! Spilyay Tymoo Warm Springs, Oregon November 18, 1988 PAGE 3 Lower Beaver Creek focus Steep banks, little vegetative cover and a potentially gooa spawningarea makes l ower Beaver am i 1 -s -v i .- -, . --' T' ..Sr. . i.HH- -vx: , :;v- ..-:- .:-r Warm Springs fisheries technician aide Orvie Danzuka drills rock for cable which secures Juniper in the stream. Treatv fishing controversy proceeds ....... i j j.u c The last twenty years of the treaty fishing controversy in the Pacific Northwest can be charac terized as a path from confronta tion to co-management. The period between 1850 and 1942 set the stage for this development. Trea ties with the Washington coast, Pudget Sound and Columbia River tribes were signed in 1855 and 1 856. The provisions of these trea ties were nearly identical: the tribes ceded most of their lands but reserved exclusive rights to fish at "all usual and accostomed fishing places.. .in common with citizens." While the Indians kept their fishing rights in these treaties, the right to take fish had been diminished by 1855 because non-Indian settle ments already being established, and non-Indian settlement meant not only sharing the fish runs but also logging, mining and damming that destoryed the fish. The admis sion of Oregon, Washington and then Idaho to the Union created state governments that authorized non-Indian fisheries, which inter cepted fish bound for treaty fishing areas. The competition by the settlers with Indian fishermen was the basis for the first major fishing rights case to reach the Supreme Court: U.S. v Winans in 1905. This U.S. Supreme Court decision held that treaty Indians have the right to cross non-Indian lands to fish at their usual and accustomed fishing "places. The court also said that treaties are to be interpreted the way the Indians had understood them. In 1915, however, the West ern Washington Indian Agent was moved to appeal to the Washing ton legislature to show compassion when regulating the Indian fisheries. Another event with special impor trance for the lower Columbia River tribes took place in 1918, when Congress created the Columbia Riv er Compact at the request of Oregon and Washington so that the two states could jointly regulate com merical fishing on the mainstem of the Columbia River. In 1938, Congress passed the Bonneville Project Act to market power from the Bonneville Dam and other federal mainstem dams. These dams would eventually in undate such important Indian fish ing places as Celilo Falls and Kettle Falls and block salmon migation to approximately 2800 miles of habitat. In the same year. Congress passed the M itchell Act, which prom ised that the fish lost because of Columbia River dams would be replaced by hatchery fish. (In 1948, however, state and federal fish agen cies began implememnting the act by putting almost all of the hat cheries below Bonneville Dam, where only non-Indians fished, in stead of in the tribes' upriver fish ing areas where salmon and steel head were destroryed.) Another important judicial decision setting the stage for for recent events was Tulee v Washington (1942). The U.S. Supreme Court decided that because a treaty takes precedence over state law, Indians with tribal treaty rights canl be required to buy state licenses to exercise their treaty fishing rights. This also was the first case to rule that state regu Creek the ideal place to focus en- nancement euorts. Bonneville Power Administration Columbia lation of treaty fisheries could take place for purposes of conservation. The first attempt to actually abor gate the treaty fishing right took place in 1964, when a U.S. Senate committee considered resolutions to transfer regulation of off-reservation Indian fishing to the states. These are only a few of the events that led to the "fish wars" of the late '60s and the '70s as well as the procedures instituted during the '80s that recognize treaty fish ing rights and the rights of the Pacific Northwest tribes to man age their own affairs. Important recent events From 1960 to 1970, violent con frontations and fish-ins occurred on the Columbia River, the Puyal lup River and Puget Sound. In 1968, fourteen members of the Yakima Indian Nation filed suit against Oregon's regulation of off-reservation Indian fishing(5,o'p' v. Smith). The United States and the Yakima, Warm Springs, Nez Perce and Umatilla tribes also sued U.S. v. Oregon). The federal court compined the two cases. In 1969, in U.S. v. Oregon (Bel loni decision), Judge Belloni held that the tribes were entitled to a "fair share" of the fish runs and the state is limited in its power to regu late treaty Indian fisheries (the state may only regulate when "reasona ble and necessary for conservation"). Further, state conservation regula tions were not to discriminate