Native Americans Respond to the Transportation of Low Level Radioactive Waste to the Nevada Test Site Item Type Report Authors Austin, Diane E.; Stoffle, Richard W.; Stewart, Sarah; Shamir, Eylon; Gardner, Andrew; Fish, Allyson; Barton, Karen Publisher Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology, University of Arizona Download date 10/10/2021 12:16:48 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/273029 üOl:/NV-519 NATIVE AMERICANS RESPOND TO THE TRANSPORTATION OF LOW LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE TO THE NEVADA TEST SITE Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology The University of Arizona, Tucson September 1998 BARA DOE/NV-519 Native Americans Respond to the Transportation of Low Level Radioactive Waste to the Nevada Test Site Prepared for: Frank DiSanza U.S. Department of Energy Nevada Operations Office Las Vegas, Nevada Edited by: Diane E. Austin Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology University of Arizona With Contributions From: Richard Stoffle Richard Arnold Sarah Stewart Elliot Booth Eylon Shamir Don Cloquet Andrew Gardner Betty Cornelius Allison Fish Maurice Frank Karen Barton Milton Hooper Diane Austin Ted Howard Bureau of Applied Research in Calvin Meyers Anthropology Gaylene Moose University of Arizona American Indian Transportation Committee Legal Review by: Amy Mignella September 1998 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES iv LIST OF FIGURES v LIST OF BOXES vii LIST OF APPENDICES viii ACRONYMS ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS x PREFACE xi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1 American Indian Policy Within the Department of Energy 1 Background of the Study 2 Creation of the American Indian Transportation Committee 4 Collaborating on the Study Design 5 Outline of the Report 6 CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY 8 Preparing the Study 8 The American Indian Transportation Committee and Planning Team 8 Tribal Visits and Interviews 11 Literature Review 11 Study Design 12 Conducting the Study 16 Meetings with Tribal Governments 17 Phase One Interviews with Tribal Members and Designees 17 Participation in Tribal Activities and Events 17 Phase One Supplemental Tribal Survey 18 Phase Two Interviews with Cultural Experts 18 Data Analysis 19 Geographic Information System 19 Creating a Database for Numeric and Textual Data 21 Supplemental Tribal Survey Data 21 Analyzing Text from Interviews with Cultural Experts 21 Summary 22 CHAPTER THREE: BACKGROUND ON TRIBES 23 ETHNIC GROUPS AND TRIBES OF STUDY PARTICIPANTS 26 Western Shoshone 26 Te -Moak Band of Western Shoshone Indians 31 Ely Shoshone Tribe 33 Yomba Shoshone Tribe 33 Duckwater Shoshone Tribe 33 Timbisha Shoshone Tribe (Panamint Shoshone) 34 The Shoshone -Paiute Tribe of the Duck Valley Reservation 35 Western Shoshone National Council 36 Goshute 36 Confederated Tribe of the Goshute Reservation 38 Skull Valley Goshute Tribe 39 Mohave 39 Colorado River Indian Tribes 42 Fort Mojave Indian Tribe 43 Southern Paiute 44 Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah (PITU) 48 Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians 49 Las Vegas Paiute Tribe 50 Pahrump Paiute Tribe 51 Moapa Band of Paiute Indians 51 Chemehuevi Paiute Tribe 52 Colorado River Indian Tribes (see Mohave) 52 Environmental Concerns of the Participating Tribes 53 Environmental Concerns of the Western Shoshone People 53 Environmental Concerns of the Goshute People 55 Environmental Concerns of the Mohave People 58 Environmental Concerns of the Southern Paiute People 58 Summary 59 CHAPTER FOUR: INTERVIEW RESULTS - OVERVIEW 61 Establishing a Basis for Tribal Concerns 63 Tribal Travel Survey 92 Hunting and Gathering 94 Four Types of Responses to the Proposed Transportation of Low Level Radioactive Waste 99 Summary 101 CHAPTER FIVE: INTERVIEW RESULTS - CONCERNS, EXPERIENCES, AND MITIGATION 102 Concerns 103 Source of Concern 105 Categories of Perceived Impacts 108 Factors Influencing Impacts 113 Other Responses 119 Analysis of Concerns 122 Experiences 125 Types of Experiences 125 Description of Experiences 126 Mitigation 132 Behavior Change and Mitigation 133 Types and Description of Mitigation 133 Summary 137 CHAPTER SIX: JURISDICTIONAL ISSUES REGARDING TRANSPORTATION 138 Nature of Tribal Concerns About Jurisdiction on Tribal Land 138 Crossing Tribal Land 138 Passing Over or Within Tribal Communities 139 Passing Near Tribal Land At Border Checkpoints 140 ii Other 140 Summary 141 Legal Aspects of Jurisdiction and How Tribes Are Responding 141 Developing the Capacity to Manage Accidents and Leaks Involving Trucks Carrying LLRW 141 Coordinating Emergency Response 143 Controlling the Trucks Carrying LLRW 143 Summary 145 CHAPTER SEVEN: RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS RAISED BY STUDY PARTICIPANTS 146 Low Level Radioactive Waste and Radiation 146 Transportation Issues 149 Information About the Nevada Test Site 152 Information About Yucca Mountain 153 Related Issues 153 CHAPTER EIGHT: AMERICAN INDIAN PERCEPTIONS OF RADIATION 156 Methodology 156 Analyzing Text from Interviews with Cultural Experts 157 American Indian Knowledge, World View and Radioactivity 157 Previous Studies 158 Cultural Expert Perceptions of Radioactivity in the NTS Transportation Study (Phase 2), 1998 162 