Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto raised a contamination and public-health issue affecting the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation during the nomination hearing, and asked William H. “Billy” Kirkland to prioritize remediation if confirmed.

Cortez Masto told the committee that the Bureau of Indian Affairs had improperly disposed fuels and pesticides — including two herbicides that she described as components of Agent Orange — near a reservation school, exposing hundreds of children and contributing to more than 100 tribal deaths from cancer in a tribe of roughly 3,000 members. She said the BIA had repeatedly missed assessment deadlines and had failed to meet promises to remediate.

“Continued delays have dire consequences to the health and safety of the tribal members, and their children,” Cortez Masto said, asking Kirkland for a commitment to act quickly on remediation if he is confirmed. Kirkland replied that, if confirmed, he would be “brought to speed” and would work with her staff to determine what could be done.

Cortez Masto also pressed for improved communication between DOI and the tribes about funding for detention services and other public-safety supports, and said she expected DOI to take a more active role to meet timelines and public-health needs.

Kirkland pledged to review the Duck Valley situation and to consult with the senator and tribal leaders on next steps.