The petition to the Biden Administration reads:

“Stand with the Western Apache people and permanently protect Oak Flat from destruction.”

Tell President Biden to protect Apache Land from irreversible destruction.

The Biden administration just rescinded a Trump administration decision that would have allowed international mining companies to destroy Oak Flat — a sacred land to the Western Apache people in Arizona.

The President's actions help keep the mining firms out of Oak Flat for now – but it is not a permanent fix. Can you join us in demanding that Pres. Biden permanently protects Oak Flat?

Tell Pres. Biden: Stand with the Western Apache people and permanently protect Oak Flat from destruction.

Oak Flat lies in the Tonto National Forest and has been open to the public for years. People come from all around to enjoy its beauty and take advantage of the camping, rock climbing, and countless hiking trails that wind their way through the land. To the Apache, Oak Flat is solemn; it contains burial sites, ruins, and petroglyphs that are centuries old. But all of that could be lost if we don't take action.

For years, Rio Tinto, the huge international mining concern, has been trying to get government approval to build what would be one of the nation's largest copper mines right on the Western Apache's ancestral lands. Biden's rescission of the Trump Era decision puts the brakes on their plan, but Oak Flat and all who love it aren't out of the woods yet.

Rio Tinto and its partners could still one day get approval. The firms plan to mine for copper ore using explosives 7,000 feet below the Earth's surface. The holes created by the explosions would cause the land above to cave in, leaving a 2-mile wide crater where the sacred lands once were. But that's not all, according to the US Forest Service's own analysis, waste from the venture could contaminate water supplies, potentially threatening wildlife habitats, drinking wells, and water for livestock.

Let's join together and save the spectacular lands of Oak Flat for the Western Apache and all Americans. Sign the petition and ask the Biden Administration to keep Rio Tinto out of Apache lands for good.