Biden’s Newest National Monument Will Block Uranium Mining Near The Grand Canyon

President Joe Biden on Tuesday will establish a new national monument protecting nearly 1 million acres of federal lands adjacent to Grand Canyon National Park from uranium mining and other development.

The site, named Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument, will span approximately 917,000 acres north and south of the park. It is Biden’s fifth national monument designation as president and will advance the administration’s goal of protecting 30% of the nation’s lands and waters by 2030.

It will also “help address past injustices” by safeguarding Native American ancestral homelands, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said during a call with reporters Monday.

“It will help protect lands that many tribes refer to as their eternal home, a place of healing and a source of spiritual sustenance,” Haaland said. “It will protect objects of historic and scientific importance for the benefit of tribes, the public and for future generations.”

Several area tribes, including the Havasupai, Hopi and Hualapai, have deep cultural and spiritual ties to the greater Grand Canyon landscape. “Baaj Nwaavjo” means “where tribes roam” in the Havasupai language. “I’tah Kukveni” means “our footprints” in Hopi. A coalition of tribes lobbied Biden to designate a monument using his power under the Antiquities Act of 1906, citing the potential adverse impacts of uranium extraction to cultural sites and water resources.