For Immediate Release
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Contacts:
- Herb Yazzie, 602-291-4474, hyazzie2003@yahoo.com
- Percy Deal, 928-205-7332, deal.percy@gmail.com
- Adrian Herder, 928-380-3914, adrian@tonizhoniani.org
Pumped Storage Faces Renewed Opposition on Black Mesa as FERC Attacks Tribal Sovereignty
KAYENTA, Ariz – Pumped storage developments targeting Dził Yíjiin (Black Mesa) are facing renewed opposition from residents in and around the mesa’s previously-mined coal-lease area on the Navajo Nation. Facing ongoing pressure to develop the mesa’s 2000’ escarpment, Black Mesa impacted communities have banded together to oppose pumped storage industrialization of land and groundwater.
“In order to create those reservoirs, there’s going to be a lot of destruction of Black Mesa’s northern edge,” said Percy Deal, an impacted community member. “We’ve seen what coal mining has done to the land and water. This project, for which the developer is asking for a 100-year lease, will be far worse than Peabody’s 50-year lease.”
Demanding the need to preserve Black Mesa’s land, water, and plants for future generations, the impacted communities oppose pumped storage because of the intense buildout of roads, transmission lines, and traffic that would significantly impact the pristine land, vegetation, and wildlife of Black Mesa’s northern rim. Coal-lease area residents cite negative environmental and health impacts from decades of coal mining, from which the land is still healing, and say pumped storage will continue the legacy of environmental injustice at the expense of the Black Mesa communities.
The renewed opposition comes as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has proposed reversing the “Black Mesa Policy,” which requires Tribal consent for preliminary hydropower permits on Tribal land. The Commission first enacted the policy in 2024 when it denied three pumped storage projects on Black Mesa that’d faced tribal and local opposition.
“The Black Mesa Policy was a step in the right direction by giving power back to impacted communities,” said Herb Yazzie, a resident within the coal-lease area. “Previously, the Navajo Nation said it would initiate a vetting process for outrageous projects like this. I’m not sure what happened to that effort, but any industrial use of Navajo water to generate energy only to be exported elsewhere off our lands must be prohibited.”
Dozens of tribes, Indigenous groups, and conservation organizations have opposed the proposed policy reversal owing to its failure of Tribal sovereignty and federal trust responsibilities while encouraging permitting for projects that will never be built.
“Water access and reliability are crucial for our communities on Black Mesa and the southwest region of the United States, said Adrian Herder, Community Organizer, in a letter to FERC on the proposed rulemaking. “Energy projects that propose to use large amounts of water for energy production should be vetted diligently.”
Black Mesa has for years been targeted by energy speculators for three proposals, the Black Mesa North, East, and South projects, that together span 40 linear miles on Black Mesa’s northeastern escarpment and require vast quantities of water. The projects would pump water to reservoirs atop the mesa when electricity prices are low to generate electricity and revenue from downhill return flows when prices are higher.
Despite the Commission denying preliminary permits for those projects in 2024, project proponents continue to press for pumped storage developments in the area.
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Protect Nihimá Dził Yíjiin #NoPSH, is a coalition of Diné impacted community members concerned about Black Mesa’s water future. Black Mesa played host to one of the largest open-pit coal mining operations, leaving its groundwater depressurized and depleted. Coalition members vow to never let that happen again as Black Mesa is bombarded with yet another energy project. No Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH)! Protect Black Mesa!
Tó Nizhóní Ání, which translates as “Sacred Water Speaks,” is a Diné-led nonprofit organization established in 2001 from the Black Mesa region. Tó Nizhóní Ání is rooted in water protection and works to bring power back to our Diné communities impacted by coal while leading community transition away from fossil fuels. Tó bee iiná. Water is life.