Traditional Land Ethics and Radiation 163 Summary: Radiation, Resources and American Indian Cultural Landscapes 181 REFERENCES CITED 183 iii LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1. AITC Members, and the Tribes for Which They Served as Point of Contact 5 Table 2.1.Tribes and Indian Groups Invited to Participate in the American Indian Transportation Study 9 Table 3.1. Land and People of the ParticipatingTribes 24 Table 4.1.Schedule of Visits for Tribal Interviews 61 Table 4.2.Distribution of Study Participants by Tribe, Based on Gender and Age 63 Table 5.1.Symbols Used to Indicate Frequency of Responses 102 Table 5.2.Extent to Which Concern was Expressed by Study Participants 104 Table 5.3.Percent of Respondents Reporting Concern, by Gender and Age 104 Table 5.4.Source of Concern about Transportation of LLRW 105 Table 5.5.Types of Impacts Identified by Study Participants 109 Table 5.6.Categories of Factors that Influence Impacts of LLRW Transportation 115 Table 5.7.Other Concerns 119 Table 5.8.Tribes in Each Region Identified for the Transportation Study 122 Table 5.9.Regional Comparison of Presence and Source of Concern 122 Table 5.10. Regional Analysis by Type of Concern 124 Table 5.11. Regional Analysis by Factors that Influence Concern 124 Table 5.12. Percent of Participants Who Named Experiences 126 Table 5.13. Response of Study Participants to Possibility of Mitigating their Concerns 132 Table 5.14. Individual Responses to, Question About Changing Behavior 133 Table 5.15. Categories of Mitigation Responses 133 Table 7.1.Biological Effects of Selected Doses of Radiation 148 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1.Location of Three Proposed Routes Included in this Study 3 Figure 1.2.American IndianTransportation Study Timeline 7 Figure 2.1.Location of Tribes Invited to Participate in the American Indian Transportation Study 10 Figure 2.2.Researcher and AITC Member Review Transportation Study Map 12 Figure 2.3.Section of Transportation Study Map Showing Local Names for Landmarks and Routes 13 Figure 2.4. Example of a Locator Map and Photos Used to Show Route to Participants 15 Figure 3.1. Lands of the Study Participants 25 Figure 3.2.Current Location of Western Shoshone Tribes and their Lands 27 Figure 3.3.Current Location of Goshute Tribes and their Lands 38 Figure 3.4.Current Location of Mohave Tribes and their Lands 41 Figure 3.5.Current Location of Southern Paiute Tribes and their Lands 46 Figure 3.6.Population Growth in the Study Area 56 Figure 4.1.Total Frequency of Trips Taken by Participants in Transportation Study Area64 Figure 4.2.Total Frequency of Trips Taken by Participants on the Three Identified Routes 65 Figure 4.3.Entrance to the Nevada Test Site 66 Figure 4.4.Frequency of Trips and Travelers for Battle Mountain Individuals 67 Figure 4.5.Frequency of Trips and Travelers for Elko Individuals 68 Figure 4.6.Frequency of Trips and Travelers for South Fork Individuals 69 Figure 4.7.Frequency of Trips and Travelers for Wells Individuals 70 Figure 4.8.Frequency of Trips and Travelers for Ely Individuals 71 Figure 4.9.Frequency of Trips and Travelers forYomba Individuals 72 Figure 4.10. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forDuckwater Individuals 73 Figure 4.11. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forTimbisha Individuals 74 Figure 4.12. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forDuck Valley Individuals 75 Figure 4.13. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forGoshute Individuals 76 Figure 4.14. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forCRIT- Mohave Individuals 77 Figure 4.15. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forFort Mojave Individuals 78 Figure 4.16. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPITU -Shivwits Individuals 79 Figure 4.17. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPITU -Cedar Band Individuals 80 Figure 4.18. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPITU- Indian Peaks Individuals 81 Figure 4.19. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPITU -Kanosh Individuals 82 Figure 4.20. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPITU -Koosharem Individuals 83 Figure 4.21. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forKaibab Individuals 84 Figure 4.22. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forMoapa Individuals 85 Figure 4.23. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forPahrump Individuals 86 Figure 4.24. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forChemehuevi Individuals 87 Figure 4.25. Frequency of Trips and Travelers forCRIT -Chemehuevi Individuals 88 v Figure 4.26. Frequency of Trips and Travelers for CRIT -Hopi Individuals 89 Figure 4.27. Frequency of Trips and Travelers for CRIT- Navajo Individuals 90 Figure 4.28. Frequency of Trips and Travelers for Las Vegas Indian Center Individuals 91 Figure 4.29. Percent of Each Type of Tribal Vehicle Reported 92 Figure 4.30. Evidence of Contemporary Western Shoshone Use of Lands and Resources 95 Figure 4.31. Evidence of Contemporary Goshute Use of Lands and Resources 96 Figure 4.32. Evidence of Contemporary Southern Paiute Use of Lands and Resources 97 Figure 4.33. Evidence of Contemporary Mohave Use of Lands and Resources 98 Figure 5.1.Semi -truck Observe Along Proposed Route During the Study 106 Figure 5.2.