against the Indians and must be the least restrictive means. Between 1969 and 1978, three cases, Puyallup Tribe v. Depart ment of Game of Washington (The Puyallup Trilogy), brought before the U.S. Supreme Court seccess fully contested the imposition of certain discriminatory fishing reg ulations upon Puget Sound tribes with regard to commercial steel head. In 1973, in Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation v. Alexander , the Umatillas sued and enjoined a hydroelectric dam that would have flooded off-reservation tribal fishing sites along Catherine Creek, a tributary of the Grande Ronde River. From 1974 to 1977, Washington State Attorney General Slade Gor ton and non-Indian user groups resisted enforcement of U.S. v. Washington. Violent confrontations occurred in Puget Sound and on the Washington coast. In 1974, the Puget Sound and Washington coastal tribes in U.S. v. Washington formed the North west Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC). The tribes and non Indian groups also formed the National Coalition to Support Indian Treaties. In 1974, after a three-year trial. Judge Boldt mandated in U.S. v. Washington (Boldt decision) that the treaty Indian fishery and the non-treaty fishery are each entitled to 50 percent of the harvestable number of fish destined for tribal usual and accustomed fishing grounds and stations and reaffirmed tribal management powers. In upholding the decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of enhancement effort Basin Fish and Wildlife Program agreed with plans submitted by tri bal fisheries biologists for improve ment of the area and allocated S 16 thousand for labor and equipment. Located one-half mile above the confluence with the Warm Springs River, this portion of Beaver Creek was identified as a "hot spot." says Warm Springs fisheries biologist Bob Ileinith. Only two or three spring chinook redds (nests) have been found in the entire lower area primarily because the water is too warm for the fish. The water temp erature also acts as a "barrier" to passage, says Heinith. Spawning gravel in the area is "not bad," says the biologist. The main problem is lack of vegetation. Steep canyon walls "contribute to instream sediment loading and lack of streamside vegetation," says Heinith "These conditions increase instream temperatures which are detrimental to migrating and spawn ing fish." Past research and on-reservation work has shown that juniper placed along the streambank will catch and secure high water, floating debris and sediment. It will enable streamside vegetation to become established and aid in stabilization of the site. In 1984 some work had been done on this area of Beaver Creek. Wire cables holding the juniper broke away, however. This time heavier cable will keep the downed trees secure. At the Lower Beaver Creek Juniper Rip-rap Project approxi mately 3,440 feet of eroded stream bank was covered with 250 junip ers cut locally from the site by the range-agriculture watershed crew. Placement of the trees and boulders of Appeals condemned the state of Washington and its Attorney Gen eral for blocking enforcement of Judge Boldt's decree. (Judge Boldt borrowed heavily from Judge Bel loni's U.S. v. Washington 5050 principle to Columbia River fish eries.) In 1974, in Settler v. Lameer, the federal court ruled that the treaty (' COLUMBIA RIVER (U.S. v. OREGON) 180 140 "I" n I I z o o O-i 1 1 1 r- 1973 1876 77 100 V3 H W PI r H o i i ' i- 1973 1976 1977 so 60 T o40 u S 30 A N,o S 10 V) n P5 1973 1976 77 12 H C 58 O Pi o z T H o u s A N O S T 120 7 " " " 7 O too -- V V N e0 - -- o v-V'- 20 1 40 r r d , y was achieved by helicopter trans port. Because the terrain at the site was rugged and because minimal environmental impact was planned, helicopter transport provided the best alternative to heavy equipment utilization. A longline and choker slings enabled Bureau of Indian Affairs Fire Management hclitack crew and BPA fisheries crew to hook up to trees and boulders. The helicop ter pilot ferried and placed the materials. Depending on bank hcighth. junipers were placed paral lel to the streambank or at a thirty five degree angle to the bank facing downstream. Following this pro cedure, trees were secured against high water movement by cabling them to boulders which had been placed in excavated holes. The depressions were then backfilled. According to Heinith the project was successful mainly due to team effots of the BPA fisheries crew, the BIA helitack crew and the range-agriculture watershed crew. "Again it was shown that the chal lenges of rugged terrain and diffi cult logistical problems were sur mounted by inter-cooperation of tribal and Bureau departments." Heinith adds, "Where there's a will there's a way." To prevent further erosion to the