We went to KSUT radio on the Ute Indian reservation. They are a AAA / NPR / community radio station. They have incredible coverage. The interview was fun. We had a sort of round table discussion with Winona about the tour and then we played a few songs.

The Ute reservation poses a dilemma. They have brought a lot of energy development and production to their Reservation, including coal bed methane - a type of energy production that we have fought against along side the Northern Cheyennes. The most recent project is extremely controversial in this county. Animas La Plata is a dam and water project. Part of the water from the project would be used for a coal-fired power plant that the Utes are also building. The Utes are caught up in a really bad water rights law called the Winters Doctrine. Basically the tribe has to use the water allocated to it or they lose it; use does not include keeping it in the river.

We are hoping to open the dialogue up to discussions around solar and wind projects as new ways of bringing in energy development profits. These situations are tricky for me; balancing the need to respect a tribes right to fight poverty by bringing in capital from energy projects, but also wanting the tribe to consider environmental impacts.

When leaders from the Zuni and Dine (Navajo) tribes showed up at the concert, it was good to have some hardcore traditional environmentalist around. Earl Tulley is from Dine Care, he has been fighting coal and uranium mining in the Southwest for 30 years. Cal Seciwa lives at the Zuni Pueblo in New Mexico and is fighting a mine proposed by the Central Arizona Project that would drain the Zuni Salt Lake. The lake is a sacred to many tribes in the area as a place to collect salt for their ceremonial life. The questions tonight were an interesting assortment. Subjects like inquiries into the prices of wind generators and whether making solar panels is a toxic process. This is obviously a very involved community, because we had many announcements and many people in the audience volunteering to answer the questions.

Action Cards:
Andy Sulkko Action Card(Microsoft Word Format)
Senator Ben Campbell - Renewable Energy Action Card (Microsoft Word Format)
Senator Johnson Action Card (Microsoft Word Format)

Amy Ray's Tour Diary Continues:
April 22nd, Denver, Colorado, Press conference and University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado