Red Roundup, 6/16/08

The News that didn't make it to Redlines today.

Elouise Cobell on NPR this afternoon [1]

Federal agencies coordinate clean up of Navajo Uranium mines

From AirBlog [2]:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with the Department of Energy, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Indian Health Service and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, recently finalized a five-year plan for cleaning up the legacy of abandoned uranium mining on the Navajo Nation.

Operation Dakota Peacekeeper quells reservation crime 

from the Argus Leader [3]:

A surge in law enforcement officers is curtailing crime on the Standing Rock Reservation in north-central South Dakota but creating concerns as well.

As of June 2, the Bureau of Indian Affairs' Office of Justice Services has saturated the reservation with 24 additional BIA officers in an effort called "Operation Dakota Peacekeeper."

The increase is meant to attack juvenile and drug-related lawlessness in a land where violent crime is six times the national average and overall crime is 10 times the average, said Sen. John Thune, R-S.D.

Mount Taylor Designated As Cultural Property

from KOAT News [4]:

A state committee has approved a proposal from five American Indian tribes to give central New Mexico's Mount Taylor temporary protection as a cultural property.
 

Coroners want standard rules for unmarked remains

from Local News 8 [5]:

Coroners around the state are proposing legislation outlining the steps to be followed whenever human remains are found in an unmarked grave.