“It is well past time for the United States Environmental Protection Agency to step up and protect downstream communities by addressing pollution in the Animas River Basin. The first step in this process is to list the Upper Animas Mining District as a Superfund site. This will provide much needed funding and technical assistance to responsibly address the threats posed by the District.

“The health and well-being of the region should be of primary importance to the USEPA. We applaud the Town of Silverton and San Juan County for joining the effort to convince the agency to list this polluted area on the National Priorities List. The EPA now needs to move quickly to get the mining district listed and to address the serious contamination and harms caused by the mines.”

“We applaud the Department of Interior for investigating the Gold King Mine Spill and refuting the Environmental Protection Agency’s flawed contention that the blowout was inevitable. This report exposes the role the EPA’s gross negligence had in triggering a disaster that has culturally and economically devastated the Navajo Nation.  The EPA and all responsible parties must be held accountable.

“The Department of the Interior’s report further supports our view that the EPA is the wrong federal agency to manage the response to this crisis. It’s time for President Obama to stop dragging his feet and take action to fix this disaster. The President needs to respond to bipartisan calls to issue an emergency declaration and instruct all federal agencies to assist the Navajo Nation instead of sending our requests back to the EPA.”

“The Gold King Mine spill culturally and economically devastated the Navajo Nation, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s decision to decline our request for an emergency declaration is disappointing and wrong. Our people have suffered due to the reckless actions of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the federal government’s failed response to this crisis has only added insult to injury. The Obama Administration has turned down virtually every request we have made for greater assistance, each time referring us back to the EPA – the same agency that caused the problem in the first place.

“Its time for President Obama to take action to fix the disaster that was caused by his EPA. The President needs to respond to bipartisan calls to issue an emergency declaration and instruct all federal agencies to assist the Navajo Nation instead of sending our requests back to the EPA.

“The Navajo Nation will appeal FEMA’s ill-advised decision and fight for every resource possible to address the damage caused by the Gold King Mine spill. As President, I will not rest until our people have been made whole and fairly compensated for their losses.”

“I applaud Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and Representatives Steve Pearce, Ben Ray Lujan and Michelle Lujan Grisham for calling for prompt action on our request for an Emergency Declaration due to the Gold King Mine Spill. This disaster has culturally and economically devastated our Nation and inflicted an enormous amount of pain and suffering on our people.

“We need greater support from the Obama Administration to address the crisis and protect the livelihood of our farmers.  We hope that President Obama will listen to the bipartisan calls from members of the Arizona and New Mexico delegations to act quickly on our Emergency Declaration request.”

Earlier this week, Arizona Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake sent a separate letter to President Obama asking for a swift review of the Navajo Nation’s request.

“I applaud Senators McCain and Flake for urging President Obama to swiftly review and respond to our request for an Emergency Declaration due to the Gold King Mine Spill caused by the actions of the United States Department of Environmental Affairs. This disaster has culturally and economically devastated our Nation and inflicted an enormous amount of pain and suffering on our people.

“President Obama has not only been slow to respond to our request for additional assistance, he has not acknowledged the damage that the U.S. EPA and other responsible parties have caused to the Navajo Nation. We need greater support from the Obama Administration to help our people recover from this crisis, and I thank Senators McCain and Flake for championing our cause.”

“I commend Attorney General Ethel Branch and the Navajo Department of Justice for officially requesting that the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Department of Justice assure that all claims, known and unknown, resulting from the Gold King Mine spill are fairly and completely satisfied. We need to verify that our people and their injuries will not go ignored and that the United States Federal Government will act in good faith to address this crisis.

“Following the Gold King Mine spill, the U.S. EPA sent staff to the Navajo Nation to encourage our people to sign Standard Form 95 to expedite the settlement of their claims. The forms contained a significant limiting clause that, despite assurances from the U.S. EPA, could limit the ability of those affected by this disaster to be fully compensated. We need greater assurances from the Federal Government that the fine print included in these documents will not cheat our people out of the full financial compensation that they are entitled to.

“I am disappointed that our people were urged to blindly sign these forms. Due to this spill, we have lost confidence in the U.S. EPA, and believe nobody should put their faith in the agency’s forms and related claims process without firm assurance from the Federal Government that our people will be fairly and fully compensated.

“Additionally, there is a distinction between the Navajo Nation lawsuit against the U.S. EPA and that of personal or class action lawsuits filed by our farmers. While this process is ongoing, the Navajo Nation is working with our Congressional leaders in Washington to establish a source for farmers to be compensated quickly.

“The fear expressed by political leaders that farmers will not be quickly compensated is unfounded. Representatives of my administration have, in nationally televised hearings in Washington, urgently expressed the need to compensate our people quickly. We continue to push for this.

“Navajo Nation leaders need to be united in our efforts to address this crisis and not create uncertainty just to score political points. I am committed to holding the U.S. EPA accountable for their role in causing this disaster, and I will continue to fight to ensure that our people are fully and fairly compensated.”