Oral History Interviews

Burgess, Victoria

Date: November 10, 2012

Interviewer(s): Submission by the author

Summary: An essay by Victoria Burgess (a Southern Utah Downwinder) recounting her memories of the nuclear testing and the impacts it has had within her life.

*Written narrative / account donated to the Downwinders of Utah Archive by the author

"Downwinder From the Mushroom Clouds" (PDF)

Fjeldsted, Russell

Date: July 28, 2013

Interviewer(s): Submission by the author

Summary: A personal account by Russell Fjeldsted (a retired lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force) recounting his experience observing an above-ground test detonation from a trench at the Nevada Test Site.

*Written narrative / account donated to the Downwinders of Utah Archive by the author

"Front Row Seat to Atomic Age" (PDF)

Penny, Sara

Date: June 1, 2017

Interviewer(s): Submission by the author

Summary: A written account by Sara Penny (a Downwinder raised in Cedar City, Utah) depicting the challenges faced as a Downwinder and the impacts of nuclear testing on her (and her family's) life.

*Written narrative / account donated to the Downwinders of Utah Archive by the author

Personal Account of Downwinders and Nuclear Weapons Testing - (Sara Penny)

Bill, Larson R. and Bill, Julie Cavanaugh

Date: August 19, 2009

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Larson Bill (b. 1948) is a Western Shoshone who was born in Ely, Nevada. He discusses his background, upbringing, and general relationship to nuclear issues. Nuclear issues are something that have always been in the background of his life because of how they had affected Western Shoshone People. He discusses how the nuclear testing and nuclear waste controversies have come up in relation to his roles in tribal government and in the Western Shoshone Defense Project. Larson discusses various aspects of the controversies over nuclear waste and nuclear testing on Western Shoshone land including the disproportionate affects on indigenous populations, who is responsible for nuclear waste, and how perceptions of the desert contribute to the placement of nuclear testing and nuclear waste in Nevada. He concludes by contrasting Western Shoshone spiritual beliefs with other religious beliefs, noting the uniqueness of land-based spirituality among Native Americans. Julie Cavanaugh-Bill (b. 1967) describes her Iowa background, role models, her to be involvement with Native American and nuclear issues. She talks about her interest in human rights, her education, and her experience as a lawyer before moving to Nevada to work full-time with the Western Shoshone Defense Project, which led her to act as a spokeswoman on nuclear issues at times.Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Bullcreek, Margene

Date: November 3, 2007

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Margene Bullcreek (b. 1946) is a member of the Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians. She talks about her upbringing, family life, and her identity as a traditionalist American Indian. One of the major opponents of the plan to store nuclear waste on her reservation, she describes her activism since1992. Bullcreek also explains the concept of environmental justice, discusses the dynamics of inter-tribal decision making, and talks about the organizations of which she is a member that helped her fight against nuclear waste on the reservation. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Cartwright, Donald

Date: March 3, 1988

Interviewer(s): Tim Larson

Summary: Cartwright, an engineer at KSUB Radio, discusses his education and the station experience before the affiliation with CBS. He also recalls coverage of the atomic testing in Nevada, talks about station ownership history, and remembers colleagues.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Cuch, Forrest S.

Date: December 17, 2008

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Cuch (b. 1951) was born in Roosevelt, Utah. A member of the Ute Indian Tribe, he currently serves as the director of the Division of Indian Affairs for the state of Utah. Cuch begins by discussing his upbringing and experiences crossing between the "Non-Indian world" and the "Indian world." He then moves to a discussion of the controversy over high-level nuclear waste storage on the Skull Valley Band of Goshutes Reservation. Cuch emphasizes the sovereignty rights, fairness issues, and hypocrisy in the controversy. This discussion expands to a more general discussion of the role of American Indians in Utah and the United States. Throughout the interview, Cuch discusses the importance of knowing and understanding history. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Dann, Carrie

Date: August 19, 2009

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Dann was born at the homestead in Crescent Valley, Nevada in the 1930s. She discusses her background, upbringing, and ethical principles. She talks about her time as an activist, particularly with regard to nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site and the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository. She states that she was more active in opposing nuclear testing, but has done some activist work to oppose nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. Carrie describes her role in the debate over nuclear waste, who is affected by nuclear waste disposal, and who is responsible. She also talks about her role in fighting for sovereignty and what it means to be a traditional indigenous person. Carrie's interview ends with her comment about traditional ways compared with Western ways. Nuclear Technology History Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Dickson, Mary

