Day 9

The Midnite Mine

Day 9

 

            Before we begin our tour of the Midnite Mine and Ford Mill, we are all gathered at the library inside Wellpinit High School. Warren Sailor gave a brief history of the mind and what it meant to the people of the Spokane Tribe Reservation. Uranium was found by two brothers of the Spokane Tribe and ran with the help of Dawn Mining Company an subsidiary of Newmont Mining Company. The cost of running the mine became more costly than the price of selling uranium especially when the Three Mile Island had a nuclear accident sending uranium prices down. The mine closed 1981 and the mining company left the site leaving radioactive material exposed as explained by Twa-le Abrahamson the Native Air Quality Director/radio host. It wasn’t till the tribe had to sue the company to come back and clean up their mess which was until 2001.

            The second part of the talk was safety regulations and the Midnite mine director Randy Barnes had us sign a release form for enter the radioactive sites. As a Superfund site and the only one of its kind in the Pacific Northwest that is uranium mine, the government and Dawn Mining Company are funding to clean up the site. Several worries are that we reach an area that is radioactive and we inhale the radio activity into our lungs which will remain with us for our life time. The EPA is overseeing that the company follows protocols and is not creating a worst mess. Two pits are exposed that contain water at the bottom that are going through a water treatment process to be put back into local streams on the reservation. We were handed a piece of paper explaining to women the health concerns. When Twa-le asked about health concerns, right away safety specialist Michelle Durum told Twa-le “It’s on the paper.”

            The first site that we were taken to was the Ford Mill site right outside the Spokane Tribe Reservation with a creek that separates the two and provides water for nearby houses. We were welcomed with signs that warn about radioactivity and to keep out. Large areas were clear cut for large ponds of water to be treated by evaporation. The radioactive site is surrounded by fence and a nearby hill was hiked to look down into the mill site. Uranium ores were brought here to be processed and now over 30 years later remains a problem to the community.

            The second site we were taken to was the Midnite Mine site 25 miles west of Ford Miller. As we drove past dense vegetation and a dried up area known as Blood Pool because of the red waste that builds into that area. Twa-le explained that several animals have been found dead near the water from radiation poisoning. The site is supposedly fenced off but Twa-le again explained that the site is very accessible from humans or animals. We reached the site and were divided into two groups one left to the pit while the other group left to water treatment plant. I was part of the group that entered the water treatment plant. Several containers provided salts like Barium Chloride, Calcium Chloride, and Sulfuric acid provided buffers to salt out the uranium into sludge and change the pH of the water to 7-7.5. The sludge again will be processed through a filter press that leaves yellow cakes of heavy metals which will be shipped to Utah be process. Each bag collected will weigh between 6-8,000Ibs.

 Water treated with Hydrated lime

 Container full of Barium Chloride

 Yellow Cake from the treatment process.Hydrated Lime

          

 Next was the pit. We walked to a dock that peered down into the giant mine site dug many years ago. The site is about 500 to 1,000 feet deep. At the very bottom of the pit laid water that was being pumped thousands of feet to the water treatment plant. 50 millions of gallons are pumped out and treated each year. Within a year the pit will be emptied and fill with rock and a protective cover between another layer of rock and revegetated over the course of 10 years. There is still one other pit north but much smaller compared to this site. Bacteria in the water is already eating the uranium and secreting acid into the water changing the pH of the water. Dawn Mining Company is confident in the project for total safety but Twa-Le was skeptical along with other environmental critics that studied other state problems. Only time will tell if the reservation will return to a safe location and drinking water is not contaminated leading to other health problems.

Midnite Mine Pit 3

Pit 3

Day 8

George Hill, Native American Artist

Day 8

            After a good night’s rest and hearing nearby wolves howl through the night, I wake up to the tent overheating from the sunlight. We began our day with a hardy breakfast and a little relaxing time before our big day. Currently we are at the Wellpinit High School catching up on our blogs. Today we will be meeting with George Hill who is an Native American artist that grew up in the Spokane area. His main mediums are sculpting but since marble’s price has risen, his new medium has shifted to drawing.

            Mr. Hill arrived at camp and began to tell us about his past. After Mr. Hill got out of the Vietnam War, he had an attitude that he was bad man that couldn’t be touched. His friends actually feared him and couldn’t trust him to go drinking. So he thought about it and figured he had to change his life around. George began to use art as a way to sooth his anger and express his emotions. Over the last 20 years, Mr. Hill has built a collection of art and has taught many students.

            To begin our lesson with Mr. Hill, we are asked to cross our legs and draw a quick outline of our feet. Mine came out misshapen but George viewed it and said it’s just the beginning. “Just get comfortable. Don’t look at the paper and focus on your feet.” The more I tried sketching my feet after 3 times, my sketches became more recognizable. Then it was time to focus on an object for about 45 minutes and do a quick critique. I laid on my belly to focus on some pine cones in the grass. The more time I focused on a cone and grass, the more detailed lines I created. About a hour passed when George had to leave and Warren stopped by the campsite.

