Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Warm Springs, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (March 17, 2005)
Pge 8 Spilyay Tyrooo, Wrrr? Springs, Oregon M3rch 17,-2005 Report: Tribal casinos add $1 billion to Oregon economy (Al) - The stale's nine tribal casinos add more than $1 bil lion to Oregon's economy, ac cording to a report to be issued Tuesday. The study was commissioned by the tribes and authored by Robert W'helan, a Portland economist for the 1 ,C( )orth west consulting firm who has followed the gambling business in Oregon for years, The report, a copy of which was obtained early by The Orego nian newspaper, says tribal gambling's impact extends be yond the 5,300 casino-related jobs to include additional spend ing for tribal services and more business for suppliers and con struction companies, "We have a place in this economy," said Gary George, chairman of the Oregon Gam ing Alliance, a consortium of nine tribes that operate casinos, "We're trying to raise the aware ness of Indian gaming and what it is all about." The nine tribal casinos across the state generated a reported SI 89 million in profits in 2003. Although tribal gambling has grown rapidly since the first ca sino was established in Oregon in 1994, it is still a distant sec ond in gambling revenue to the Oregon Lottery. In 2003, the year the study focused on, bet tors lost $638 million playing the lottery, compared with $384 million at tribal casinos. The tribes have become con cerned that their share of the market is vulnerable to compe- 'i ;o ,A.m?-cW Bnan MortentenSpilyay Visitors from three Native bands from Saskatchewan, Canada, appeared in Warm Springs February 21 . The group included, from left, Vice-chief Delbert Wapass, Rodney Venne, Lester Lafond, Tribal Chief Richard Gladve, and Harold Jimmy. Canadian Indians visit Warm Springs A group from the First Nations Bands of Saskatchewan, Canada, were in Warm Springs recently as part of a tour of business and industrial sites around the U.S. The group, from the Flying Dust, Muskeg Lake, and Thunderchild first nations, visited the Museum at Warm Springs and Warm Springs Forest Products Industries. The group included Tribal Chief Richard Gladve of the Flying Dust First Nation of Saskatchewan, and Vice-chief Delbert Wapass of the Thunderchild First Nation. "This particular trip, they went to San Francisco, then they came up here," said Susan Guerin, a consultant from First Indigenous Depository Com pany, who, along with Charles Tailfeathers of Warm Springs, led the touring group. "The museum was the first stop, to give them a feel for us," Guerin said. The Flying Dust, Muskeg Lake, and Thunderchild first nations are among 32 nations in one of the six areas in Saskatchewan divided by trea ties. All three nations are in Treaty Six, which covers the. middle part of the provincepJ stretching from its western border almost to its eastern border. Livestock: area tested for chemicals (Continued from page 3) "Urea is a protein supplement for cattle in a molasses base," McFarland said last week. "If they're salt-hungry, cattle will drink motor oil." As a supplement, urea is usu ally served to cattle in hard blocks they have to lick, the veterinarian said. The hardness of the block also keeps the cattle from ingesting too much of the supplement and getting sick. "Certain things control con sumption," McFarland said. "But if it snows so the urea block is liquid, then they could drink it or lick it," McFarland said. A dead cow found at the dumpsite and one that had been poisoned and was still alive were both tested. The one that had been alive died after it had been transported to Cascade East clinic in Madias within a few hours, but not before McFarland had been able to take a blood sample. After it died, he was able to perform a necropsy, as well as take tissue samples and a sample of its ocular fluid from its eye. The samples indicated lethal amounts of ammonia within the cow's system. "Urea is a protein supplement that converts to ammonia in the rumen, or first stomach depart ment," according to a report from McFarland to Smith. "If registered in sufficient quantities, this can cause death. "The ammonia levels in the ocular fluid, the clinical signs present in the live cow, and his tory of exposure to urea con firmed death due to ammonia toxicity," McFarland's report continued. McFarland said some samples from his tests were sent to a U.S. Department of Agriculture lab at Ames, Iowa. Soil samples taken from the dumpsite, both by the tribal sci entists and a hazardous materi als crew had tested negative for heavy metals and for both so dium fluoride and magnesium chloride, Dee Sehgal, Environ mental Office manager for the Confederated Tribes said. "My crew went out and tested the water and soil on the day (the dead cattle were discov ered), and we took a sample to Bend," Sehgal said. He said the tests concluded there was "noth ing of concern." He said his department checked for fluoride in the wa ter, after empty sacks marked as having contained sodium fluoride were found at the dumpsite. He said his depart ment had also looked for mag nesium chloride in the water, as it is sometimes used as a dust deterrent. "We thought it may have leached and run onto the ground in high concentrations," Sehgal said. "Fluoride is nor mally used in drinking