A gathering of some 75 Hopi and Zuni members protested this week against the planned construction of a coal mine by a utility company. This mine, designed by the Salt River Project (SRP) to provide electricity for customers in New Mexico, would be about 10 miles from the sacred Zuni Salt Lake. The protest at the SRP headquarters drew attention to the Zuni Lake Coalition's claim that the project violates sacred ground and is an environmental threat to the Zuni homeland. Water taken from the aquifers in the area could erode the shallow lake, which is a prayer and ceremonial site for tribes in New Mexico and Arizona. Government permit require the protection of the lake. For its part, SRP claims that if the mine degrades the lake, further operations will cease; the protesters remain unconvinced.
