The US-based Annenberg Foundation said it had spent a total of $530,000 (£322,000; 385,000 euros) at the auction of masks and other artefacts.
Of the 24 masks, 21 will be given to the Hopi Nation in Arizona and three to the San Carlos Apache.
The auction of 70 similar artefacts in April caused an outcry.
The tribes had sought to block their sale and the US embassy had asked for the latest auction to be suspended.
These Hopi masks were auctioned on Monday
The Tumas Crow Mother was another Hopi mask put on sale.
But French judges rejected legal challenges to both auctions, finding that the artefacts had been acquired legally.
The auctioneers argue that blocking such sales would have implications for the trade in indigenous art, and could potentially force French museums to hand back collections they had bought.
Mask being auctioned in Paris, 9 December BBC News/Reuters
On Monday, the Hopi and Apache masks, together with other items, raised $1.6m, the Associated Press reports.
Pierre Servan-Schreiber, the Hopis’ French lawyer, bought one mask for 13,000 euros and also intended to return it to the tribe.
Responding to news of the Annenberg Foundation’s purchase, Sam Tenakhongva, a Hopi cultural leader, said: “This is a great day for not only the Hopi people but for the international community as a whole.
“The Annenberg Foundation set an example today of how to do the right thing. Our hope is that this act sets an example for others that items of significant cultural and religious value can only be properly cared for by those vested with the proper knowledge and responsibility. They simply cannot be put up for sale.”
Jack McNeel The Pend Oreille River, near Kalispel tribal offices, supplied salmon and steelhead to Native people but that ended when Grand Coulee Dam was built.
Will fish passage be restored from the Columbia River to Canada? Will a 15-tribe coalition significantly influence an international treaty that will last a lifetime? Can Canada and the U.S. agree to financial impacts affecting each country? Will ecological concerns get equal consideration with electric power rates?
These questions are part of the Columbia River Treaty recommendation that is due to go to the U.S. State Department in mid-December. Congress won’t be making any decisions at this point, in fact 2014 is the first year either Canada or the U.S. can notify the other whether to eliminate the treaty, retain it as is, or to modify it. Even then there is a 10-year clock for both countries to analyze and prepare for international negotiation. Despite that time lag, the next few months should decide the U.S. position on these critical questions, many of which effect Native people on both sides of the border.
The original treaty, ratified in 1964, had two primary purposes of flood control and hydropower but tribes had virtually no say in the development of the treaty. Much has changed in the past 50 years. One significant change is the many years of experience tribes now have in international treaty work, especially regarding the Pacific Salmon Treaty. Fifteen of the northwestern tribes have now formed a coalition to work together in obtaining considerations of importance to them in a future long-term treaty.
Joel Moffitt, Nez Perce and Chairman of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, spoke before the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on November 7, first pointing out the Columbia Basin Tribes are working with the U.S. Entity and other sovereigns and do not have their own alternative technical or draft proposals as might have been suggested by others.
Moffitt summarized what the Columbia Basin Tribes see as critical elements: Integrate ecosystem-based function as a third purpose equal to hydropower and flood risk management; Enhance spring and summer flows while stabilizing reservoir operations; Pursue restoration of fish passage to historic locations; Pursue with Canada post-2024 operations to meet flood risk management objectives, and finally, and important to power interests, balance the annual payment to Canada known as Canadian Entitlement.
He explained the impacts to “Columbia Basin Tribes, First Nations and other communities all the way up to the headwaters,” began with the construction of dams even before the present treaty. “The tribes have also been excluded from its governance and implementation. The Treaty does not include considerations of critical tribal cultural resources.” He went on to add, “The tribes believe that a modernized Treaty needs to address the Columbia Basin using a watershed approach that integrates ecosystem-based function, hydropower, and flood risk management on both sides of the border.”
Moffitt explained that this approach, among other things, should increase recognition and preservation of tribal first foods, increase salmon survival, increase resident fish and wildlife survival, and allow fish passage to historical habitats now blocked.
Matt Wynne, tribal secretary for the Spokane Tribe and a member of the 15-tribe coalition, commented, “The part that the Spokane Tribe is really interested in seeing to fruition is at least a study on anadromous fish passage above Grand Coulee Dam.”
Wynne added that he was happy with the overall draft recommendation. “It looks a lot more for Indian country than it ever has before. This was a really good move in a positive direction with the 15 basin tribes coming together and working together to have the ecosystem-based function as an element of the treaty. I’m really proud of how the 15 tribes have worked together.”
The public was introduced to the draft recommendation earlier this year and were encouraged to comment. Time has now expired for public comment but those comments were considered by the Sovereign Review Team in developing the regional draft which is going to the State Department.