Date: July 16, 2009

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Dickson (b. 1955) was born in Joplin, Missouri. She moved with her family to Salt Lake City, Utah, as a child and has spent the majority of her life in the Salt Lake Valley. Dickson discusses her experiences being diagnosed with thyroid cancer before the age of 30 and losing a sister to cancer. She believes that both her and her sister's illnesses were caused by exposure to nuclear fallout while living in Salt Lake. As an activist and playwright, Dickson works to increase awareness of the harm done to human health and the environment by governmental nuclear tests and to prevent future testing that could incur more damage. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Erickson, Steve

Date: Unknown

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Mr. Erickson was born on February 28, 1953 in Libertyville, Illinois. He discusses his early life including memories of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He discusses his activism as a student at Columbia during the Vietnam years and his eventual move to Salt Lake City. Describing himself as a "gunslinger for peace" he sees the most pressing issues of the world today as those surrounding war and peace. He became active in opposing the MX missile plan, founded the Citizens Education Project, and foresees future work lobbying for a test ban treaty in the Utah Legislature. Mr. Erickson has also done previous work in oral history; creating a special archive, the Steven G. Erickson Archive at the American West Center at the University of Utah, relating to the nuclear past. Project: Nuclear Technology.

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Esplin, Charles Cutler

Date: April 14 - 16, 2006

Interviewer(s): Fred Esplin

Summary: Charles Esplin (b. 1918) recalls herding sheep in the 1930s near Bunkerville, Nevada, on the Arizona Strip. He talks about the life (and sometimes death) of sheep herders, BLM permits, the canyons and general terrain, weather challenges, and the habits of sheep and cattle. The sheep were sheared in April, then were returned to North Fork for lambing in early May. He discusses counting the sheep by using markers (black sheep), and describes his daily routine, the use of dogs, the threat of coyotes, and the isolation. Details are given on the docking and shearing of lambs, the death of Jonathan Heaton, and the modernization from horses to pickups, and from pioneer trails to paved roads. Branding is also discussed.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Firmage, Carrol

Date: June 4, 2008

Interviewer(s): Robert DeBirk

Summary: Firmage camped throughout Utah as a child with her family. She married Ed Firmage whose educational pursuits took them to Berkeley, California, and then to Israel on an Albright Fellowship. When they returned to Salt Lake City, they began to take weekend trips to the Escalante-Boulder area in southern Utah. Inspired by the scenery, they became interested in landscape photography. Ed's father was an activist who opposed the MX plan to put nuclear weapons in the West Desert. Ed and Carrol followed in his footsteps and became active in the Divine Strake project when the government talked about doing more testing in the West. They were also involved in issues over water rights in Utah involving Las Vegas. Her Master's Thesis at the University of Utah studies historic farming practices in Utah and modern urban gardening in an effort to increase sustainability by growing more food locally. Utah Environmentalists Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Frishman, Steve

Date: November 13, 2009

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Frishman (b. 1944) was born in Washington D.C. He is a technical consultant for the law firm representing the State of Nevada in its contention of the Department of Energy's application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license for the Yucca Mountain repository. Prior to this, Frishman worked as a Technical-Policy Coordinator for the Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects. He discusses graduate school in Texas, running a local newspaper, serving as a commissioner on the Texas Coastal and Marine Council, and working for the Texas state government when a site in Texas was being considered for a high level nuclear waste repository. He first came to Nevada to work as a consultant for the Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, and was involved in the fight against the Yucca Mountain repository. Fishman describes some of the technical problems with the Yucca Mountain site, and the differences between Department of Energy science and independent science on the site. He ends by taking about some of the alternatives to the Yucca Mountain site. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Guzman, Tony

Date: November 2, 2007

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Tony Guzman (b. 1980) grew up in San Francisco, California. He describes his move to Las Vegas, Nevada where he first learned about the Yucca Mountain Project. He became involved in nuclear waste issues in the summer of 2004. Guzman discusses his relationship to nuclear waste and other nuclear technologies in the American West, and talks about working for a non-profit organization called Citizen Alert. He also talks about his work with the Nevada Conservation League and Think Outside the Bomb. In March 2007, he moved to Salt Lake City, where he became involved with Utah Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. He describes his role in the debate over nuclear waste, ethical considerations for nuclear waste disposal, and potential solutions for storing nuclear waste. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Hadder, John Edumund

Date: July 18, 2008

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Hadder (b. 1960) was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He currently lives in Reno and works as a staff scientists for Great Basin Resource Watch. Hadder begins with a discussion of his upbringing, role models, and education. He recalls his involvement in various nuclear issues in the Great Basin region, and recounts his evolving role in nuclear activism. Hadder then discusses the nuclear waste controversy including his role in it, potential solutions, and who is responsible for nuclear waste .Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Knutsen, Reinhard D.

