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Woman With Eagle Feather: The Photo ‘Heard’ Round the World

Courtesy Ossie Michelin, APTN National NewsAboriginal Peoples Televison Network reporter Ossie Michelin snapped the above photo on a three-year-old iPhone but did not see what he had shot until his producers told him it had been shared more than 160,000 times. — Courtesy Ossie Michelin, APTN National News
Aboriginal Peoples Televison Network reporter Ossie Michelin snapped the above photo on a three-year-old iPhone but did not see what he had shot until his producers told him it had been shared more than 160,000 times.

By Vincent Schilling, ICTMN

The scene was chaotic: heavily armed Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) pouring into an encampment of sleeping protesters, leading dogs and carrying assault rifles. Amid burning police cars, pepper-spray-spewing hoses and barking police dogs, 28-year-old Amanda Polchies dropped to her knees, brandishing the only “weapon” she had: an eagle feather. Holding it aloft, she began to pray.

Poster by Greg Deal

The image is emblazoned in people’s minds as a symbol not just of the Mi’kmaq protest against potential fracking near Elsipogtog First Nation in New Brunswick, Canada, but also of what has been happening to Natives since Europeans first stepped onto Turtle Island’s shores. Since APTN reporter Ossie Michelin snapped and posted the photo, the image has morphed into poster art, memes and other incarnations.

Michelin had no idea his image would come to represent the Elsipogtog protest movement, let alone much more. In an interview on Native Trailblazers Radio, Michelin spoke of his spur-of-the-moment shot taken with a three-year-old iPhone, and the bond it formed between photographer and subject.

Did you have any idea the picture you took would become viral and help inspire the Elsipogtog social media movement online?

I had no idea. I was tweeting as many pictures as I could during my coverage because I was promoting live hits for the APTN Network. There were times I thought, ‘The world needs to see this right now.’ The picture was one of many I was sharing that day.

My producer called me and said, ‘Ossie, that picture has been shared over 160,000 times in the past four hours.’ I said, ‘What? The picture I took? Which picture?’ I took that picture on my three-year-old iPhone4 and I had to go back and look through my pictures. I saw it and only then did it really sink in.

Those were some volatile times during the moments you were taking those photographs.

The RCMP made over 30 arrests before the raid on October 17. People were running all over the place. We did not know what was happening. I didn’t realize how many people were paying attention to this. All I knew was two feet in front of me and 20 feet behind me; I did not know what was going on in the world that day because we were completely cut off, with police lines on either side of us.

Part of my healing process was I got to meet Amanda Polchies, the woman in the photograph.

How was it when you two met?

I was afraid it was going to be awkward, and I was afraid she was going to be mad at me. But we met and we clicked. We did a ceremony together and her father did a pipe ceremony with me to help me get rid of the nightmares. I have been sleeping a lot better ever since.

Do you talk to her now?

Since that time Amanda has adopted me into her family. She is a sister from another mister, and I am a brother from another mother. She gave me some stuff from her culture; I am going to give her some from mine, and every time I see her I give her a big hug.

We are bonded for life. We both say that picture will probably outlive us both.

The Great American Smokeout and the National COPD Awareness Month Team Up to Help Smokers Quit

National COPD Awareness month and the Great American Smokeout provide smokers in the U.S. with support to help them kick the habit this November.

Written by Joe Bowman, Healthline

If you are one of the nearly 44 million Americans who have yet to kick their smoking habit, November might be the perfect time to put the cigarettes out for good.

On Thursday, November 21, the American Cancer Society (ACS) will hold the 37th annual Great American Smokeout. In 1976, the California Division of the ACS encouraged nearly 1 million smokers to give up cigarettes for the day. The success of the first Great American Smokeout prompted the ACS to expand the program to the rest of the U.S. the following year, turning the third Thursday of November into a day when Americans can support one another in the fight to quit smoking.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cigarette smoking is the principal cause of preventable death in the U.S. It is responsible for one in five deaths—or more than 440,000 deaths annually. Tobacco use greatly increases a person’s risk for cancer, heart disease, stroke, respiratory diseases, and a host of other conditions.