            Our second activity of the day was canoeing the Roosevelt Lake. Everyone got dress to swim and we all packed into the vans to follow Warren to the lake. We arrived to a beautiful beach with a wide lake. Boats were jetting by and people on the shore were enjoying swimming. Warren warned about crossing the lake that a possible large boat could tip our canoes or kayaks. Alden and I buddied up on a kayak and right away grabbed our life vests and mastered rowing our kayaks. We motored the kayak to circle everyone else in canoes. I got a great exercise on my chest, shoulders and arms rowing down the lake around a distance of 5 miles round trip. After the kayak adventure, I managed to get a quick dip before leaving the lake.

            One last event of the day was being in ranger station just west of our campsite. We traveled up the hills passing many trees to get to the summit. 10 minutes of driving, we reached our destination. Still the tower stood another 75ft in the air. Warren led us up to the top of the tower and the view kept getting better. Pretty soon we reached the very top where the ranger stays. No one was home so we just kept outside on the catwalk. The view was way better than I expected especially when the fresh air passed through us. Many photos were taken and I will have them post ASAP.

Day 7

The Spokane Tribe

Day 7

            After a long day of driving thru Spokane and terrible traffic, we landed in the Spokane Reservation just north of Spokane. There is pine trees spread thinly around our camp site but enough to provide shade on our tents. As a break from all our hard work and traveling, Mr. Warren of the Spokane Tribe and Department of Natural Resources and is head of Program Coordination took us to a local lake where everyone on the trip went swimming! I was glad to get my feet wet and spend some time just swimming and having fun. The lake was cold and warm in a spots creating a relaxing environment. Also the lake was deep with an unreachable bottom. We probably spent a little over an hour just swimming and comparing cannon balls. Alden of Heritage University showed off his Hawaiian diving skills in the lake. It was a fun a day and hopefully we’ll head back to the lake and enjoy ourselves again before leaving the reservation.

            We are also introduce to Wellpint High School which is well updated high school providing Native members resources to a good education and a fabulous weight where we are currently working on our blogs. I’m truly sorry if I’m not up to date with you current readers but we are some areas that don’t provide internet or the local Starbuck’s has some really slow WiFi. So to catch you up, we’re having a wonderful time with every group and individual we meet from Oregon’s Forest Service to Mr. Paul Lumney. Everyone has been great and provided a new point of view that I was never introduced. I never knew the various jobs needed for the Forest Service and Paul provided an insight on Native American culture threaten by  modern civilization. I hope I’m providing a enough information of my travels. I know there is a lot more I’m not blogging about but do leave some comments on any questions you have and I’ll get back to you.

Till the next episode…

Day 6

The Columbia Gorge Discovery Center and Columbia Cliffs

Day 6

            We begin our day leaving Celilo Village and head to the Dalles, Oregon where we visit the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. It’s a combination of Wasco County Museum and the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. We are introduced to Ranger Valerie who is the only government employee while everyone else is from a non-profit organization. Valerie explained the building was built to preserve historic information on the Columbia Gorge including Native American history and early settlers. The museum had a vast history of the gorge which included the ice age and how Native Americans could have been inhabits from Asia crossing the Ice Bridge to North America and headed south to pursue big game around 10,000 years ago. Hunters encounter big game like the Columbia Mammoth and Saber-Tooth Tiger. Those species went extinct shortly after the Ice Age ended and new species adapted to the new climate change. Natives used the Gorge as a fishing spot for some time and became a huge trading area like Celilo Village. We are also introduced to raptors that are common in the area like the Red-Tail Hawk, the American Kestrel, and the Great Horned Owl that feast on small prey. We are also shown 2 Bald Eagles that are in captivity because of disabilities that prevent them from surviving in the wild. Each raptor comes in different shapes and sizes that help them hunt in the wild.

            The second part of the day before we head towards Spokane, we stopped by the Columbia Cliffs to examine the petroglyphs left behind by Native American ancestors. They are similar to Egyptian hieroglyphs or cave art. Many art that inscribed represent wolves, coyotes, deer, rams, fish, and other animals. The one that stood out the most was “She Who Watches” which is an observer and guide for Native Americans to find a trading post. This is much as land to Native Americans as the Statue of Liberty is to us. Many Natives within our group told me that it is an omen to touch or disrespect She Who Watches. Also her art eerily looking "River Devil" looked a lot like Majora’s Mask which could have been an inspiration for Nintendo’s design. The site is very historic and important to Native Americans but they are becoming impacted by a nearby train tracks that transport coal. Surprisingly there is no cover to the coal and the dust is able to float and eventually damage historic significance. Local Natives are already taking action to help preserve the art but still the trains drive by uncovered and full of coal as we witnessed a passing train. Please stop by the Dalles and witness the petroglyphs before they are damaged beyond recognition.

THE RIVER DEVIL AND MAJOR'S MASK COMPARISON.

SHE WHO WATCHES