WHITE MESA UTE COMMUNITY & UTE MOUNTAIN UTE TRIBE
“Close the Energy Fuels Resources Uranium Mill/Dump and the uranium mines at La Sal, Utah”
The White Mesa Ute Community of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is located in San Juan County in southern Utah. It is near the Bears Ears National Monument, Valley of the Gods, San Juan River, and national parks. The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is based in Towaoc, Colorado, and White Mesa is a satellite community of the Tribe.
White Mesa is adjacent to Energy Fuels’ uranium mill, the last such facility in the US, where uranium tailings and other radioactive contaminated materials are sent for “processing” – and dumping. The “mill” is becoming an international radioactive dump. Energy Fuels wants to expand to rare earth minerals from around the world.
Radioactive pollution and other contaminants are emitted from the mill into the air, land, and groundwater, threatening public health and environment. The uranium mill was built in the 1970’s directly on top of culturally significant and sacred Indigenous sites, including burials and ceremonial structures. Dozens of cultural and sacred sites have already been destroyed and an expansion would destroy even more.
Greenaction works with White Mesa tribal members and their organization White Mesa Concerned Community, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and dozens of allies in the fight to close the uranium mill. Together we have expanded our “Keep Uranium in the Ground” campaign to oppose Energy Fuels’ uranium mines in La Sal, Utah.
NO NEW NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN UTAH!
As the State of Utah has begun a major push for nuclear power in Utah, Greenaction has joined with organizations and residents to oppose this effort, and to advocate for clean, renewable energy instead. We challenge the nuclear industry and government propaganda that nuclear power has “zero emissions,” as the entire nuclear fuel cycle harms the environment and threatens public health.
GREEN RIVER
Greenaction worked with allies including Uranium Watch, Living Rivers, HEAL Utah, and Indigenous people in Utah and Arizona to defeat Blue Castle Holdings’ proposal to build a large nuclear power plant about five miles west/northwest of Green River, Utah, close to the majestic Green River that flows into the Colorado River, a drinking and agricultural source for tens of millions of people.
Politicians in Green River are again advocating for a nuclear power plant, and Greenaction continues our opposition against this dirty industry.
EAST CARBON
Greenaction opposes Republic Services’ East Carbon landfill that accepts some non-RCRA hazardous wastes at what was designed as a solid waste landfill. Greenaction has challenged the State of California to stop sending toxic waste to this landfill in a lower-income, working class community.
BEARS EARS NATIONAL MONUMENT
Greenaction was proud to stand with Native Nations in the fight to protect the beautiful and sacred Bears Ears region in southern Utah from Donald Trump and extractive industries who hope to reduce the size of the Bears Ears National Monument and open it up to mining and oil and gas drilling. Bears Ears is a spectacular landscape of canyons, mountains, buttes, mesas and rivers, and contains thousands of ancient sacred and archaeological sites. Greenaction will continue to stand in solidarity with Native Nations and allies working to protect and defend Bears Ears!
NORTH SALT LAKE CITY
Greenaction played a huge role in shutting down Stericycle’s commercial medical waste incinerator in the middle of a neighborhood filled with young families and kids who were never told about their toxic neighbor when they bought homes there. Greenaction alerted and educated residents about the toxic threat, and together we challenged the company and state agency officials. The incinerator was plagued with serious violations, including excessive toxic emissions, yet the State of Utah allowed it to continue operating and even tried to rubber stamp approval to relocate and build a larger facility in Tooele County.
Stericycle shut the North Salt Lake facility in 2022 and subsequently dropped plans for a new incineration facility in Tooele County.
Greenaction opposes waste incineration due to harmful air emissions and toxic ash, and advocates for safer non-incineration technologies that can sterilize medical waste without the dangerous emissions resulting from incineration.
SANDY
Greenaction joined with Utah environmental groups and residents to stop Navitus Renewable Industries from building a waste gasification plant in this area that already suffers from poor air quality.
TOOELE COUNTY
Tooele County is located in the west desert between Salt Lake City and the Nevada border. Tooele County is infamous for being the location of numerous dangerous facilities, including a hazardous waste incinerator, hazardous waste landfill, radioactive waste landfill, the Tooele Army Depot, and the Dugway Proving Grounds (where weapons of mass destruction were tested).
Greenaction monitors the waste disposal operations in this area as they contaminate the beautiful land and wildlife, and threaten nearby communities.
SKULL VALLEY GOSHUTE RESERVATION
Greenaction worked with Goshute tribal members to defeat plans pushed by the US Government to pay off the tribe to accept high level nuclear waste.