The major conflict within the region is between the “power group” with the single focus of trying to reduce power rates for Pacific Northwest rate payers and the tribes and conservation groups who advocate an equitable role for eco-based functions which include fish passage to Canada. While the recommendation is near completion there is still a power struggle to better reflect the work of the region as opposed to the single focus of the power group.
Washington State’s Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell sits in a very pivotal seat at a pivotal moment. She chairs the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and is no doubt being lobbied hard by both groups. With 15 U.S. tribes involved and similar numbers of First Nations bands in British Columbia, Indian country has much at stake.
The music video for Chase & Status’ dance track “Alive,” directed by Welsh filmmaker Josh Cole, has inspired a tremendous reaction from Indian country. Just read through the comments on the ICTMN facebook page and you’ll get the picture — some viewers have praised the clip for its tale of drug abuse on the rez and spiritual redemption, while others feel it’s exploitative and disrespectful of the ceremonies it depicts. The video, which shows dramatized drug use, crime and ceremony, was shot on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Cole has received considerable attention in Indian Country.
Cole filmed the video on the Blackfeet Reservation in Browning, Montana, and worked with Blackfeet tribal members during the course of its creation. On the day of the video release, ICTMN reached out to Cole to get his thoughts on some of the questions and comments coming from the Native community on social media.
Concerned he might be misrepresented, Cole requested that ICTMN could present his words in their entirety. He provided links to some other videos he has made which we have chosen to embed in the text of the story. Cole’s answers to our questions are as follows:
How did you first come up with this concept of using a Native Reservation story for this video?
As a reformed drug addict I follow stories around the world where the worst drug abuse is common. It’s my mission with my career to try to steer people into recovery as a thanks to those that helped me with my own addiction. As such I was shooting a story about a reformed Hispanic gangster turned graffiti artist in LA and I met a Native American rapper who grew up on a reservation.
I was shocked to hear stories about the reservations — in Europe there is no concept generally about contemporary Native Americans. I then started researching and put together a story based on the stuff I was told about. I decided I would really like to tell Europe how difficult it is for Native Americans in modern America because most people have no idea who they are. All my work is about the beauty that comes from hardship and I wanted to tell the story of the spiritual awakening of a drug addict in a Native American community.
How did you explain this concept to the Blackfeet community?
Several members of The Crazy Dogs Society in Browning are reformed alcoholics, I showed them my script and they really connected to it. They explained that it was basically their own story and also that they regularly help those with addictions through ceremony. I told them that I would like to make it something they would be proud of, that told the story properly, so we had a few days discussing my script and changing it to make it more realistic.
During this time I met several community leaders including many people on the Tribal Council including the Cultural Attaché of the Blackfeet Nation. Every time we met anyone we explained what we wanted to do in great detail and then each person was emailed a copy of the script. We explained the story dozens of times and the Tribal Council gave us their blessing and also gave us a shooting permit to shoot anywhere in Blackfeet territory. The community basically backed the project and we were repeatedly told by various people how much they thought this story needed to be told. I feel I could return there any time with my head held high. I’m also told the film has been very well received by people living not only on the Blackfeet Reservation but also on other reservations. You can see this by reading the comments under the video on Youtube. I should also say that this was a very low budget production — we were all working 20+ hour days to make it work and everybody involved really believed in the project. It still moves me when I think how much the people of Browning came together to help with this production.
What were the reactions about filming a “ceremony?”
I was extremely sensitive when talking to the Crazy Dogs about the ceremonies and always said that we could shoot an alternative scene. They spent a day or so discussing it with all members and they decided collectively they wanted the scene to be in the film. They felt like they wanted it to be shown and I gave them many opportunities to make sure they were happy. It meant a lot to me that they wanted to show this to the world. They told me that they wanted to use the video to help to heal the youth of the Blackfeet Nation. I should also say we didn’t film an actual ceremony — both the sweat lodge scene and the Sundance scene were mock ceremonies set up by the Crazy Dogs themselves to their exact specifications. I had no control whatsoever over the look or sequence of the scene, nor did I want it. I also had no interest in filming an actual ceremony — at every step of the process I was led by the advice of the Crazy Dogs and I am ever grateful for that and I feel no guilt in portraying this as I was led by a much greater knowledge than my own as I am with most of my work.
What were the reactions about this young man turning toward good then becoming a “martyr” as you put it?
I felt that the film needed an emotional finish. When people are moved they remember what they have seen. Plus it actually is somewhat of a happy ending because he is reunited with his girlfriend in the afterlife. There’s also a message in there about the way your past follows you — that no matter how much you reform you can’t always avoid who you were before. I have lost many many friends to the illness of addiction and this is often my experience.