water, but high concentrations of it can be harmful, just as anything can." A hazardous materials team tested the area, which had sev eral puddles of standing water from snowmclt at the time, for heavy metals and nitrates, and those tests were negative as well. The area where the cattle came in contact with the urea has been used as a dumpsite for years, where area residents had discarded items as large as old appliances for years. Refuse transfer stations, where large dumpsters will be in place to collect garbage for transport to the reservation landfill at Dry Creek, in the Sidwalter area, as well as in Simnasho and Seekseequa, Herb Graybael, Tribal Public Utilities Director, said. "They're almost finished," he said. "As soon as they're finished, we have the funding to close the illegal dumpsites." Until they're finished, it wouldn't do much good to clean the dump, "because we'd have to do it all over again." When Publics Works does clean up the dumpsites, it will separate recyclable materials such as metals and plastics from non-recyclable items that would be transferred to the Dry Creek landfill. Once the refuse is picked up, the dumpsites will be leveled with heavy equipment. "The new facility will keep people from using the dumpsites," Graybael said, as the dumpsters in place at the trans fer stations are 40 cubic yards in size. The dumpsters will be moved once a week or more, if needed, Graybael said. "Maybe at different times of the year, like spring clean-up, we may have to go there (to trans fer the dumpsters) two or three times a week," he said. The dumpsters are moved with the use of a special truck, which has already been used at the Dry Creek landfill. People who have tried to deposit refuse at the Dry Creek landfill may notice they were not allowed to dump their items at the landfill grounds but have been limited to using the two dumpsters, much like the ones that will soon be at the three transfer stations, that are in place. Those dumpsters are emptied five days a week. Allowing the public to use the dumpsters, he said, al lows his crew to control what goes into the landfill. tition from an expanding lottery and new casino proposals, in cluding one close to the Port land market. George said he also worries that gambling op ponents may try a ballot mea sure that would curtail legal gam bling in the state. The study concluded that the casinos have had a positive ef fect on tribal members and nearby communities. From 1990 to 2000, the poverty rate among the state's American In dians dropped by 7.5 percent, a Museum hosting Easter Treasure Hunt The Museum at Warm Springs hosts its annual Easter Treasure I lunt at the west field . of the museum at 1 p.m. Satur day, March 26. Children and youth are in vited to seek Easter treasures in the hunt, and a fund-raising Cakewalk is scheduled for non hunters, moms and dads and other relatives. Children are asked to bring their own baskets for the trea ' sures they find. The Easter Bunny will be present at the hunt. The Easter Tjeasure Hunt is free and open to the community. far greater decline than for Or egon as a whole, the study showed. Income and educa tional gains among American Indians also grew more rapidly than among other Oregonians. The report also found that casino workers on average made more than twice the wage of leisure and hospitality work ers in the eight counties where the casinos operated in 2003. They also typically received employer-paid health care and retirement benefits. Unlike the lottery, which turns over its profits to the state, tribal gambling does not produce any direct revenue for the state or local governments. But the economic activity did generate almost" $43 million in state and local taxes in 2003, the study said, and the tribes contributed more than $7 million that year to community projects. George said some of the ca sinos have spurred an important flow of money from the state's urban areas to more rural parts. Class teaches weaving A beginning "Wapus" or weaving and twining class is open to youths who are Warm Springs Tribal members or Natives of the Columbia River Plateau at The Museum of Warm Springs. The one-on-one class is open to the first six who register and is open for anyone ages 12 and up at the museum con ference room March 22-24 from 5 to ,8 p.m. The class is free. Contact the museum to register at 553-3331, ext. 412, to register. Drum-making for youth Emerson Squiemphcn will lead a spring drum making class for Warm Springs tribal members and natives of the Columbia River Plateau for 10 people March 21-24 at The Museum at Warm Springs' Education Room. The class is for anyone ages 14 and older and is from 6 to 8:30 p.m. each night. Call the museum to register for the class at 553-3331, ext. 407. Master Gardeners ready to start season The Master Gardener Pro gram at Warm Springs is gear ing up for the spring and sum mer. Edith McBean and Tina Burnside will return for an other year. In addition, Exten sion is welcoming two new train ees - Brigette Whipple and Kathy Danzuka. The Master .Gardeners are sending an invitation to all tribal members interested in having their craftwork entered in the Spring Gardening Seminar and Garden Market on April 16. For information call the Extension office at 553-1520. Deadline to submit is March 31. 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