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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 2006)
SCft O r Co 11 E 75 . S68 V. 31 P.O. Box 870 Warm Springs, OR 97761 U n i v e r s i t y of O r e g o n L i b r a r y R e c e i v e d on: 0 4 - 1 0 - 0 6 S p i l y a y tymoo. Coyote News, est. 1976 March 30, 2006 Voi. 31, ■■■■ No. 7 Spilyay Tymoo Several high-level officials from the U.S. Departm ent of Agriculture and Department o f Interior are coming to Warm Springs in May to look at one o f the reservation’s more potentially lu crative in vestm en ts, its biom ass project. The Wildland Fire Leadership Coun cil includes the directors o f the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau o f Land Man agement, the National Parks Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Council has scheduled its quar terly business meeting at Kah-Nee-Ta High Desert Casino and Resort Tues., May 9 through Thurs., May 11. The visit includes a field trip to fire man agement sites on the reservation, with Bureau of Indian Affairs Forestry and Warm Springs Natural Resources, and an introduction to Warm Springs’ ef forts at creating biomass energy The announcement came during the Warm Springs Tribal Council meeting at Kah-Nee-Ta March 21. “In May we’re planning a two-day business meeting to discuss national level policy, proposed changes, and new initiatives,” said Bodie Shaw, Warm Springs tribal member who is the BIA’s representative for coordinating national- level site visits. “We’ve got these large fires out West and they’re costing us millions o f dollars.” T he co u n cil has chosen W arm Springs for its meeting, Shaw said, is because Warm Springs is probably in the lead in terms of the development o f biomass infrastructure with Larry Potts and Ralph Minnick at the mill. The council’s visit could include one of the first official visits by a new U.S. Secretary of Interior. Pending Senate confirmation, Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne is Pres. George W Bush’s choice to replace the out going Gale Norton as Secretary of In t e r io r . Kempthorne, Shaw said, has already been involved in the council as the gov ernor of a Western state. “The governor was able to attend last year’s W CLF session in Coeur d’Alene, and we’re hoping that connec tion still is clear to this day, that as the Secretary of the Interior, you have the WCLF,” he said. “We’re sure going to push for h av in g him v is it W arm Springs.” If he is able to continue his involve ment with the council, he would be dif ferent from the previous Interior Sec retary, Norton, whom Shaw said had never attended a meeting but delegated her office’s representation on the coun cil to assistants. Jim Erickson, a member of the In tertribal T im ber C ouncil from the Colville Indian Reservation in Washing ton, and a WLFC member, and Shaw “have lobbied pretty hard” to have the council meet in Indian Country since its inception in 2002. “W e’ve done that tw ice now, at White Mountain Apache in Arizona two years ago,” he said. “We’ve been lobby ing for Warm Springs and the biomass connection just seemed to make it work* quite well.” Erickson and Nancy Guerrero, a representative from the Department of Interior from Washington, accompanied Shaw in addressing the tribal council. See OFFICIALS, on 8 African delegates visit Warm Springs Sixteen leaders from African na tions recently visited the reservation. The delegates had been in Port land as part of their trip to the U.S. Earlier, they had also been to Washington, D.C. While visiting the Northwest, the group had a free day with no meet ings. Their host in Portland, Amy Barss o f the World Affairs Council of Oregon, asked the delegates what th ey w o u ld lik e to do. They agreed they would like to visit an Indian reservation. The group h ead ed firs t for M o u n t H ood Meadows, as they had never seen snow before. Then they headed for the Warm Springs R eservatio n . T h ey m et Erst at the Sim nasho Longhouse w ith tr ib a l m em b ers. C o u n c il Chairm an Ron Suppah welcom ed the delegates. The Africans joined in singing H ap p y B irth d a y to F red a W allulautm . C h ief D elvis H eath gave a tour o f some of the points o f interest on the reservation. Spilyay Tymoo The lawsuit over the McQuinn Strip blowdown timber sale has finally come to a long-awaited conclusion. Just re cently the federal government trans ferred the $16.4 million settlement to the tribes. The case itself was settled m any months ago, but the process o f fully releasing the money to the tribes took some time. The $16.4 million represents settlement of the McQuinn case, which originated from a 1990 timber sale, and also the HeHe fire case, which dates back only a few years. M ost o f the money comes from