What is the song about without the benefit of a video connected to it?
It’s a very simple message about the dangers of drugs. I nearly died myself through drug abuse and most of my narrative work contains these themes. It’s also a call to addicts to reform before it’s too late and to lead a more spiritual life.
Many native people are concerned about using Native Americans in a romantic way as a form of poverty porn or sensationalism, what is your response?
I strive against this type of imagery myself and I don’t think my work inspires pity at all. Everywhere I shoot I work very closely with the actual community to tell their story in the most authentic and meaningful way possible. Everywhere I’ve ever shot I can go back to and work again. I’m about to return to Ethiopia in January to work with the same community I shot with 2 years ago to produce a similar piece highlighting the plight of prostitutes in the capital and the beauty of the Rastafarian religion there. My extensive work in Africa generally shows very positive images and the energy of the slums:
The same with my film in the Philippines which shows positivity despite hardship- the true spirit of the country:
My work with the gypsy communities in the UK and Eastern Europe spans 10 years and tries to offer more positive images of this misunderstood people:
I also believe that my portrayal of Browning is not negative. It is ultimately a story of redemption and shows the elders of the community coming around the boy to heal him. If you don’t show the darkness in a realistic way the young people I’m trying to reach will not take it seriously. However, there is an element of drama to all my work as I want all my work to reach the masses – but it is always subverted as I believe I have done here. You have to remember that in the States the concept of Native Americans living in severe poverty is old news but in Europe people have no idea. None! I think this is something people here should know about. So this video serves a dual purpose – to show Europeans some of the conditions on reservations and also to give a Native community an opportunity to show both its darkness and its beauty.
There were social media interactions between yourself and others regarding the cavalry – what happened there?
I had been staying in Browning for a week or so meeting members of the community and my crew who are mainly from Wales arrived to shoot. I posted a picture on Instagram and stupidly wrote “The Welsh Cavalry arrive in Montana” which is a common phrase in the UK similar to “reinforcements have arrived”. When I was attacked on twitter by a number of activists somebody found the tweet and tried to spread the word that I was being racist. A shame really but I understand — in hindsight I should have realized the implications of using the word “cavalry” but it certainly wasn’t meant in a negative or humorous way at all.
Any last remarks?
Just want to thank again the Blackfeet Nation and the Crazy Dogs Society for all the love we were shown.
ARLINGTON — An unexpected Christmas present arrived early this year to three local food banks: $100,000 in cash, a donation from The Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians.
Sue Keezer, board chair of the Arlington Community Food Bank, said the charity had put in a request for a $25,000 grant this year from the tribe. The tribe has always been a strong supporter of the food bank, she said, and this has been a tough year both in a reduced amount of donations and an increase in need.
“They called us on Friday and they said they had a check for us, but it was only for $7,500,” Keezer said.
She went to pick up the gaily wrapped check Saturday morning. When she took off the wrapping, however, she was shocked.
“I’m just speechless, it’s just overwhelming, really,” she said.
Eric White, vice chairman of the Stillaguamish Tribal Council, said the tribe broke with its usual giving pattern this year to present an early gift to the three food banks, which included the Stanwood/Camano Island Food Bank and Northwest Harvest.
White said the tribe was motivated not just by general holiday spirit but also from hearing about a lot of people in need. While the tribe has supported the Arlington food bank in the past, they reached out to the other charities as well to help more people with their $300,000 gift.
“In our community, we have a lot of tribal members that live in Stanwood, so we reached out to Stanwood,” White said.
“It is undoubtedly the largest single donation we’ve ever received,” said Rick Bentley, executive director of the Stanwood/Camano Island Food Bank.
“When we get $5,000, that’s big news,” Bentley said. “One hundred thousand dollars is almost beyond comprehension.”
The Stillaguamish Tribe typically receives applications for charitable donations through the end of December, with donations given out in January. A second round of donations goes out in July. The tribe donated approximately $3 million to various charities in 2012, White said.
The Stillaguamish Tribe also gives out Thanksgiving turkeys and Christmas hams to food banks. This year the Arlington food bank gave out 373 Thanksgiving baskets, Keezer said.
“Without their donations last year and this year we wouldn’t have had enough turkeys for our Thanksgiving baskets,” she said.
“This community has never let down this food bank,” she said.
Keezer said some of the money will help get through the holiday season and complete construction of a new permanent facility at 19118 63rd Ave. NE. The food bank is renting space owned by the Arlington airport.
