To the Journal editor:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank those of you who helped Cynthia Pryor and I get to London. Whether you helped us out financially or by showing your support in other ways, it was deeply appreciated. It was an honor and privilege to be asked to take our message and concerns to the board and shareholders of Rio Tinto.

While in London we worked with a human rights worker from Mongolia, two United Steel Workers members from Quebec, the founder of Utah Moms for Clean Air, and members of the London Mining Network. Meetings were set up with Members of Parliament and other governmental representatives. All of them were well aware of Rio Tinto’s legacy of human and workers’ rights abuses, environmental degradation and disregard for the law. Most of them were willing to do whatever was in their power to help.

At the Annual General Meeting I requested that an Air Quality Monitoring Program be implemented at Kennecott’s Eagle Mine. I told the board and the shareholders that if they were really the transparent and community minded company they keep saying they are, then having an independently run Air Monitoring program would be the right thing to do for the community of Big Bay and Powell Township. Since they had just presented an impressive power point on how well the company was doing and how much money they were making, they could certainly afford it. The response was that they would take my suggestions “into consideration.” From all I have learned about this company and how they do business, I’m pretty sure they won’t consider my suggestion for very long.

Although it was a very long way to go to make our request, I feel it was important to go to London. Every year someone from the Upper Peninsula attends the AGM and lets Rio Tinto know that we are watching them and that we care very much about our water, our air, our land and our quality of life. Instead of spending money on public relations and smoke screens, it is time for Rio Tinto to do the right thing and put their money where it will actually help the community. They need to pay for an independent 3rd party Air Quality Monitoring Program that is set up and monitored by MDEQ/ EPA, with reports available to the public.

Carla Champagne

Big Bay