Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024
Is it against Navajo Nation law to transport uranium across tribal lands?
In 2024, after a dispute between the Navajo Nation and a mining company that claimed to fall under the exemption, President Buu Nygren issued an executive order reiterating that Navajo officials must grant permission to move uranium across tribal land.
The Navajo Nation has a fraught history with uranium mining. Studies have found disproportionately high rates of uranium exposure among residents, leading to adverse health effects including reproductive issues, hypertension and cancer.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Navajo Nation Council Radioactive and Related Substances Equipment, Vehicles, Persons and Materials Transportation Act of 2012
- Navajo Nation Office of the President Navajo President Buu Nygren issues executive order to enforce laws to ban irresponsible, unsafe transport of radioactive material across Navajo Nation
- Environmental Protection Agency Abandoned Mines Cleanup
- Library of Congress American Indian Law: A Beginner's Guide
- AP News Navajo Nation plans to test limit of tribal law preventing transportation of uranium on its land
About fact briefs
Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
See all fact briefs
The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting is the state’s only independent, nonpartisan and collaborative nonprofit newsroom dedicated to statewide, data-driven investigative reporting. AZCIR's mission is to hold powerful people and institutions accountable by exposing injustice and systemic inequities through investigative journalism.
Learn MoreLatest Fact Briefs
Is Ukraine selling half of its U.S.-supplied weapons to Mexican cartels?
Monday, Feb. 17, 2025
Do the 10 U.S. states with the highest maternal mortality rates have abortion bans?
Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025