From Treaty Rights and Cumulative Effects to the Protection and Enhancement of Culture Site-C Panel...

A Critical BalanceFrom Treaty Rights and Cumulative Effects to the Protection and Enhancement of Culture

Site-C Panel Session

Report of the Treaty Commissioners

“…we had to solemnly assure them that only such laws as to hunting and fishing as were in the interest of the Indians and were found necessary in order to protect the fish and fur-bearing animals would be made, and that they would be as free to hunt and fish after the treaty as they would be is they never entered into it.”

Excerpts From 2011 Interview with Betty Willson

Born March 2nd 1928 on the Finlay River

Mother is buried on the East bank of the Finlay across from Russell Creek

Traditional Knowledge

Transfer• My Grandma

taught my mom to cook fish with wild onions and pigweed

• I get to teach my son how to throw contaminated fish Back

“We assured them that the treaty would not lead to any forced interference with their mode of life…”

Report of the Treaty Commissioners

Fisheries Impacted by the Williston Reservoir

Finley River Wicked River Parsnip River Nabesche River Peace River Clearwater Creek Crooked River Carbon Creek Nation River Manson River Omineca River Osilinka River Mesilinka River Ingenika River Ospika River Davis River Chowika Creek

Other affected Rivers and Lakes

Pine RiverMurray RiverWolverine RiverSukunkaWapiti

Moberly Lake

Is this “No Forced Interference”?

Present Day Oil and Gas Well Sites in Treaty-8 Territory

Over 16,267 oil and gas wells

Over 8,517 Petroleum and NG Facilities

Over 100,000 Km’s of Pipelines

This does not take into account reasonably foreseeable future developments!

"If a caribou needs to be sacrificed for the sake of energy independence, I say, 'Mr. Caribou, maybe you need to take one for the team.' "— Sarah Palin, speaking to the annual meeting of the Safari Club International in Reno,

Nev., Jan. 29, 2011.

How can we Trust the Honor of the Crown

2004 SFN/WMFN Petroleum Contaminates StudyProject Conclusions

1. 7 sumps and 13 flare pits are open and exposed to wildlife.2. 75% (12 out of 16) sites tested were contaminated.3. Animals such as moose, deer, elk and bear ingest chemicals

out of sumps and flare pits. 4. There is a risk to wildlife of exposure from contamination

due to oil & gas activities.5. Even sites that are not “contaminated” still pose a potential

risk to wildlife through long term ingestion of low level compounds such as salts, metals and hydrocarbons.

If you extrapolate our study, then 75% of these Lease Site’s are Contaminated above and beyond Provincial

and Federal levels

Nonsensical Protection

Contaminated Water for Moose Clean Water for Industry

Taken from CTV’s Documentary on First Story, “Black Blood”:

Summer Habitat of the SARA Listed Pee-Jay Caribou Herd

Our Elders recall a “sea of caribou” (distribution) and there were so many “like bugs on the land” (population)

Loss of Use

• Source of food, clothing, art, tools, medicine, knowledge transfer•Secondary Impacts: higher dependence on other species

Sustainable Mining?(Practice: mining in critical habitat of endangered herd of caribou)

Comments on application by First Coal Corporation for exploration activities on the range of the Burnt/Pine caribou population.Dr. Dale Seip, Wildlife Ecologist, Northern Interior Forest Region, Prince GeorgeSeptember 25, 2008

Conclusion:

This proposal will directly destroy core winter range of a Threatened caribou herd. It is also possible that it will displace caribou from a significantly larger area of core habitat. If mining expands to additional areas of the Goodrich property in the future, a very large proportion of the Burnt/Pine caribou winter range will be impacted. It is questionable if the proposed mitigation measures will do much to reduce those impacts. The proposed destruction of core caribou habitat will compromise the recovery of caribou in the area.

“The Treaty Promises No Forced Interference”

How much are the Nations expected to give up?

According to the Global Forest Watch and The David Suzuki Foundation’s Natural Capital Study 2/3 of our immediate area has been taken up!