the McQuinn case. The tribes sued the federal govern ment because responsibility for losses to the tribes from the McQuinn and HeHe cases was with the BIA. To commemorate the conclusion of the McQuinn blowdown controversy, tribal leaders gathered last week for a luncheo n w ith the legal team that brought the case to a successful con clusion. The attorneys from Karnopp 50 cents Tribes negotiating biomass power pact B y Dave M cM echan Spilyay Tymoo The Confederated Tribes are negotiating with companies that m ay be interested in purchas ing the pow er generated by the planned biomass energy gen eration facility. The power-sale agreement is one of the three essential parts of the project. The other two are securing the necessary financing for construction of the plant, and ensuring availability of fuel for the plant once it is complete. The plan is to construct the biom ass facility at the W arm Springs Forest Products Indus tries mill. The plant would be the only one in the region, the next- closest one being in north-cen tral California. The biomass plant would gen erate e le c tric ity thro ugh the burning o f wood fuel. The fuel would come from public and private land in the area around the reservation, from the reservation itself, and possibly from other sources as well. The tribes have an agreement with the Forest Service and Bu reau of Land Management that should ensure a steady supply of fuel for the biomass plant. The power sale agreement, and financing are the main areas o f focus now. Jim M an io n , m an ag er o f W arm Springs Pow er E n ter prises, Bobby Brunoe, manager o f Natural Resources, and Jim Noteboom, tribal attorney, gave an update on the negotiations last week to Tribal Council. See Jim Noteboom for the Spilyay Visiting representative from one of the 16 visiting African nations watches events at the Simnasho Longhouse with Miss Warm Springs Nicola Stwyer, during the African delegation’s recent visit to the reservation. Government transfers blowdown money B y Dave M cM echan Warm Springs, OR 97761 H Interior, Ag officials to visit in May B y B rian M ortensen F K b K I b IU Peterson, legal representative of the tribes, were on hand for the occasion. “Fifty years ago the tribes hired this law firm to represent us,” said Tribal Council Chairman Ron Suppah. “Over the years the firm has paid for itself over and over. I want to recognize the lawyers for doing an incredible job for us, because the legal issues we deal with are complex.” Paul Dewey, an attorney working with Karnopp Peterson, was recognized for his long-term contribution to set tling the McQuinn case. “Paul was there throughout the case, from beginning to end,” said Howard Arnett, who was lead attorney in the case during the more recent two and a half year appeal process. Dewey brought to the case an ex tensive knowledge of timber practices and legal issues relating to forestry. “His mastery over this case was amazing,” said Arnett. “His experience, skill and knowledge o f the case was critical to reaching a successful outcome to the litigation.” Dave McMechan/Spilyay Attorney Paul Dewey, left, and Warm Springs Tribal Council chairman Ron Suppah shake hands at the announcement of the transfer of $16.4 million to the tribes at last week’s Tribal Council meeting at Kah Nee Ta. For the tribes’ case, Dewey brought in expert witnesses Gerry Willits and Norm March, who were also on hand for the luncheon, as was Jim Spitz, con sultant to the tribes on forest manage- ment. The job o f the experts was difficult: They examined the stumps that were left after the 1990 McQuinn blowdown See TRANSFER, on 8 BIOMASS, on 8 Tribes eligible for disaster relief WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Bush last week opened up federal aid for the Confederated Tribes o f Warm Springs, along with coastal counties and other areas of Oregon hit hard by w in ter storms and mudslides. Federal funding will be available to help repair areas damaged by severe sto rm s, flo o d in g , la n d slid e s and mudslides from Dec. 18 through Jan. 21, the White House said in a state ment. The Confederated Tribes, the state, and 18 counties are eligible for assis tance, the White House said. The counties are Jefferson, Crook, Benton, Clackamas, Clatsop, Columbia, Coos, Curry, Douglas, Gilliam, Jackson, Jo se p h in e , L in c o ln , L in n , P o lk , Sherman, Tillamook, and Wheeler. Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski asked Bush for the disaster declaration in January to help pay for an estimated $9 million in damages to highways and other public property. The storms caused at least $22 m il lion in overall damage, including pri vate property. The president’s declara tion does not affect repairs to homes or businesses. See RELIEF, on 8