The ACS reports that smoking is not only responsible for nearly a third of all cancer deaths but also for about a fifth of deaths from all causes. Changes in attitude toward tobacco usage have helped the percentage of American smokers over the age of 18 drop from more than 42 percent to close to 18 percent. Though many states now have laws that restrict smoking in public areas, it’s estimated that 1 in 5 U.S. adults still smoke.

The ACS believes that even quitting for a day is a step in the right direction toward a healthier lifestyle.

Take a Minute to See the Timeline of What Happens When You Quit Smoking »

Starting a Dialogue About COPD

November is also National COPD Awareness Month. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a disease that affects the lungs, making breathing more difficult as it progresses. COPD, which is also known as emphysema or chronic bronchitis, is characterized by three main symptoms: shortness of breath during physical activity and, as the disease worsens, while at rest; chronic coughing; and spitting or coughing mucus from the lungs.

The University of Maryland Medical Center estimates that cigarette smoking accounts for around 80 percent of all COPD cases. With more than 120,000 deaths each year in the U.S. alone, COPD moved ahead of stroke in 2010 to become the third leading cause of death in the U.S. While more than 12 million people are currently diagnosed with COPD, the more disturbing fact is that there are likely another 12 million with the disease who are unaware of it.

In an effort to educate patients and health care providers of COPD, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has launched the COPD Learn More Breathe Better campaign, aimed at current and former smokers over the age of 45.

James Kiley, director of the NHLBI Division of Lung Diseases, hopes that increased awareness of the disease will encourage more patients and health care providers to discuss symptoms and treatments for COPD in the doctor’s office.

“It’s no secret that early diagnosis and treatment can improve daily living for those who have COPD, but you can’t get there without an open line of dialogue in the exam room,” Kiley said in a press release.

Although there is no cure for COPD, lifestyle changes such as smoking cessation, exercise, and a healthy diet can lessen the symptoms of the disease. You should also speak with your doctor about medications that can also help.

Not Convinced? Here Are 7 More Reasons to Quit Smoking »

Additional Tips to Keep You Smoke-Free

While the task of giving up cigarettes might seem daunting to many current smokers, the ACS offers these tips to help you stick to your goal after the clock strikes 12 during this year’s Great American Smokeout:

Seek out support in the form of smoking cessation hotlines or stop-smoking groups in your city or online.
Look into counseling to give you an additional, professional support system.
Ask your doctor about prescription medications, including Bupropion or Chantix.
If counseling or medication aren’t possible, there are many books out there that can help.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist about nicotine replacement products, like patches or gum.
Talk about quitting with friends and family. Don’t underestimate the power of positive reinforcement and encouragement from loved ones.

For more information about quitting smoking and tobacco products, call the ACS at 1-800-227-2345.

Code Talkers From 33 Tribes Receive Congressional Gold Medals

Code Talkers from 33 tribes other than the Navajo Nation receive their Congressional Gold Medals.

By Vincent Schilling, November 20, 2013, ICTMN

This morning at 11 a.m., Native American Code Talkers from 33 tribes were honored at the nations Capitol in Washington D.C. Taking the limelight with such notable historical figures as Rosa Parks, Mother Teresa and Astronauts, the Native Code Talkers and their prospective tribes were awarded Congressional Gold Medals.

A plethora of Senatorial and Congressional notables were present at the awards ceremony to include House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-OH), Tom Cole (R-OK), Ron Kind (D-WI), Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD), Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV).

Also in attendance were family members and tribal leaders representing the Native Code Talkers as well as 96-year-old Edmond Harjo.

Speaker John Boehner opened the ceremony by applauding the efforts of Harjo who had recognized a fellow soldier’s language in 1944 and was later utilized by the U.S. military as a code talker.

“Edmond and his brothers were at Normandy and Iwo Jima and they mobilized the weapon of language to thwart the fiercest enemy the free people have ever known and made a difference …join me in applauding their perseverance and the deeds that have been relegated to legend and may they now live in memory,” said Boehner.

Native American Congressman Tom Cole then shared his thoughts. “It is an enormous honor for me to get to share this moment with you – no one has fought against an alliance like Native Americans. Native Americans enlist at a higher rate than any ethnicity in this land. Most famous of those warriors are the Navajo code talkers of World War II, but 33 different tribes contributed to the code talkers.”

