For over three years, the community of Chaco Rio, New Mexico, in the Diné (Navajo) Nation, has been blockading entry to the site of a proposed 1,500 megawatt coal-fired power plant. Desert Rock, a project of Sithe Global and the Diné Power Authority, would be the third coal plant within a 20-mile radius in a region already suffering from extreme levels of toxic emissions.

On December 12, 2006, members of the Diné Nation blockaded the road leading to the Desert Rock site, in protest of Sithe Global's failure to fully consult with members of the community. Ten activists with the group Doodá (absolutely no) Desert Rock set up a campsite on the road. On December 22, under threat of arrest, the campsite was moved to a nearby location, and company vehicles were once again able to access the site. This second campsite has been continually occupied ever since.

On March 17th, Elouise Brown, a Diné traditionalist and president of the Doodá Desert Rock committee, will launch an 11-day tour of California to speak about the dangers posed by the coal industry, the exploitation of indigenous land by energy companies, and the ongoing struggle to prevent the Desert Rock plant from ever existing. “We believe economic development must not come at the expense of the health of our children, the air we breathe, our sacred land and water, and our way of life,” says Brown.

The tour will visit Fresno, Modesto, Sacramento, San Francisco, Richmond, Berkeley, Oakland, Santa Cruz, Aptos, Watsonville, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and San Diego.

Doodá Desert Rock