The board will meet soon to make plans for the bulk of the donation
Washington, DC–(ENEWSPF)–December 5, 2013.It’s farm bill debate time—again. And as conferee members saddle up to the negotiation table to attempt yet another meeting of the minds before the winter recess, most of the public watching and waiting for word on a resolution are focused on issues like food stamps and milk.
What most are not waiting for and has not been at the forefront of the media and public discussion concerning the pending farm bill negotiations are the small but dangerous provisions of the House bill concerning the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (expanded and overhauled as the Clean Water Act (CWA) in 1972) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to regulate pesticides used near, over, and in water. It should be.
Seeking to nullify the Sixth Circuit’s ruling in National Cotton Council v. EPA and the resulting general permit, sections 12323 and 100013 amend CWA to exclude pesticides from the law’s standards and its permitting requirements. Known as the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), CWA requires all point sources, which are discernible and discreet conveyances, to obtain either individual or general permits. Whether a point source must obtain an individual or general permit depends on the size of the point source and type of activity producing the pollutants. Regardless of whether it is a general permit or individual permit, an entity cannot pollute without a permit and in most cases can only permit in the amounts (called effluent limitations) and ways prescribed in the permit.
Separate, but inextricably linked to the NPDES program, are CWA’s water quality standards, under which states are responsible for designating waterbody uses (such as swimmable or fishable) and setting criteria to protect those uses. If a water body fails to meet the established criteria for its use, then it is deemed impaired and the states, or EPA, if the state fails to act, must establish a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), a kind of pollutant diet. The system comes full circle in that impaired waters with TMDLs can be integrated into the NPDES permits.
Neither CWA nor the NPDES program are perfect, but one need look no further than the fish we eat to understand the important role that this critical environmental framework plays in limiting human exposure to pesticides and other toxins.
CWA, Fish, and the Pesticide Connection
In the recently released Environmental Health Perspectives’ article, Meeting the Needs of the People: Fish Consumption Rates in the Pacific Northwest, the complexities of the CWA, its NPDES progam, and its water quality standards criteria are laid out in a disturbing tale of environmental justice and failing bureaucracies.
In short, Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest eat a lot of fish. It’s part of their culture and a way of life preserved in their legal and tribal rights, but they are facing increasing health risks due to the toxic chemicals in those fish. The solution to this problem seems fairly straight-forward: reduce the toxins in the water so that the levels in the fish are safe to eat. It’s a solution envisioned by CWA and its web of regulatory protections, however, as the article explains, “One of the variables used to calculate ambient water quality criteria is fish consumption rate.”
While the takeaway from the article is somewhat defeating and shows the far-reaching weaknesses of existing risk assessment methodologies, the underpinnings of the article —the connection between a water body’s water quality criteria, an entities NPDES permit, and the safety of the fish we put in our mouths— cannot be dismissed as irrelevant tales of woe. Whether the system is functioning perfectly or not, the point is that a system exists that contemplates the risks inherent to consuming toxin-laced fish and has the potential to protect the general consuming public.
From Fish Back to the Farm Bill
What does not have this ability is the Federal, Insecticide, Rodenticide, and Act (FIFRA). It is this federal framework, however, on which supporters of the House provision hang their hats and point to as the already-in-place protective standard capable of preventing water pollution from pesticides. Beyond Pesticides has debunked this argument in more ways than one. Other environmental advocacy groups have also pointed out that the sky has not fallen since EPA’s implementation of the general pesticide permit under CWA.
The Clean Water Act is intended to ensure that every community, from tribe to urban neighborhood, has the right to enjoy fishable and swimmable bodies of water. There is a lot of work still to be done to improve the nation’s waters and protect the health of people dependent on those waters.Without the Clean Water Act, there are no common sense backstops or enforcement mechanisms for reducing direct applications of pesticides to waterways. It may not be perfect, but it is better than nothing, which would be the effect of the House farm bill. We can’t afford to lose these protections.
Tell your Senators to oppose any efforts to undermine the Clean Water Act.
OLYMPIA – The Washington Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Puget Sound Partnership has announced the award of more than $42 million in grants to organizations around the state for projects that restore and protect salmon habitat, helping bring salmon back from the brink of extinction.
“Salmon are an important part of both Washington’s culture and economy,” said Gov. Jay Inslee. “Healthy salmon populations support thousands of jobs in fishing, hotels and restaurants, seafood processing, boat sales and repair, charter operations, environmental restoration and more. I am very pleased with the work of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and its efforts to fund projects that help our economy and assure future generations of Washingtonians can enjoy the return of wild salmon.”
Funding for the grants comes from the federal Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund and the sale of state bonds. In addition, $24.4 million is from the Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration Fund, which is jointly approved by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Puget Sound Partnership in coordination with local watersheds, for projects that will help restore Puget Sound.