“From my home state of Oklahoma three are Choctaw, Comanche and Kiowa they saved lives and won battles. They did so by giving the United States the unique battlefield advantage of secure communication,” said Cole.

Similar appreciative sentiments were also given by Kind, Johnson, McConnell and Inhofe who also described ways code talkers were critical to war efforts. Their descriptions included how code talkers could decipher their messages instantly with 100 percent accuracy, while machines took up to 30 minutes to decipher alternative codes. Also, more than 800 battlefield communications were shared in the first 48 hours of Iwo Jima. Several speakers mentioned that code talkers enlisted at a time when they were not even honored as citizens.

Pelosi expressed appreciation for representing California as a state with the highest percentage of Native Americans before thanking the code talkers.

“The code talkers, using their language… committed to the cause of freedom. Their sense of duty was never shaken nor was their resolve. Their patriotism never wavered nor did their courage. Their bonds of brotherhood were never broken nor were their codes. Their heroism and sacrifice and these contributions went unrecognized for too long. It is a privilege for Congress to bestow the Native American code talkers the highest honor we can bestow, the Congressional Gold medal,” said Pelosi.

After Pelosi, Senator Reid delivered a poignantly truthful account of the history of Native people and their contribution to the war efforts of the United Sates.

“According to firsthand accounts from the pilgrims, who arrived to this continent, Native Americans did not farm the land so this wasn’t truly their land. According to the pioneers who pushed past the Mississippi, Native Americans were not civilized, so they didn’t truly own the land. According to the prospectors who rushed for the hills of Nevada, California and even Alaska, Native Americans did not speak English so they did not truly own the land.

“Strangers had forced the Native peoples from their lands slaughtered their game, stifled their religions outlawed their ceremonies and ravaged their communities…in the late 1800s, the United States government forced Native American children to attend English only boarding schools. Native children were torn from their families, taken far from home in boxcars and buggies, given English names, forced to cut their hair short and teachers beat the children with leather straps when they spoke their Native languages. The government told them their language had no value, but the children held onto their language, culture and history at great personal risk.”

“In this nation’s hour of greatest need these same Native American languages proved to have great value in the early years of World War II…Why would Native Americans, who had been robbed of their land and their culture agree to use their precious language to protect the country that had neglected and abused them for centuries? As one Navajo Native American code talker by the name of Chester Nez put it, ‘Somebody has got to defend this country, somebody has to defend freedom,” said Reid.

Watch the video here.

24,000-Year-Old Body Is Kin to Both Europeans and American Indians

Niobe ThompsonA view of Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia near where the young boy buried at Mal’ta was discovered. — Niobe Thompson
A view of Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia near where the young boy buried at Mal’ta was discovered.

By Nicholas Wade, The New York Times

The genome of a young boy buried at Mal’ta near Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia some 24,000 years ago has turned out to hold two surprises for anthropologists.The first is that the boy’s DNA matches that of Western Europeans, showing that during the last Ice Age people from Europe had reached farther east across Eurasia than previously supposed. Though none of the Mal’ta boy’s skin or hair survive, his genes suggest he would have had brown hair, brown eyes and freckled skin.

The second surprise is that his DNA also matches a large proportion — some 25 percent — of the DNA of living Native Americans. The first people to arrive in the Americas have long been assumed to have descended from Siberian populations related to East Asians. It now seems that they may be a mixture between the Western Europeans who had reached Siberia and an East Asian population.

The Mal’ta boy was aged 3 to 4 and was buried under a stone slab wearing an ivory diadem, a bead necklace and a bird-shaped pendant. Elsewhere at the same site some 30 Venus figurines were found of the kind produced by the Upper Paleolithic cultures of Europe. The remains were excavated by Russian archaeologists over a 20-year period ending in 1958 and stored in museums in St. Petersburg.

There they lay for some 50 years until they were examined by a team led by Eske Willerslev of the University of Copenhagen. Dr. Willerslev, an expert in analyzing ancient DNA, was seeking to understand the peopling of the Americas by searching for possible source populations in Siberia. He extracted DNA from bone taken from the child’s upper arm, hoping to find ancestry in the East Asian peoples from whom Native Americans are known to be descended.

