Image provided by: Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 26, 2009)
-) r Spilygy Tym Coyote News, est. 1976 February 26, 2009 P.O. Box 870 Warm Springs, OR 97761 123OSL PÎ OR 97205 PORTLAND, u r" Voi. 54, No. 5 ECRWSS ’ ostai Patron j.S . Postage PRSRTSTD Warm Springs, OR 97761 50 cents Tribes support protection of Metolius basin B y D a ve M cM ech an Spilyay Tymoo Tribal officials are in support of a proposed state law that would declare the Metolius River basin an Area of Critical State Concern. The designation, which has the sup port o f Gov. Kulongoski and some state lawmakers, would prohibit large- scale development projects, such as destination resorts in the basin. The proposed law could affect two development proposals, one in the Metolius basin and one on the border of the basin. One development proposal, on 627 acres, calls for 450 new homes. The other, on 10,000 acres, could involve 1,500 new homes. The tribes are concerned that hous ing and related development in and adjacent to the basin could impact wild life, fisheries, water and cultural re sources. A hearing on this issue, before the state Land Conservation and Develop ment Commission (LCDC), is sched uled for 5 p.m. this afternoon, Thurs day, Feb. 26, at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds. The tribes are encouraging LCDC to., recommend to the stateJegislature to apply the very rarely used designa tion Area o f Critical State Concern to the Metolius basin. Dave McMechan/Spilyay A t previous hearings, Bobby Brunoe, manager of the tribal Natural Resources Branch, and Jody Calica, tribal secretary-treasurer, testified in favor o f the protective designation. They explained that deer and elk populations from the reservation mi grate in the winter off the reservation to the Metolius basin area. The tribes, they said, are concerned about build ing large housing developments in the middle o f the winter range area. Another serious concern is fisher ies. The tribes and Portland General Electric are investing over $108 mil lion in fish restoration above the Pelton-Round Butte dams, including in the Metolius River. The Simnasho community this month hosted the Thirty-Second Lincoln’s Birthday Powwow. Attendance at the powwow this year was good. “W e had a full house,” said Mackie Begay, who was master of ceremonies. The number of drum groups was down some from previous years, he said, probably because of a number of factors including the weather. Still, guests from Detroit, Mich., and some from Manitoba, Canada, made it to the powwow. Pictured above is dancer Ardell Scapllock from the Blood Tribe, Alberta Canada; and at right, Grand Entry on Saturday afternoon. Collage of Culture suspended The Collage of Culture, which the Confederated Tribes have helped spon sor over for the past 15 years, has been cancelled this year. The tribes— along with Bright Wood Corp, and Yarrow—were a main spon sors of the Collage of Culture last year. And the tribes have played a major role in the Collage since its inception. Tribal dancers were a regular fea ture of the Collage, which began in May o f 1994 as a celebration o f the region’s diverse cultures. The plan is for the Collage, held in May, to return next year, when the economy may be stronger. No Deschutes spring chinook season (AP) — The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife says there will not be a spring chinook fishing season on the Deschutes River. According to biologist Rod French o f the state fish and wildlife depart ment, fewer than 400 wild chinook are expected to return to the Warm Springs River to spawn. The predicted run must Tribal concerns be at 1,000 wild fish before state managers open a sport fishery on hatchery fish in the Lower Deschutes River. Fishery managers from Or egon and Washington set spring chinook salmon fishing seasons last week for March and April only for the Columbia and Willamette rivers during a joint state hearing. Also, housing development would require the use o f water in the basin, whether ground or surface water. How this would affect the in-stream flow of the Metolius and its tributaries is not clear, said tribal attorney Ellen Grover. “We don’t know for sure whether there would be a significant impact,” she said, “and the current permitting system may not allow us to determine that or to ensure localized mitigation.” The tribes have a reserved in - stream water right in the Metolius and downstream in Deschutes river. The tribes are also concerned about the possible impact to cultural resources in the Metolius basin. There have been no significant re views of cultural resources in that area, and there is currently no cultural re sources management plan for the area, said Grover. The Confederated Tribes support the Area of Critical State Concern desig nation, she said, “because development has the potential to impact more than just the development site. It could im pact federal forest land, waterways, and cultural resources. It has the potential to impact resources of statewide, fed eral and tribal concern,” she said. “We don’t beheve the existing local land-use approval would, either ad equately assess or require appropriate mitigation o f those impacts,” she said. Jefferson County officials believe the county has planned adequately for the development, and that the state should not interfere in the local plan ning process. The county tax base could increase significantly if a destination resort were allowed to proceed, they have said. Tribal officials emphasize that they are not against development in the county, but believe that, in this sensi tive location, it is only appropriate to ensure comprehensive impact analysis and mitigation, which is what the tribes do when they undertake development on the reservation and off the reser vation. Development can be done in a way that meets the interests o f all parties, the tribal officials say. Association promotes Native boxing Gerald Smith, chief operations of ficer o f the Confederated Tribes Warm Springs, was recently named president o f the newly-formed Native American Amateur Boxing Association. Smith, who managed the 1996 U.S. Olympic boxing team, said he had re tired from boxing-related duties. But he could not refuse when ap proached about the new position by Jim Millman, chief executive officer o f U.S. Amateur Boxing Inc. (USA Boxing). “It was the only thing that could have gotten me involved again,” Smith said. An initial project o f the Native American Amateur Boxing Association (NAABA) is a boxing tournament ten tatively planned in June at the Haskell Indian Nations University in Kansas. From this to u rn am en t, N ative American boxers may be invited to participate in an October international boxing event in Finland. Eventually, qualifying Native boxers for the Olympics is an ultimate goal of th e N AABA, said Sm ith. NAABA was formed late last year, and last month entered into a group mem bership agreement with USA Boxing. USA Boxing has the authority and recognition as the national governing body o f amateur boxing in the U.S., and is a member o f the International As sociation o f Amateur Boxing and the U.S. Olympic Committee. Through the agreement, USA Box ing will assist the NAABA in creating a program o f athletic excellence for Native American amateur boxing, said Smith. The program will be on both the national and international levels, he said. Further, said Smith, NAABA pro poses to provide a platform for devel oping the sport through communica tion and education; through leadership in its promotion; by maintaining a role as a leader in the development of box ing equipment and safety rules; and complying with all required officials rules, regulations and policies o f USA Boxing. The NAABA invites all Natives to submit proposed logo and emblem ideas for consideration and use. All Native boxing coaches, boxers, officials and clubs, please call Dave Lubs, NAABA secretary, at 877-426-9464, ext, 870. Or email DaveL@ringside.com. O r contact Gerald Smith at (541) 553-3228. Email gerald.smith@wstribes.org to be included in address listing/commu nications.
