As the Mars Rovers scout the so-called angry red planet in search of ancient signs of life-sustaining water, it is good to be reminded of the critical link between life and this precious substance. We earthlings might even wonder if we’re getting a little glimpse of one of our own possible futures. Is it even […]
January 5, 2004 As we embark on the year 2004, it seems worthwhile to evaluate the status of the treaties that spell out the legal relationship that exists between tribal and non-tribal governments here. It’s been 150 years since the first Washington Territorial Governor, Isaac Stevens, set foot here. From some counts, it has been […]
September 30, 2003 For many years, the tribes of the Pacific Northwest have advocated positive relations with the non-Indian community. It’s an historical fact that the footholds established by European and American settlers here would not have succeeded without our help. Our desire to be good neighbors continued through the years. People today are often […]
July 29, 2003 You’ve probably been hearing a lot about the health of our oceans these days. Most of the news isn’t good. Declining sea life, pollution, overharvest of marine resources – the list goes on. According to the recent Pew Ocean Commission report, pollution and poor natural resource management are the main causes for […]
January 16, 2003 It’s just plain wrong. In response to yet another suit from an animal rights group, a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that requirements of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act take precedence over the tribe’s treaty-reserved right to hunt whales. “We conclude that the MMPA must […]
January 14, 2003 With the 2003 State Legislature now in session, water is again a key environmental issue being considered by the state lawmakers. Another thing they must consider is that the tribes hold the senior water right in this state. The senior right is not held by the public utility districts. It’s not held […]
January 6, 2003 In the weeks after the general election, the writing is still on the wall. The tribes are a political force to be reckoned with. This is true here in Washington, just as it is true in other parts of the country. In South Dakota, for example, tribes have been credited with winning […]
October 18, 2002 Treaty Indian salmon fishermen are struggling. There’s no market for our product. We can’t compete with cheaper farmed Atlantic salmon, even though everyone knows that our Pacific salmon is better – better tasting and better for you. All of our salmon comes onto the market in about a six-month period. Then it’s […]
September 24, 2002 Coastal treaty tribes will be especially hard hit by the sharp reductions in groundfish harvests off the Washington Coast this year. Declining salmon runs and poor market conditions have been conspiring against the tribes for the past couple of decades. Now, just when they are beginning to access their treaty-reserved share of […]
August 7, 2002 Here we go again. A second year of big returns of hatchery chinook returning to the Columbia River – coupled with more good returns of coho to Puget Sound – and some folks already are talking loudly again about easing salmon habitat protection measures. Unfortunately, what these returns really amount to are […]
