The traditional domain of the Shoshone people stretches across much of the Great Basin. The area is currently impacted by more than three dozen large gold mines, and Crescent Valley is now the epicenter for gold exploration in the lower 48 states.

In the past 40 years, some $26 billion in gold has been extracted from the Western Shoshone lands. Now that the biggest gold deposit on record has been discovered in this area, groundwater loss and contamination, as well as the destruction of significant cultural sites, threaten Shoshone and non-native communities.