The Battle of the Native Americans & Snowbowl Resort on the San Francisco Peaks
There has been a long history of Native American oppression related to colonialism, and the battle between the Native Americans and Snowbowl resort in the San Francisco peaks is just one example. The San Francisco peaks have long been a sacred place for the Hopi and Navajo tribes who call this region “home.” In the article A Snowbowl Déjà Vu: The Battle between Native American Tribes and the Arizona Snowbowl Continues, Boone Cragun describes the peaks as “a place of beauty, a home to wildlife, have served as recreational spots and, for many centuries, have been a site of spiritual and religious significance to Native American tribes.” Both the Hopi and Navajo tribes value the peaks in their own traditional ways. They feel anguished as the ski resort is disrupting nature’s harmony and polluting the mountains, both of which symbolize the life and blood of these powerful nation tribes. It is time for these tribes to reclaim their land and protect their cultural identity.
San Francisco Peaks Ski Resort
The San Francisco peaks are located in the backdrop of Flagstaff, Arizona, home to one of the oldest ski resorts, Snowbowl. After its establishment in 1937, it didn’t receive much attention until the resort was sold to a new owner who had big plans on the horizon. Forty years later, the Forest Service decided to make some modifications. This new make-over meant expanding the resort to include new facilities and chair lifts. This arrangement upset many members of the Hopi and Navajo tribes as it was a further violation of their culture. In the article by Cragun, the author states that “Despite the public outcry, the United States Forest Service (USFS) approved the paving of an access road to Snowbowl. The Hopi and Navajo tribes filed separate lawsuits against the development.” These lawsuits proved to have little success as both the Navajo and Hopi tribes’ appeals were dismissed in the higher court. Not only did the court dismiss the tribe’s complaints, but they also authorized further expansion of the ski resort and the use of reclaimed wastewater to create artificial snow. Infuriated by this discovery, the Native American tribes brought another case to the U.S. Supreme Court, and for a second time, the court turned down the tribe's request, identifying it as a “public nuisance” case. The court felt there wasn’t a clear representation of the cultural boundaries that the ski resort was overstepping, so the case was dismissed.
Artificial Snow
Not only did the expansion of the facility further encroach on the tribes and their customs, but since 2012, the Snowbowl ski resort has been using reclaimed water to make artificial snow. The rationale for this decision came from the fact that the resort receives little natural snowfall each year, and the issue’s been exacerbated by rising temperatures due to climate change. The inconsistency and unreliability of snowfall during the winter season has ultimately decreased the resort's economic value. In efforts to fix this, the resort turned to 100% treated wastewater to create artificial snow on the slopes. The use of reclaimed water meant the snow on the peaks would be contaminated, and local tribes could no longer carry out their cultural practices and beliefs. This idea is further explained in Cragun’s article. He states, “The Navajo believe that disturbances to the natural state of the peaks… cause the peaks to lose their healing power and the power to restore harmony and natural order to the lives of the Navajo.” This means that the tribes will lose their connectedness to the land as well as harm the health of their people.
A Threat to Human Health
Just as the production of artificial snow poses a threat to Native Americans’ cultural survival, it also poses a risk to public health. There is a concern for the native plants and herbs growing in this region because the tribes use them for medicinal purposes. The leakage of chemicals from the wastewater used can get into groundwater and onto the plants, which alters the chemical state of plants and are harmful for the tribes to use. Since there was continued frustration from the local tribes, the city decided to hire a professional to test the water. In the article, Resort’s Snow Won’t Be Pure This Year; It Will Be Sewage, Leslie Macmillan shows that “Catherine R. Propper, a scientist, and professor at Northern Arizona University, found that Flagstaff’s water contains endocrine-disrupting chemicals, or EDCs, including hormones, antibiotics, antidepressants, pharmaceuticals, and steroids.” Even though this finding indicated how harmful the water quality could be to human health, it was still seen as safe water and continues to be used. One would think that there would be concern from the local Flagstaff community members, ski-goers, and visitors. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case because skiers are just happy to have a place to ski; and community members are unfazed because the resort brings in more tourism. This is a tricky situation when the only ones concerned are the native tribes and environmentalists pushing for reform.
