21, we will caravan from Ward Valley to the Colorado River Indian Tribal Reservation Ahakhav Tribal Preserve. The Preserve is located on the upper Ahakhav backwater of the Colorado River and has some cooking and bathroom facilities. The preserve is on a grassy area and there is plenty of room for camping. Be prepared to be self-sufficient. Bring water, food and camping gear. For information on lodging in the area call the SAVE WARD VALLEY office in Needles at (760) 326-6267. We will meet all day on Saturday and half day on Sunday. We will be joined by people from Texas and Mexico that were involved in the successful Sierra Blanca campaign.

Directions to Parker, Arizona:

• From Central/Northern CA: Interstate 40 to Needles, take Highway 95 south to Vidal Junction. Turn left at Vidal Junction. Follow signs to Parker.
• From Southern CA: Interstate 10 to Highway 62 into Parker.
• From Northern AZ: Interstate 40 west to AZ Highway 95 south to Parker
• From Central/Southern AZ: Interstate 10 West to AZ Highway 95 north to Parker.

Directions to the Preserve from downtown Parker:
• From Highway 95 turn west onto Riverside Drive which turns into 2nd Street. Turn right onto Mohave Rd. at the Colorado River Indian Tribe Administration center. Turn right onto Rodeo Rd. Follow the signs to the preserve.

Please join us as we plan for victory!

Save Ward Valley
107 F Street, Needles, CA 92363
ph. 760/326-6267 fax 760/326-6268

Bay Area Nuclear (BAN) Waste Coalition
2760 Golden Gate, San Francisco, California 94118
(415) 752-8678 (415) 221-4267

November 23, 1998 - Press release
(Coming Dec. 2. - a complete report on the conference.)
Contact: Nora Helton, Chairwoman, Ft. Mojave Indian Tribe 760/326-6267


COLORADO RIVER INDIAN TRIBES HOST INTERNATIONAL GATHERING TO STOP PROPOSED WARD VALLEY NUCLEAR WASTE DUMP

Hundreds Of Tribal Members & Environmental Justice Supporters From U.S. & Mexico Call On Governor-Elect Davis To Stop Dump

Aha Quin, CA, Colorado River Indian Tribes Reservation -- Hundreds of tribal members from the Indian Nations along the Colorado River were joined by Indigenous and environmental justice supporters from across the Southwest and Mexico this weekend in a gathering to save Ward Valley, sacred Indian land and the Colorado River from a proposed nuclear waste dump.

The Colorado River Indian Tribes of the Colorado River Native Nations Alliance (CRNNA) hosted the strategy and planning meeting of the Ward Valley Coalition. The Alliance and Coalition applauded Governor-Elect Davis' commitment to the environment and long-standing opposition to the proposed dump, and are urging him to act immediately upon taking office to stop the dump. The CRNNA and the Coalition are called on Governor-Elect Davis to withdraw the State's application to the Interior Department for a transfer of federal land at Ward Valley for the dump and to withdraw the State's lawsuit against the Interior Department.

"With international support, the Colorado River Native Nations Alliance calls on the new Governor to protect the Colorado River and our sacred land at Ward Valley by immediately stopping the dump," said David Harper, spokesperson for the Colorado River Indian Tribes.

A large delegation from Texas and Mexico attended, fresh from their recent victory against a similar nuclear dump proposed for Sierra Blanca, Texas near the Rio Grande. The Indigenous, environmental justice and community groups from the U.S. and Mexico pledged to help save Ward Valley and to unite to stop other similar environmental threats. "The Ward Valley Coalition has our full support," said Andy Mares, speaking on behalf of the groups who defeated the Sierra Dump. "We are resolved to unite with peoples from California, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Mexico to defend our region from becoming a nuclear dumping ground."

Organizations attending the gathering included Alliance for Survival, BAN Waste, California Communities Against Toxics, Citizens Against Radioactive Dumping, Committee to Bridge the Gap, Data Center, Escalante Wilderness Institute, Escuela de la Raza Unida (Blythe, CA), Frente Indigena Oaxaqueqo Binacional (Fresno, CA), Greenaction, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, Shundahai Network, Sierra Blanca Legal Defense Fund, Sierra Club of Vermont, Matachin Dance Group (Guadalupe Municipality, Mexico), Tarahumara Supreme Council (Chihuahua, Mexico), Water Information Network, Yankuikanahuak Nuevo Anahuak (Mexico City).

The Colorado River Native Nations Alliance and Ward Valley Coalition announced that a large ceremony and celebration will be held February 12-15, 1999 at Ward Valley to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the historic and victorious 113-day occupation of the proposed dump site.