But the first results were disappointing. The boy’s mitochondrial DNA belonged to the lineage known as U, which is commonly found among the modern humans who first entered Europe some 44,000 years ago. The lineages found among Native Americans are those designated A, B, C, D and X, so the U lineage pointed to contamination of the bone by the archaeologists or museum curators who had handled it, a common problem with ancient DNA projects. “The study was put on low speed for about a year because I thought it was all contamination,” Dr. Willerslev said.

His team proceeded anyway to analyze the nuclear genome, which contains the major part of human inheritance. They were amazed when the nuclear genome also turned out to have partly European ancestry. Examining the genome from a second Siberian grave site, that of an adult who died some 17,000 years ago, they found the same markers of European origin. Together, the two genomes indicate that descendants of the modern humans who entered Europe had spread much farther east across Eurasia than had previously been assumed and occupied Siberia during an extremely cold period starting 20,000 years ago that is known as the Last Glacial Maximum.

The other surprise from the Mal’ta boy’s genome was that it matched to both Europeans and Native Americans but not to East Asians. Dr. Willerslev’s interpretation was that the ancestors of Native Americans had already separated from the East Asian population when they interbred with the people of the Mal’ta culture, and that this admixed population then crossed over the Beringian land bridge that then lay between Siberia and Alaska to become a founding population of Native Americans.

“We estimate that 14 to 38 percent of Native American ancestry may originate through gene flow from this ancient population,” he and colleagues wrote in an article published Wednesday in the journal Nature.

A European contribution to Native American ancestry could explain two longstanding puzzles about the people’s origins. One is that many ancient Native American skulls, including that of the well-known Kennewick man, look very different from those of the present day population. Another is that one of the five mitochondrial DNA lineages found in Native Americans, the lineage known as X, also occurs in Europeans. One explanation is that Europeans managed to cross the Atlantic in small boats some 20,000 years ago and joined the Native Americans from Siberia.

Dr. Willerslev thinks it more likely that European bearers of the X lineage had migrated across Siberia with the ancestors of the Mal’ta culture and joined them in their trek across the Beringian land bridge.

United National Tribal Youth, Inc. Receives $850K Grant from Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

Source: Red Lake Nation News

Chandler, Arizona–United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) has entered into a four-year cooperative agreement with the US Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to plan and implement the National Intertribal Youth Leadership Development Initiative. The Initiative’s goal is to offer opportunities for Native American youth to, “Reduce risk factors and enhance protective factors in youth, schools, communities, and families.” To accomplish this goal, the Initiative will conduct a series of national and regional Intertribal Youth Leadership Development gatherings and a range of related youth leadership development opportunities for Native American and Alaska Native youth.

UNITY, Inc. is a national network organization promoting personal development, citizenship, and leadership among Native youth between the ages of 14 – 24. UNITY affiliated youth councils that make up the National UNITY Council will have an opportunity to put the training their youth members receive through the Initiative to good use within their communities as the youth themselves learn by doing. The training will enable the youth to plan, organize, and carry out service projects within their respective communities. These youth led projects will benefit tribal communities while providing valuable real world leadership experiences that will better prepare the involved youth to assume and succeed in their future leadership roles. UNITY and a team of technical assistance providers will offer guidance and support to engaged youth and their adult advisors throughout the project to help ensure the successful completion of the service projects.

“The Initiative provides welcome resources that will help make it possible for UNITY to continue the important work that it has performed for the past 37 years. The UNITY staff, members of the Council of Trustees, and the youth leaders of the National UNITY Council are looking forward to working with the OJJDP staff and its team of consultants and trainers to provide our Native American youth with the added opportunities for personal development the Initiative makes possible. I personally encourage Native youth and youth-serving programs throughout Native America to take part in this important Initiative,” said Mary Kim Titla, UNITY Executive Director.