Environmental Justice Stands Out
This case shows how there is direct mistreatment of an ethnic minority group. The mistreatment can be analyzed using the environmental justice framework. In the article Environmental Justice and Environmental Equity in Tourism: Missing Links to Sustainability, Sangkwon Lee and Tazim Jamal perfectly describe Environmental Justice as “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin or income with respect to development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.” Environmental Justice can be a very useful tool in understanding the deep implications this case has on the cultural well-being of the indigenous people. It provides a better understanding of the relationship between the environment, the native tribes and culture, and the tourism industry by providing thoughts around equality and inclusion. Similar instances have happened all over the US, but this one is unique in that there is a concern for cultural justice for the Native tribes. As well, the production of artificial snow from wastewater poses a threat to the public health and safety of Flagstaff, AZ. Within the EJ framework, there are certain suggestions that people should use to address concerns related to the abuse of Native American rights. The main points outlined within the EJ framework are fair compensation, participative justice, and recognition justice as well as the recognition of native tribes’ culture and traditions as they relate to the environment. The Environmental Justice framework gives insight into the situation around the ski resort and the mistreatment of the Native Americans in the San Francisco peaks as it violates their cultural and spiritual well-being.
Fair Compensation, Participative Justice & Recognition Justice
One of the factors outlined in the EJ framework is fair compensation. This means that Native tribes should receive “fair compensation” for the expansion and other actions that the ski resort has taken, which have severely impacted the physical and spiritual environment and have had adverse impacts on the surrounding tribes. “Fair compensation requires that environmental tourism practices generate fair exchanges of goods, bads, and risks.” Currently, the Native American tribes are fighting for their legal rights, and no fair compensation has been given to them from the ski resort or the city of Flagstaff.
Another important aspect of the EJ framework is participative justice. This means that the people involved in decision-making should allow others to get involved if the outcome of a decision might cause harm to a group or individual. In this case, the city of Flagstaff and the Snowbowl ski resort would need to allow the Hopi and Navajo nations to be involved in the laws and practices resulting in changes to the environment. “On the basis of participative justice, tourism organizations must follow procedures that allow us to give our informed consent to their contracts, proposals, and activities.”
One example of participative justice and fair compensation related to the case would be that the Hopi tribe went to the city council and requested the wastewater be better treated if Snowbowl continues to use it to make artificial snow. As a fair compensation, the city council would work with the tribes to install a new filtration system. As well, this implies there is participative justice because the natives are involved in making decisions. Although the Flagstaff city council did agree to provide for a new filtration system, they have been delaying the process and have not yet followed through.
Recognition Justice is the most important aspect of the EJ framework as it specifically relates to this case study. Within the EJ framework, there tends to be a lack of acknowledgment of environmental injustices correlated to cultural practices and religious traditions. According to Kyle Powys Whyte in his article, An Environmental Justice Framework for Indigenous Tourism, “Recognition justice” concerns whether people’s “social circumstances” and “cultural terms” are “represented” and “considered” fairly within social institutions and transactions.” This means that there needs to be a recognition of people’s cultural practices, not just the environmental health risk that a tourism industry might impose. The Navajo and Hopi tribe have been standing up for their beliefs for years, in protest of the ski resort. And yet, there has been no recognition of justice or cultural acknowledgment, which is what the EJ framework needs to emphasize. It’s also important to look at the role that ecotourism plays in this case and how it can show the impacts that tourism has specifically on minority groups, like the Hopi and Navajo tribes.