Grant recipients will use the money to remove barriers that prevent salmon from migrating, reshape rivers and streams and replant riverbanks so there are more places for salmon to spawn, feed, rest, hide from predators and transition from freshwater to saltwater and back again.
Organizations in King and Snohomish counties were among those receiving grants. Grant recipients in King County will receive $4,458,129 and recipients in Snohomish County will receive $6,189,644.
Creating Healthy Salmon Habitat
Salmon populations in Washington have been declining for generations. As Washington grew and built its cities and towns, it destroyed many of the places salmon need to live. In 1991, the federal government declared the first salmon as endangered.
By the end of that decade, salmon populations had dwindled so much that salmon and bull trout were listed as threatened or endangered in three-quarters of the state. Those listings set off a series of activities including the formation of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board to oversee the investment of state and federal funds for salmon recovery.
“Without these grants, Washington’s salmon populations would continue to decline until nothing was left,” said David Troutt, chair of the state funding board. “That’s the trajectory we were on before salmon were placed on the federal Endangered Species Act list. In most areas of the state, fish are increasing or staying the same while in some important areas, fish populations are decreasing. Habitat is the key to salmon recovery and continuing to fund these important projects will help to move all populations in a positive direction.”
How Projects are Chosen
Projects are selected by local watershed groups, called lead entities. Lead entities are local consortiums that include tribes, local governments, nonprofits and citizens who work together to recruit and review project proposals and make decisions about which projects to forward to the Salmon Recovery Funding Board for funding.
Lead entities ensure that the projects are based on regional salmon recovery plans that were approved by the federal government. Then regional salmon recovery organizations and the Salmon Recovery Funding Board review each project to ensure they will help recover salmon in the most cost-effective manner.
“This bottom-up process of local groups identifying what needs to be fixed in their communities and then those projects undergoing regional and state scientific review means only the best and most cost-effective projects will be funded,” said Kaleen Cottingham, director of the Recreation and Conservation Office, which administers the grants. “We have been working for more than a decade to repair the damage that has been done to salmon habitat. But we have much more to accomplish before salmon can be removed from the endangered species list. This process of local priorities and state scientific overview has proven to be the most effective way of getting projects done on-the-ground and it assures we are investing the money we have very strategically.”
The Big Picture
“Restoring our lakes, streams, rivers and ecosystem isn’t just about saving salmon. A healthy ecosystem supports human health, our economy, our traditions, and our quality of life,” said Marc Daily, interim executive director of the Puget Sound Partnership, the state agency leading the recovery of Puget Sound. “These projects help to protect and perpetuate valuable resources today and for generations to come.”
Recent Oregon studies showed that every $1 million spent on watershed restoration results in 15-33 new or sustained jobs, $2.2 million to $2.5 million in total economic activity, and that 80 percent of grant money is spent in the county where the project was located.
Using the Oregon study formula, these new grants are estimated to provide more than 630 jobs during the next four years and more than $84 million in economic activity as grant recipients hire contractors, crews and consultants to design and build projects, including field crews to restore rivers and shoreline areas.
Information about the Salmon Recovery Funding Board and the Recreation and Conservation Office is available online at www.rco.wa.gov.
Few women in U.S. history have had more influence on the nation’s history than the young Lemhi Shoshone woman, Sacajawea. It’s very likely that Lewis and Clark would never have reached the Pacific Ocean had it not been for her help. White settlement would have been different. Indian wars throughout the western half of the country would have been altered. We might even be saluting the British flag rather than the American flag. Sacajawea’s role was gigantic.
The gold dollar coin bears Sacajawea’s image.
Innumerable statues have been created of her, she has graced postage stamps and the copy gold coin bears her resemblance. Despite that, there is great confusion and disagreement about this remarkable woman. No photos exist of her, so images and statues reflect what their creator thinks she would have looked like. There is disagreement about the spelling and pronunciation of her name, even where she was born and certainly where she died. But there is no disagreement as to her role in U.S. history. The Lemhi Shoshone people claim her, but others disagree.
Sacajawea was 11 or 12 when she was captured by the Hidatsa. A couple years later she married Charbonneau. When he was hired by Lewis and Clark as an interpreter she was included because they thought she might prove helpful when they reached her homelands in what is now Montana and Idaho. Four years had elapsed since her capture so she was probably 16 when she joined the expedition.
Dr. Orlan Svingen, a historian, and professor at Washington State University, has worked with the descendents of Sacajawea, the Agai Dika people, since 1991. “Sacajawea, carrying a child, speaking Shoshone, talking to a Frenchman… She disarmed anybody because she was a woman with a child,” he said. “On top of that, when she came to this country (western Montana) she knew people and could speak with them.”
