Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Roca Honda Mine

Minority Populations
Chapter 3. Affected Environment and Environmental Consequences
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) defines minority as including the following
population groups: American Indian or Alaskan Native; Asian or Pacific Islander; Black, not of
Hispanic Origin; or Hispanic. According to the CEQ guidance, minority populations should be
identified where either: (a) the minority population of the affected area exceeds 50 percent, or (b)
the minority population percentage of the affected area is meaningfully greater than the minority
population percentage in the general population or other appropriate unit of geographic analysis
(CEQ, 1997). For purposes of this analysis, the general population or the appropriate unit of
geographic analysis is the State of New Mexico. The intent of the EO is to recognize and consider
minority populations (>50 percent minority in Cibola and McKinley Counties or a “meaningfully
greater” minority population than that of the State of New Mexico); and not merely the presence
of a minority group. Calculation of the percentage of minorities was based on population data
available from the 2010 U.S. Census. Cibola County’s population consists of 79.1 percent
minorities compared with McKinley County’s 90 percent.
Within the broader category of minority, American Indians represent 41 percent of the total
Cibola County population, lower than the 75.5 percentage in McKinley County. However, these
ratios are both significantly higher than the 9.4 percent in the State of New Mexico. These
percentages are considered – both individually and when aggregated – higher than the general
population in a meaningful way, and therefore qualify the ROI as an environmental justice
population (Census, 2010a, Census, 2010b, Census, 2010c).
The Asian population represents 0.5 percent of the total Cibola County population, and 0.8
percent of McKinley County; both lower when compared with the 1.4 percent overall in the State.
Thus, neither county constitutes an environmental justice population for Asians (Census, 2010a;
Census, 2010b; Census, 2010c).
The Black or African American population represents 1.0 and 0.5 percent of the population in
Cibola and McKinley Counties, respectively. Both are lower than the 2.1 percent in the State
overall and therefore neither county qualifies as an environmental justice population on this basis
(Census, 2010a; Census, 2010b; Census, 2010c).
The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander population is essentially nonexistent in Cibola
and McKinley; and represents only 0.1 percent of the total State population. Since the
representation of Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders in both counties are lower the
State, they do not constitute environmental justice populations (Census, 2010a; Census, 2010b;
Census, 2010c).
Hispanic populations represent 36.5 percent of the total Cibola County population and 13.3
percent of the McKinley population, both lower than the 46.3 State percentage. The ROI, then,
does not constitute an environmental justice population on this basis (Census, 2010a; Census,
2010b; Census, 2010c).
The overall minority populations in both Cibola and McKinley Counties are both greater than 50
percent of the county population, but so is the State minority population. The percentage of
American Indians in McKinley County both exceeds 50 percent and is substantially higher than
the 9.4 percentage of American Indians in the State of New Mexico. Thus, by both CEQ
definitions, the American Indian population in McKinley constitutes an environmental justice
population. The American Indian population in Cibola County does not exceed 50 percent but is
DEIS for Roca Honda Mine, Cibola National Forest 265