Date: January 3, 2009

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook

Summary: Knutsen (b. 1964) was born in Taiping, Malasia to Methodist missionaries. He describes his upbringing (particularly his consistent work with disenfranchised communities) and how he became involved in nuclear issues, starting with his participation in a New England Walk for Nuclear Disarmament. He went on to work on nuclear testing, nuclear power, and nuclear waste issues. Knutsen discusses his time with Shundahai Network and how he came to his current job at the American Civil Liberties Union. Other topics include the nuclear waste problem in the US, ethical issues associated with nuclear waste, who is affected by nuclear waste, and who is responsible for managing nuclear waste. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Kotra, Janet

Date: Unknown

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Janet Kotra (b. 1955) of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission discusses the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste disposal site. A scientist with a PhD from the University of Maryland, Dr. Kotra was born in Tacoma Park, Maryland, and aside from living in Hawaii as a young woman and while pursuing her bachelor's degree, has lived in the DC area for much of her life. Dr. Kotra's interest in public policy and abiding sense of justice took her to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, where she spent her entire PhD career. Her husband is Indian, and his uncle was involved with the Indian independence movement, and Dr. Kotra feels particularly close to the ideals MK Gandhi espoused. Most of the interview deals with the function and history of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the independent watchdog arm of the federal nuclear establishment. She explores the relationship between the development arm, the Department of Energy, and her own regulatory body, and its roots in the Atomic Energy Commission. The interview spells out in great detail the NRC's duties, moral compass as Dr. Kotra sees it, and the commission's commitment to working with stakeholders, including Native American tribal governments, whether on the Yucca Mountain project or others. Project: Nuclear Technology.

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Law, Charles

Date: Unknown

Interviewer(s): Jim Kichas

Summary: Charles Law, U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sergeant (retired), discusses his military service, with particular focus on his time as an atomic monitor during test shots on the Marshall Islands and at Camp Mercury, Nevada, in the 1950s, where he witnessed over forty atomic detonations. He describes the shots and decontamination procedures in detail, along with environmental contamination and hazards in Nevada and the Marshalls, and effects on himself, other military personnel and civilians. Mr. Law served thirty-one years in the Air Force before retiring with full disability due to cancer, and shares much of his time during the Korean War and in Australia as an aircraft mechanic, his primary military skill. He also describes his experience as ground crew for polar overflights, and discusses memorable airplane crashes he witnessed among other asides. He ends with a description of a U-2 spy plane flight and landing. Project: Utah Environmental Oral History Project.

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Lockhart, William and Martin, Terri

Date: May 22, 2009

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Lockhart (b. 1933) is a law professor at the University of Utah and has been active in the litigation of a number of environmental conflicts. Terri Martin is an activist and consultant with organizations such as Don't Waste Utah, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, and Women Protecting Wilderness. Together they describe their respective roles in working to deny the placement of nuclear waste near Canyonlands National Park and in other sites throughout Utah. They also discuss the major forces and stumbling blocks surrounding siting decisions, including political factions/alliances, funding, and value placed on the West. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Pierce, Vanessa

Date: February 15, 2008

Interviewer(s): Samantha Senda-Cook and Danielle Endres

Summary: Vanessa Pierce (b. 1980) discusses growing up in Colorado, going to college at Grinnell College, and her work with Green Corps. She talks about her upbringing, role models and ethical influences, and her relationship with nuclear waste issues as the Executive Director of HEAL Utah. Other topics include Energy Solutions, the Yucca Mountain High Level Nuclear Waste site, and the proposed temporary nuclear waste site at Skull Valley, Utah. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Pierce, Vanessa

Date: November 7, 2007

Interviewer(s): Rob DeBirk

Summary: Pierce (b. 1980) grew up in Colorado Springs. She attended Grinell College in Iowa. Following graduation she went into the Green Corps, a program of training and hands-on experience in how to run an environmental campaign. After training, she came to Utah to take a job with HEAL Utah - the Health Environment Alliance of Utah. This organization was instrumental in stopping the Fernald nuclear waste from being sent to Utah. Vanessa discusses the methods used, particularly the work they did with the Utah legislature. Other topics covered include the relationship between the legislature and the L.D.S. church, plans proposed by Energy Solutions to bring more nuclear waste to Utah, and the proposed nuclear waste dump on the Goshute reservation. Utah Environmentalists Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Rowland, Dee

Date: Unknown

Interviewer(s): Rob DeBirk

Summary: Dee Rowland talks about her early life and the experiences that led her to become an environmentalist. She discusses her work as the government liaison for the Catholic Diocese and the Catholic Church's stance on environmental issues. Mrs. Rowland also describes the work she has done with the League of Women Voters. She talks about her involvement with Peace Links in opposition to nuclear weapons and nuclear testing. Mrs. Rowland traveled to the Soviet Union and also hosted a group of Soviet women who visited the United States. She discusses working with the Nevada Desert Experience and the peaceful protests she took part in at the Nevada nuclear test site.Project: Environmental Oral History Project.

