Native Americans and energy development

Summary: Indian tribes in the western United States own a considerable portion of the nation's uranium, strippable coal, oil shale, geothermal, natural gas and petroleum reserves. Research and observation show that the impacts of energy development activities on Indian lands and peoples are overwhelming. Perhaps the most significant impacts are the cumulative social and cultural effects of bringing instantaneous industrialization into traditional Indian societies. As demand for these resources continues to accelerate, the Indian people face a dilemma in which choices range from all-out energy development to the other extreme of no development at all. To prevent further exploitation, tribes must develop capable leadership, improve their technical skills, and determine to what extent they wish to maintain their traditions and cultures. The essays compiled in this document are examples of how social research might be used as an action mechanism for the benefit of Indian people who will face the brunt of energy development. Titles are: "Energy, Agriculture, and Social Science in the American West" by Jorgensen, Davis, and Mathews; "Black Mesa and the Hopi" by Clemmer; "Energy Developments and the Navajo Nation" by Robbins; "Can Tribes Control Energy Development?" By Owens; and "Energy Boom Towns: Views from Within" by Little.