Leo Ariwite, a Lemhi cultural person, and Dr. Orlan Svingen talk in the Lemhi Valley of Idaho. (Jack McNeel)
Perhaps her first major influence on the expedition came in early May when the pirogue (boat) she was in with Charbonneau at the helm capsized. Lewis describes Charbonneau, writing, “Charbono cannot swim and is perhaps the most timid waterman in the world.” The boat contained instruments, books, medicine, much merchandise, “in short almost every article indispensably necessary to further the views, or insure the success of the enterprise,” Captain Lewis wrote.
Sacajawea was calm despite having her newborn son with her and was able to retrieve many scientific instruments and books. Their medical supplies were lost but they were able to continue westward. Without her help, at that point, the expedition would have been much more difficult and less successful.
According to Svingen, well before they reached what is now Idaho, Sacajawea said, “This is the home of my people.” It was August 8, 1805. They soon met some of her own, the Lemhi Shoshone people. The expedition was in desperate need of horses, winter was approaching and a massive mountain range separated them from the Columbia River and the Pacific coast. With the aid of Sacajawea as both an interpreter and friend to both the expedition and the tribe, horses were obtained and a guide, an elder they called Toby, was provided to lead them over the mountains. Without the tribe’s help and Sacajawea’s assistance, this likely would have ended Lewis and Clark’s exploration.
2. A highway in eastern Idaho is designated as the Sacajawea Historic Byway. (Jack McNeel)
“This was huge!” Svingen said about Sacajawea and the tribe’s help. “This was like atomic energy! This was enormous!” Had Lewis and Clark not reached the Pacific, they would not have been able to claim the land for the United States.
Many questions will likely remain unanswered but few will argue the importance of Sacajawea to the Lewis and Clark expedition or to her impact on U.S. history.
Eric Erga, Maintenance 2 Worker with the city of Marysville, stands ready by one of the city’s plow trucks for winter weather to come. — image credit: Kirk Boxleitner
By Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe
MARYSVILLE — Although the freezing temperatures that have already arrived could be coupled with precipitation over the weekend, the city of Marysville began planning for winter snow and ice when the fall had barely started.
“We’ve got between 700-800 tons of sand here at Public Works,” said Charlie Burke, Streets and Surface Water Manager for the city of Marysville. “We’ve got an additional 200-250 tons at the north end of town, to take care of that area and the Lakewood triangle. We actually reclaim a lot of our sand.”
Burke touted the city of Marysville’s fleet of vehicles equipped for snow and ice control, including four 10-yard trucks and a single one-ton truck for plowing and sanding, another 10-yard truck that sands exclusively, two five-yard trucks, and another truck that dispenses anti-icing liquid.
“We provide 24-hour coverage, but we split it into three eight-hour shifts from Monday through Friday, and two 12-hour shifts during the weekend,” Burke said. “The number of employees per shift is slightly heavier during the day, but you’ve got about 10 during the day, between eight to 10 on the swing shifts and around eight to nine at night.”
Burke characterized last year’s winter as mild, since the city only used 830 yards of sand on its streets, but he agreed with city of Marysville Public Works Director Kevin Nielsen that road safety remains a top priority for the Streets Department, as it maintains 196 miles of streets within the city to keep traffic moving throughout Marysville as efficiently as possible.
“We check the weather forecasts daily,” Burke said on Wednesday, Dec. 4. “When we had that cold snap on Monday, [Dec. 2,] we put down de-icer, which lasts for a few days, depending on the temperature, the wind and the moisture in the air. At least every three days that the temperature is below freezing, we lay down more de-icer.”
Even before any de-icer was applied to the city streets, the city began amassing its sand supply and assembling its snow and ice response crews in September, before it met with the Washington State Department of Transportation in October to review any changes to their routes, procedures or equipment. Prior to the city’s subsequent meetings with the Marysville Police Department, the Marysville Fire District and the Marysville School District in November, to review their resources and map out how they might overlap, city crews conducted an in-house training exercise in early November.
“It’s a field exercise that gets them used to the trucks and equipment again,” Burke said.
“We’re proactive in our approach, ready and prepared for any major snow and ice events that affect Marysville this year,” Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring said. “Our dedicated snow and ice response teams are ready to keep traffic moving and motorists safe on local roadways, to the best of our ability and with the least amount of disruption, while protecting lives and property.”
