“Would anyone destroy Mount Sinai to drill for oil?” It’s a question asked by activist Wendsler Nosie, a former chair of the San Carlos Apache Tribe. Nosie has been living in two caves in Oak Flat, the site of a proposed mining project in Arizona. Experts predict the project would produce about 40 billion pounds of copper over the next four decades; copper has a role in advancing green energy. But if the project moves forward, it would disturb land that is sacred to the Apache people. NPR reports that this dispute has put the Biden administration in a bind – trying to balance respect for Indigenous peoples with strides toward a cleaner energy future.
Nosie in the Rochester area this week for a series of events, and he is our guest this hour. In studio:
- Wendsler Nosie, Oak Flat activist, and former chair of the San Carlos Apache Tribe