UNITY staff, OJJDP staff, trainers and technical assistance providers will collaboratively develop and adopt specific project objectives along with a plan for accomplishing the Initiative’s overall goals. The schedule for all project activities and events is expected to be completed and announced on the UNITY website (www.unityinc.org) as well as through other media outlets shortly after the start of the New Year.

UNITY’s mission is to foster the spiritual, mental, physical and social development of American Indian and Alaska Native Youth and to help build a strong, unified, and self-reliant Native America through greater youth involvement. UNITY’s network currently includes 132 affiliated youth councils in 35 states. Youth Councils are sponsored by Tribes, Alaska Native villages, high schools, colleges, urban centers, and others. To learn more about UNITY, visit the website at http://www.unityinc.org.

Reaching Back to Traditional Native American Cooking in Search of Healthier Meals

The curly tips of the fiddlehead fern can be found in early spring before they open to reveal a full taste akin to asparagus. U.S. Forest Service photo. - — The curly tips of the fiddlehead fern can be found in early spring before they open to reveal a full taste akin to asparagus. U.S. Forest Service photo. –

By Kathryn Sosbe, Office of Communication, U.S. Forest Service, on November 15, 2013, USDA.gov

Elizabeth Nelson tasted then added more spice to a soup made with fiddlehead ferns, those curly leaves of a young fern that resemble the scrolled neck of a superbly crafted violin.

Although Nelson has made the soup hundreds of times before, her culinary prowess this day is being documented for a project called Mino Wiisinidaa!, or Let’s Eat Good! – Traditional Foods for Healthy Living.

“When we were kids, my mom would send us all out with a bucket. And she said, ‘Don’t you kids come back until that bucket is filled,’ ” said Nelson, a member of the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians Reservation in Northwest Wisconsin. “And we would go and fill them with cow slips and fiddlehead ferns. And that was our supper for the night. That was how we lived.”

Documenting Nelson’s kitchen expertise is part of a three-year Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission project, funded by the Administration for Native Americans. The project will encourage healthy living by reintroducing food preparation taught by elders of the Anishinaabe people and based on recipes that are decades old.

“The Mino Wiisinidaa! Let’s Eat Good! project focuses on a return to traditional Anishinaabe foods in a new and healthy way,” said LaTisha Coffin, project coordinator. “We work with many elders from our member tribes that want to pass on knowledge about our traditional foods and stories about harvesting and the healthy lifestyle that came with gathering and processing your own food.”

One of the main goals of the program is to combat diabetes, obesity, and other chronic diseases. Native Americans are at higher risk at developing pre-diabetes and diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes. Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes, and many people are unaware they are at high risk. According to the American Diabetes Association, Native Americans have the highest age adjusted rate for diabetes at 16.1 percent while the overall United States rate is half that.

LaTisha Coffin, Mino Wiisinidaa! project coordinator, harvests fiddlehead ferns that will be used in a cooking demonstration. U.S. Forest Service photo.

To date, more than 70 recipes have been gathered that take advantage of plants that grow in the wild in and around and the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Many of the recipes are aimed at getting tribal members to rediscover traditional foods in a healthier way and talking about moderation and balancing meals, especially for diabetics. In order to test and try these recipes, the project staff harvests, or wildcrafts, with tribal elders. Wildcrafting is harvesting plants from their natural environment and serves as an economical way to find edible plants that can become healthy table fare.

“When we are out harvesting with a tribal elder, we make sure to listen and learn as much as we can from them. There are always certain ways to harvest foods, certain amounts you should take while leaving the rest to return for next year,” Coffin said. “The elders tell us how to care for natural resources that we gather and harvest, so that they will be around for us to harvest next year, and for our children to harvest, and their children to harvest.”

Foraging requires knowledge about plants. Some varieties of fiddlehead fern will make you sick, and are mostly used as a diuretic. Make sure to thoroughly research plants and their look-alikes before harvesting, or harvest with an expert.

The Northern Great Lakes Visitors Center on the Chequamegon-Nicolet has become the kitchen to test out such dishes as wild rice flour breads, watercress pesto, venison cabbage rolls, and a healthier version of Nelson’s fiddlehead fern soup.

