About

What is Ha’Kamwe’?

H'a’Kamwe’ means warm spring in the language of the Hualapai people.

Ha’Kamwe’ is fed by water naturally stored underground in volcanic rocks that seal it off from the land surface above (aka a confined volcanic aquifer). Under pressure, water flows underground along a geologic fault and emerges from the spring.

This sacred spring is a place for healing. In the words of a Hualapai elder: this is holy ground.

Where is Ha’Kamwe’?

Ha'Kamwe' is part of Cholla Canyon Ranch in Wikieup, Arizona, where the Mojave and Sonoran deserts meet within the Big Sandy River basin. The ranch is managed by the Hualapai Tribe, while the ancestral homelands of the Hualapai people surrounding the site are currently managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Biomes of Arizona adapted from the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

Biomes of Arizona adapted from the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

By car, Ha’Kamwe’ is about 2 hours from Phoenix, 2 hours from Las Vegas, and 6 hours from Los Angeles.

What are we protecting Ha’Kamwe’ from?

A lithium mine. Hawkstone Mining Ltd., an Australian company, is developing the Big Sandy Lithium Project to mine lithium-containing clay. The next stage of exploration drilling would surround the tribal land including Ha'Kamwe' on three sides, destroying cultural sites and blocking access to the oasis for desert wildlife. Exploration drilling is less than 700 ft from the spring.

Proposed drill sites (red dots) for Phase 3 of Sandy Valley Exploration Project. From Appendix D of Environmental Assessment DOI-BLM-AZ-C010-2021-0029-EA. White boxes with arrows added for emphasis.

Proposed drill sites (red dots) for Phase 3 of Sandy Valley Exploration Project. From Appendix D of Environmental Assessment DOI-BLM-AZ-C010-2021-0029-EA. White boxes with arrows added for emphasis.

The proposed mine includes:

  • Massive open-pit mine

  • Sulphuric acid plant to produce acid for extracting lithium from clay

  • Slurry line to transport material from the mine to Kingman 50 mi away

  • Pumping groundwater for the slurry line and the extraction process

  • 24-hour lights + noise

  • Construction of numerous access roads and drill pads

Who is protecting Ha’Kamwe’?

Ivan Bender, caretaker of Cholla Ranch and Hualapai tribal member, is leading the way to protect this sacred place, in collaboration with the Center for Interdisciplinary Environmental Justice. The Hualapai Tribe and the Inter Tribal Association of Arizona (including 21 tribes) are opposed to the mine. The community of Wikieup adjacent to the proposed mine has voiced concerns at several assemblies with mining representatives.