The Role of Ecotourism
Ecotourism is the result of tourism based on the environmental surroundings of an area. In this case, the ski resort is using the mountains and snow to make a profit off of skiing, a tourism industry. The tourism industry has the biggest impact on Native people, specifically in the US. Since technically the land is “public,” they can own the property without consideration for the people who owned the land first. The only incentive for the ski resort to make artificial snow from reclaimed wastewater is to increase revenue and the seasonal people. Do they not realize the external impacts this is causing on the Native tribes with regards to their cultural heritage and human health? The Native American tribes in this region of Arizona haven’t had their voices heard in the development of the Snowbowl resort. Even as they have brought cases to court about the problematic operations of the ski resort that could hinder their cultural heritage, still nothing has changed. Ecotourism shows how within tourism there is little acknowledgment of the Natives who view this land as sacred. If ecotourism is done correctly, the tourists should be given information on the land, the tribes in the area, and learn to be cautious of the impacts they cause every time they use the ski resort.
Cultural Justice & Sustainability
Along with ecotourism should come the recognition of the Native American culture within tourism. Specifically outlined in the article Environmental Justice and Sustainable Tourism: The Missing Cultural Link, Blanca Camargo, Katy Lane, and Tazim Jamal explain that “A cultural justice approach may assist in creating policies, laws, and regulations to protect diverse low-income, and minority groups from inequitable treatment in development initiatives related to natural area destinations.” Cultural justice needs to be integrated into the EJ framework because it specifically depicts how ethnic minority groups are restricted by the tourism industry and how natives’ cultural rights aren’t taken into consideration. There should be this recognition of mistreatment in the context of culture and religion, specifically within tourism. An Environmental Justice framework can help tourist destinations by identifying and monitoring potential environmental injustices or inequities, as well as guarantee equitable distribution of environmental costs and benefits and include fair plans for participation and decision-making. The Native people have not given up on their sacred land and still hope that one day, their spiritual and cultural traditions will be recognized.
Stakeholders involved
Recently, there has been recognition of this ongoing battle, and more people are starting to stand up with the Native Americans, especially groups like “Save the Peaks Coalition.” Formed in 2004, Save the Peaks Coalition is described in the article, Native Americans Fight to Save Sacred Site, by Jeneda Benally and Jenn Goodman as a group of “concerned citizens, agencies, tribal leaders, business people, religious and spiritual leaders, skiers, snowboarders, conservationists, students, teachers, and taxpayers committed to the protection of the San Francisco Peaks.” This group has helped the Native tribes receive the recognition, fair compensation, and cultural justice that they deserve. Protests, campaigns, public outreach events, and court cases still continue surrounding this issue between the Snowbowl resort and the Navajo and Hopi tribes. This battle is ongoing, and the tribes along with the Save the Peaks coalition won’t back down until they receive the justice and recognition they have been fighting for.
Looking ahead
In her article Flagstaff’s Sacred Mountain: The Economic, Political and Spiritual Power of the San Francisco Peaks, Grace Fenlason quoted Benally, a Navajo activist, who said, “We’ve been criminalized. We’ve been arrested. And we’ve been attacked. … We will not give up this fight.” These people are upset, tired, and annoyed, but ultimately, passionate about protecting their native lands. They truly have a deep cultural and emotional connection to the land and will continue to fight for their rights. The making of artificial snow from wastewater has hindered the native tribes from continuing their cultural traditions and is an obvious sign of environmental injustice. Environmental Justice includes fair compensation, participative justice, and recognition justice — in this case, recognition of cultural boundaries. The EJ frame can aid in understanding this case as well as countless others as it provides a basis for understanding the injustices that occur in the tourism industry and allows for discussion around equity, equality, and cultural justice in how the people interact with the environment. Furthermore, it is important to note the cultural significance this case holds with regard to environmental justice and how it can be used as an example for others that experience similar issues. The Navajo and Hopi tribes continue to fight for their cultural and religious rights, along with countless others who are passionate about this Environmental justice issue.
By: Lyda Buck