Just as city of Marysville Public Works and Emergency Management staff meet to share strategies and information with neighboring jurisdictions and utilities before the arrival of winter weather, so too will the city’s in-house database system track its dispatched crews’ responses to create a more efficient work flow. Nielsen added that the city’s snow and ice removal plans aim to augment that efficiency further by designating snow and ice routes, for sanding and plowing, according to prioritized zones based on the streets’ topography, traffic volumes and any special usage.
Street crews will concentrate their snow and ice removal efforts on arterials leading into and out of the city, as well as arterials on hills within the city limits, routes providing fire and police access, and then all other arterials within the city limits. As such, city crews’ responses will be focused on priority routes and arterials, such as State, 51st, 67th, 83rd and Twin Lakes avenues, as well as Fourth, Grove, 88th, 116th, 136th, 152nd and 172nd streets west of I-5 in the Lakewood area, and Sunnyside, Ingraham and Smokey Point boulevards. A full map of the city’s snow routes can be found on its website at http://marysvillewa.gov.
“We go all-out to make our roads as accessible as possible for the public, and commuters heading to and from work or schools, but the city doesn’t have the resources or the equipment to plow or sand residential neighborhood streets and cul-de-sacs,” said Burke, who acknowledged that city crews can remove snow and ice outside of those parameters, if requested by Marysville Police or Fire personnel, even as he deemed this a rare occurrence.
“We have crews driving sanitation trucks and other heavy Public Works vehicles on a daily basis, in addition to the police and their vehicles,” said Nielsen, who warned that the city might close certain roads during winter weather due to safety concerns. “We won’t jeopardize the safety of city employees by putting them in dangerous winter driving situations.”
When “Snow Closure — Do Not Enter” signs and barricades are placed at these locations, motorists and even pedestrians are advised not to go around them.
“In general, be cautious and use common sense when out driving or walking in freezing weather,” Burke said. “Make sure your tires are appropriate for the weather, either studded or with chains, and if you have to park on the side of the road, park safely. Our plows are about 10-12 feet wide, so it’s hard for them to move around a lot of cars.”
For the most current online information about local emergency or road conditions and preparedness, you can visit the city’s website at http://marysvillewa.gov, which includes several interactive features, among them an Emergency Alert Center that offers the latest updates. You can sign up to get emergency alerts sent to your email address and cell phone through the site’s “Notify Me” email subscription service.
Updates are also posted on the city’s Facebook and Twitter sites, as well as on Marysville Comcast TV 21 and Frontier TV 25 cable access stations. You can even call the city’s message-only Emergency Alert Hotline at 360-363-8118. For water and sewer emergencies during business hours, call 360-363-8100, or 911 after hours.
Chief Caleen Sisk will speak at rallies in Sacramento today and Friday and re-affirm the Winnemem Wintu opposition’s against the construction of the peripheral water export tunnels and the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP), as Governor Jerry Brown’s administration releases the preliminary Environmental Impact Report and the BDCP plan to the public today.
As California’s State Water Project currently operates, far too much water is sucked from the San Francisco/Sacramento Delta, the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast, and sent to the state’s water brokers, who support unsustainable industrial agriculture, destructive hydraulic fracking for oil extraction and municipal developments in the desert.
The proposed peripheral tunnels, with a conservatively estimated price tag of $54 billion, will undoubtedly kill the sensitive Delta, a delicate mix of salt and freshwater, that is vital to the life cycle of California salmon as well as thousands of other fish and species.
“There is no precedent for the killing of an estuary of this size, so how could any study be trusted to protect the Delta for salmon and other fish? How can they even know what the effects will be?” said Chief and Spiritual Leader Caleen Sisk. “The end of salmon would also mean the end of Winnemem, so the BDCP is a threat to our very existence as indigenous people.”
As one of the many traditional salmon tribes in California, the Winnemem rely on access to salmon to maintain our cultural and religious practices. The peripheral tunnels if ever constructed would therefore be in violation of our indigenous rights to maintain our cultural practices with salmon, as outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Recently at a public meeting in Redding, Governor Brown’s Deputy Director of the Natural Resources Agency Jerry Meral, disclosed that the peripheral tunnels are connected to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s plan to raise Shasta Dam by 18.5 feet, a project that would destroy or submerge nearly 40 sacred sites and destroy potential salmon spawning areas. We are currently working on plans to re-introduce our salmon above the dam into the McCloud River.
The planned Delta tunnels will require more water be taken from the Trinity River and the Shasta Dam, which is fed by the Upper Sacramento, McCloud and Pit Rivers. This will add even more stress to the struggling ecology of these rivers.
This plan is not meant to benefit the public of California, native and non-native, but purely to line the coffers of the lobbyists who have been buying off Gov. Brown all along, such as Beverly Hills Big Ag billionaire Stewart Resnick and his wife Lynda who contributed $99,000 to his 2010 campaign. The Western States Petroleum Association has spent more than $4.5 million in lobbying the state government in 2013 alone.