area returning native vegetation would help stabilize banks. Juniper restricts access of cattle to approx imately 65 percent of the area, says Heinith. The vegetation situation "is so bad" in this area, says Hei nith, it would take 10 to 15 years to restore it. The project is a "quick fix" technique to restore some of the vegetation. "Ideally ,"says Heinith, "there should be a fence." from confrontation to r:.u: :.i . r;ui ,;nht nxim in flh runs The total number of fishing right is a tribal right, not an individual right, and that the tribes reserved the arthoritv to regulate tribal fishing on and off the reser vations. In 1975, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completed the last of four lower Snake River dams, com pounding downstream passage pro blems and causing furthei declines TREATY INDIAN HARVESTS 1973 , I . 1 1 1 1679 1961 1963 19SS 1987 1987 W7 W61 163 1066 W8T 7 Ml YEARS 7 -i i i i i i i i i " 1979 1961 1983 1966 Educators discuss environmental instruction Educators gathered November 14-16 at Sunriver, Oregon to dis cuss ways to teach students about the environment and environmen tal issues. The 14th Annual Envir onmental Education Conference provided workshops, displays and information on topics ranging from water quality to recycling. Keynote speaker at the confer ence was the Governor's assistant for natural resources. Gail Ach terman. She expresed concern that a "bonding" does not take place between people and nature. "Peo ple are an inextricable part of the natural system." she emphasized. Instead of a polarization, a "har monic relationship" should exist between the two. Too often, says Achterman, people are viewed as "spoilers" of nature. Zoning laws act to keep people away from nature. Television, too. creates a barrier for establishing a relationship with nature by being a substitute for the natural experience. Manv times Floodplains important to stream Moodplains are an important part of the riparian zone. All of the floodplain vegetation that shades or directly contributes material to a stream is considered part of the riparian zone. In fact, the frequency or flooding and the groundwater supply are the major factors that control the growth of floodplain trees. Stream channels rely on natural flooding patterns. Flood plains and backwaters act as small reservoirs to hold surplus runoff until peak floods are past. Flood- in fish runs. The total number of dams on the mainstem Columbia and Snake Rivers rose to 19. I n August 1 977, the four tribes in U.S. v. Oregon established the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CR1TFC) as their fisheries technical service. In 1977, Fishery Advisory Board dispute resolutions under U. S. v. WESTERN WASHINGTON (U.S. v. WASHINGTON) 260 ot 1979 1976 7T 1979 1901 2600 J 2000 H O U S A N D s 1600 1000 600 1973 1973 1973 19'5 ol W7S 1976 W7T 79 s " A loo c 60 i ) 1 1 1 1 1 ' 1 ' 1 1977 1979 1981 1983 WHO w 1600 1 1800 ' " ' " R. " T 1 oo -- t 1 U iooo - - - y I " ' N eoo - - yf --yT . j , i i i i 4 i i i 197T 'OTS -8S1 1983 1985 1400 1 T 1J0 H 1000 - 80O - ' ol ' ' ' ' ' rj 7T 7 61 3 M MT YEARS nature is presented in a simplistic way. ignoring its complexity. Environmental education doesn't mean that educators should teach students to reject the use of resour ces, but that they should teach stu dents to "exercise skill in the use and development" of resources. Harvesting a tree, for example, should be done in a way "respectf ul to the land." Educators. Achter man says, "have a special responsi bility to instil the stcwartship ethic" in students. The Environmental Education Association of Oregon is a profes sional, non-profit organization "ded icated to creating an environmen tally literate society. The organ ization provides information, re sources and educational support to individuals who are concerned for the quality of the environment. For more information, interested persons may contact EEAO, P.O. Box 40047, Portland. Oregon 97240 or call 1-800-322-EEAO. plains also spread the impact ol a flood over a larger area, while the vegetation helps collect debris. The composition of plant communities depends on the water pattern (fast or slow moving), and flooding is critical in the exchange of nutrients and energy between the stream and the riparian area. Both wet and dry phases are necessary in this zone to complete the stream's nutrient cycle and food chain. Continued on page 8 co-management Washington began. There were 100 dispute resolutions inlV77.Byiy8, dispute resolutions had decreased to zero. In 1979, the Columbia River, Puget Sound and Washington coastal tribes sued the Secretary of Commerce over ocean fishing reg ulations because a law percentage Continued on page 8 - 1987 n a z o o 1983 1987 z Vi O n Pi Pi 1987 n o 1963 W6S 1967 C 5? t