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Townsend, Kim

Date: July 17, 2008

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Kim Townsend was born in Owyhee, Nevada, and currently lives on the Duckwater Western Shoshone Reservation. She recalls the many Western Shoshone people who have died of cancers and discusses how this lead her to work on the NUKERISK project to assess radiation doses in American Indian populations from nuclear testing. She describes her role in the NUKERISK project. Townsend also briefly discusses the role she played in the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste controversy. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Treichel, Judy

Date: November 13, 2009

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Treichel was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She discusses her background, upbringing, ethical influences, and general relationship to nuclear issues. She explains that she began working on nuclear testing issues, but shifted to nuclear waste in the late 1980s, when Yucca Mountain became the sole contender for a national nuclear waste repository. Treichel describes her position on the Nevada Nuclear Waste Task Force. She then discusses the role of the public in the nuclear waste siting process, the problems with nuclear waste, the potential solutions to nuclear waste, and the future of the Yucca Mountain repository (including a discussion of President Obama's pledge to stop Yucca Mountain and create a Blue Ribbon Commission to study nuclear waste siting options). Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Urgo, John

Date: July 22, 2008

Interviewer(s): Rob DeBirk

Summary: CUrgo is from Brooklyn, New York, and joined Green Corps, after studying Environmental Science in college, which moved him around the country a lot until he applied for a job with HEAL Utah in 2005 (which tends to focus on nuclear issues). He believes that environmental problems are justice problems and is active in power relations. His work in Green Corps involved a lot of organizing and volunteer recruitment, so then he became the Outreach Director for HEAL. As an organization they don't come up with plans and policy but more so educate the public to work towards change and watchdog big industry such as Energy Solutions. They're trying to keep nuclear waste and reactors out of Utah. He is a strong believer in renewable energy. Utah Environmentalist Oral History Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department

Viereck, Jennifer

Date: Unknown

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Jennifer Viereck was born in Plymouth, New Hampshire in 1952. Shortly after her birth she moved with her parents to southern Alaska where she spent her early years. Viereck discusses the ethical, moral and cultural impacts that correspondence with her "name father" John Olaranna (same as her middle name) had on her as he taught her to be a "good Inupiat" in his letters. Based on that background she describes her history and general relationship to nuclear issues. Labeling herself as a jack-of-all-trades, specifically an administrative consultant for non-profits and small businesses, Viereck tells how her early work on native sovereignty issues evolved into a position wherein she helped organizations illuminate and overcome cultural barriers between native and non-native communities. Working closely with Shoshone leader and nuclear activist Corbin Harney her focus gravitated to nuclear issues surrounding Yucca Mountain. True to her early Inupiat ties as well as Shoshone spiritual practices, Viereck describes a vision for nuclear waste siting that considers life forms other than humans and focuses on changing people first to eventually change the world (specifically in her work with HOME). She also discusses her focus on scientific data, including water testing near Yucca Mountain. Included are some tips for encouraging young people to become involved in anti-nuclear activism. The interview concludes as Viereck describes how her work is largely turning toward educating people about the potential harm of exposure to radiation in medical tests. Project: Nuclear Technology.

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Zabarte, Ian

Date: April 12, 2008

Interviewer(s): Danielle Endres

Summary: Ian Zabarte (b.1964) grew up in the Bay Area, California. Zabarte is a Western Shoshone, who is part of the Western Shoshone National Council and has lived on the Duckwater Indian Reservation at various points in his life. Zabarte begins by discussing his Western Shoshone heritage, then moves to a discussion of his role in the controversy over high-level nuclear waste, particularly with regard to Yucca Mountain. Zabarte also briefly discusses the effects of nuclear testing on Western Shoshone and Southern Paiute people and the cultural resource studies performed by the Department of Energy in relation to the Nevada Test Site and Yucca Mountain. Nuclear Technology Project.

View the Complete Interview Transcript Contained in the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Department