The peripheral tunnels are a violation of the public’s trust in Gov. Brown, and not the answer to dealing with the state’s forthcoming water shortages. There are better solutions.
The Winnemem are proud to announce that we will be standing with our allies during a press conference today and a rally Friday, Dec. 13 at the West Steps of the Capitol. Chief Sisk will speak.
These events are sponsored by Californians for A Fair Water Policy and dozens of other environmental, fishing, farming, government, and water agencies.
Monday, December 9, 2013
—Press Conference and Rally at the Capitol
—Location: Starting in Room 112, moving to West Steps if needed
—Starting Time: Noon with 12:30 p.m. press conference – arrive as early as 10:30 for possible walk to California Resources Agency.
Friday, December 13, 2013
—Friday the 13th Rally to begin the 120 Day BDCP Response Countdown
—Location: West Steps of the Capitol
—Starting Time: 11:30 a.m.
This rally is sponsored by Californians for A Fair Water Policy and dozens of other environmental, fishing, farming, government, and water agencies.
To stop this boondoggle please writ letters to Governor Brown expressing your opposition to the peripheral tunnels plan! Letters should be addressed to:
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn A-in-chut Atleo is among the official delegates from Canada attending services for Nelson Mandela.
He, along with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and 18 other political leaders including premiers and members of Parliament, are en route to South Africa for the memorial service to be held in Johannesburg on December 10, as well as Mandela’s lying in state in Pretoria on December 11.
The human-rights icon died on December 5 at age 95. He had served both in prison, for 27 years, and as president, for four, as the country began dismantling the system of segregation known as Apartheid. Known as Madiba by his people, the son from a line of hereditary Thembu chiefs spent most of his life fighting discrimination and racism, and championing human rights.
“The life, work and spirit of Nelson Mandela—or Madiba, as he was called by his people—was deeply connected to First Nations in Canada not only as a fellow indigenous leader but also because of his incredible struggle for justice and reconciliation that resonates so deeply with the struggle and aspirations of our peoples,” Atleo said in a statement on December 8, upon the delegation’s departure. “Our traditions call upon us to always be mindful of the importance of such commemoration, celebration and respect to be shown to the family and to the people united in marking this loss. I will travel to South Africa as a humble representative of our indigenous traditions to pay our respects and to stand in honor of this great leader and inspiration for Indigenous peoples and for the world.”
Also part of the delegation are Northwest Territories Premier Bob McLeod and Yukon Premier Darrell Pasloski. The NW territories will lower their flags to half-mast from sunrise to sunset on Wednesday.
“Much will be said about the character, influence and strength of Nelson Mandela in the coming days,” McLeod said in a statement. “This is an opportunity to reflect on our own experience and those around us who have carried great personal burdens. Our experiences in the North, particularly those related to residential schools, require strength and a true spirit of reconciliation for all northerners. I will be taking this week to reflect on how we can continue to work together to reconcile our past and our differences as we move forward.”
Alberta Premier Alison Redford, who worked with him as a young lawyer during the 1990s as part of a team that was laying the groundwork for a post-Apartheid South Africa, is also part of the delegation.
“Nelson Mandela was a towering icon, a giant of a man and an enormously inspiring individual who courageously spent his life fighting racism, oppression, and injustice,” she said in a statement upon his passing. “He used his days walking this earth to bring freedom, equality and human rights to his people, his country and to the world.”
Redford’s grief, both personal and professional, echoed the appeal that Mandela held for Natives and non-Natives alike.
“I will always remember him as a dignified and kind man with a sparkle in his eye, who used humor to diffuse tense situations,” she said. “He taught me that the best advice comes from people who have been working in the trenches, and that leaders have to sacrifice. I remember his wisdom, his optimism and his patience. He knew that no matter what he had accomplished that there was always another challenge ahead of him and another hill to climb, and that his work was never done until he breathed his last breath.”
These Hopi masks were auctioned on Monday
Seeking to nullify the Sixth Circuit’s ruling in National Cotton Council v. EPA and the resulting general permit, sections 12323 and 100013 amend CWA to exclude pesticides from the law’s standards and its permitting requirements. Known as the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), CWA requires all point sources, which are discernible and discreet conveyances, to obtain either individual or general permits. Whether a point source must obtain an individual or general permit depends on the size of the point source and type of activity producing the pollutants. Regardless of whether it is a general permit or individual permit, an entity cannot pollute without a permit and in most cases can only permit in the amounts (called effluent limitations) and ways prescribed in the permit.
