In an unusual moment at the Navajo County Board of Supervisors meeting on Oct. 9, Dr. Kevin Gibson, a British mining engineer who recently retired to Snowflake, was given an extra two minutes to speak in the call to the public to outline his proposal on setbacks the county can potentially impose on oil and gas production to mitigate the health issues brought on by fracking.
The concern for fracking has risen due to the recent oil and gas lease purchase of land by Desert Mountain Energy Corporation. One of the leases was for 2,400 acres south of Woodruff in Navajo County with the second lease of 640 acres on the northeastern border of the Petrified Forest National Park (PEFO) in Apache County.
When the five minutes ran out for Gibson, he asked Vice Chairwoman Dawnafe Whitesinger, who was standing in for the absent Chairman Steve Williams, if he could be granted two more minutes to finish his presentation. Martha Pearce, who was also on the call to the public list, offered to keep her presentation under three minutes, if the board would grant Gibson that extra time, to which Whitesinger agreed.
In his Power Point presentation, Gibson brought out two critical issues: the health issues that are being reported by a group known as Physicians for Social Responsibility and the proximity of the well sites to existing homes and structures.
The report Gibson referred to from the Physicians for Social Responsibility, stated: “A growing body of scientific information suggests that unconventional gas and oil development and production, commonly referred to as ‘fracking,’ has its own broad array of negative impacts. Fracking uses hundreds of chemicals mixed with millions of gallons of water and sand to fracture deep rock formations to allow the gas and oil to percolate out. The peer-reviewed scientific literature now includes more than 700 studies on the impacts of fracking; most were published in just the last three to five years. Of the studies looking specifically at health impacts, more than 80 percent document risks or actual harms.”
“It comes down to our risks versus their profits; the children are particularly affected,” said Gibson, who recommended that any industrial activity associated with the use of toxic chemical be set back a minimum of 880 yards from any dwelling or gathering place as well as places of work or any other human activity.
Wayne Pearce, a resident of Navajo County, spoke to the board saying, “Those of us who have decided to resist the efforts of oil and gas are beginning to get the idea that we are not being listened to. We are just trying to protect all of our water. I would like to see this issue put on the agenda.”
Martha Pearce, a resident of Navajo County, also shared her disappointment in the seeming lack of interest by the area leaders on the fracking subject and what she sees as a “significant amount of destruction and disaster coming to our area. We need your help.”
As this discussion was in Call to the Public, the board was not allowed to comment or take any action.
In his report, Navajo County Manager Glenn Kephart noted that Navajo County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which allows the county citizens to purchase flood insurance underwritten by the NFIP program through the Community Rating System.
“The Flood Control team has prepared the necessary information and is ready to submit for the annual recertification. Our submittal should qualify Navajo County for a continued 10 percent reduction in flood insurance premiums for our citizens,” said Kephart.
In other business, the board:
* Approved a memorandum of understanding between the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) and the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs for coordinated law enforcement efforts on the Hopi Reservation.
* Approved an intergovernmental agreement between NCSO and the cities of Winslow, Snowflake-Taylor and Show Low for the Byrne Grant funding for the Navajo County Major Crimes Apprehension Team. The grant provides $38,000 each to the cities of Winslow and Show Low, with $38,000 to the Towns of Snowflake and Taylor due to their combined police force. The purpose of the agreement is to enhance the efforts of the members to enforce the laws of the state relating to illegal drugs, gangs and violent crimes.
* Approved the sale of nine back tax land parcels sold over the counter in the amount of $4,349.
* Approved the appointments of Jody Ray Golden, Katherine Nicole Golden, Joseph Samuel Clark and Kristie Lynn Blackman as Republican Precinct Committeemen for their respective precincts.
* Approved a resolution canceling the Nov. 6 election for the Heber Domestic Water Improvement District, appointing the two open positions to Jimmie Ray Maner Jr., and Kelly Williams to a term of four years each.
* Approved amending the resolution concerning the NextGen Climate Action ballot initiative to clarify the board’s intent to educate voters.
* Approved amendment one to the Fiscal Year 2019 Drug, Gang and Violent Crime Control Grant to comply with the provisions imposed by the Department of Justice related to notification and access requirements for the Department of Homeland Security.
* Approved a contract between Navajo County Public Health Services District (NCPHS) and Arizona Department of Health Services to provide nutrition and physical activity services throughout Navajo and Apache counties, on and off the reservation. NCPHS budgets for these services, which are paid by Arizona Department of Health Services. This amendment is an extension of up to two additional years of the approved local implementation services.
* Approved task agreement number seven to the Memorandum of Agreement with Hopi Tribe Department of Transportation for road improvement assistance on a segment of roadway that serves the First Mesa Youth Center and Navajo County Public Library in Polacca in an amount not to exceed $28,000.