Recently, during the forest’s annual fishing day event for kids, more than 100 people got to sample another project recipe: Mole Lake Lobster, which is actually white fish that is a traditional food in the Upper Great Lakes region. Event goers also got to take home the recipe for this traditional and microwavable dish.

Other published recipes are available in Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commissiononline newspaper.

The Mino Wiisinidaa! project will continue to host cooking demonstrations through next spring and will create and distribute a cookbook with an instructional DVD that includes all of the collected recipes, including Nelson’s soup.

– See more at: http://blogs.usda.gov/2013/11/15/reaching-back-to-traditional-native-american-cooking-in-search-of-healthier-meals/#sthash.4mVkTWBw.dpuf

Grays Harbor Crude Oil Terminals Blocked

Board holds projects need full evaluation of “oil spill risks, increase in rail and vessel traffic, and location of expanded facilities in areas of known natural resource and cultural sensitivity.”

Source: Earth Justice, November 13, 2013

Olympia, WA — The Washington Shorelines Hearings Board reversed permits for two crude oil shipping terminals in Grays Harbor, Washington for failure to address significant public safety and environmental issues. The projects cannot go forward until full and detailed environmental reviews assess all individual and cumulative impacts, according to the final decision released late yesterday.

The Quinault Indian Nation and conservation groups argued that regulatory agencies failed to adequately evaluate the risks of oil spills from trains or marine vessels that would expose tribal fishing rights, commercial and recreational fishing and shellfishing, and the economy and environment of Grays Harbor to major harm.

The Board agreed with petitioners Quinault Indian Nation, Friends of Grays Harbor, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation, Grays Harbor Audubon, and Citizens for a Clean Harbor that moving hundreds of oil-laden trains and ships through Washington demands full and public environmental review.

Quote from Fawn Sharp, President, Quinault Indian Nation:

“We applaud the decision by the Shoreline Hearings Board to reverse the permit for the crude oil shipping terminals.

“Those permits should have never been issued in the first place. The shipping terminals would be a clear violation of public safety as well as treaty-protected rights. The public trust should not be jeopardized in this manner. Neither should the water nor other environmental resources upon which we all depend. Far more jobs would be lost when the inevitable spills occur than would be gained from the development of the proposed oil terminals. It is the responsibility of the Shoreline Hearings Board and all public entities to take a strong stand against these terminals and all such projects that would diminish the quality of life in our region.

“Good public policy demands that decision makers assess ultimate and cumulative impacts of their decisions and mitigate any potential harm to the public or tribal interest before they commit to an irreversible course of action.

“The history of oil spills provides ample, devastating evidence that there are no reasonable conditions under which these proposed terminal projects should proceed.”

Westway Terminal Company and Imperium Terminal Services had each proposed projects that would ship tens of millions of barrels of crude oil through Grays Harbor each year. Daily trains more than a mile long would bring crude oil from North Dakota or tar sands crude oil from Alberta, Canada along the Chehalis River and into the port, where it would be stored in huge shoreline tanks. The crude would then be pumped onto oil tankers and barges, increasing at least four-fold the large vessel traffic in and out of the harbor.

“There should be a statewide moratorium on crude-by-rail projects,” said Kristen Boyles, an attorney with Earthjustice representing the Quinault Indian Nation. “A frantic dash to permit is immoral when we’re talking millions of gallons of combustible oil, risks of devastating crude oil spills in rivers and the ocean, harm to traditional fishing economies, and irreplaceable natural resources.”

The Board first determined that there was undisputed evidence of a third proposed crude oil terminal in Grays Harbor that must be considered in the permitting decisions. This unexamined third project, proposed by U.S. Development, would add 18 million more barrels of crude oil transit per year to Grays Harbor.
The Board also found that Ecology and Hoquiam violated the state environmental review law (SEPA) by waiting until after permitting to analyze the proposed additional rail and vessel transits. “To wait until after the SEPA threshold determination is made, and the [permit] is issued, to obtain information that identifies whether potential impacts from vessel and train increases will be significant and whether mitigation is necessary, does not comply” with the law.” Order at 28.
The Board expressed concern at the absence of information supporting the permits. “While the Co-leads may have reached the conclusion that there was not likely to be more than a moderate environmental impact from 520 additional vessel transits per year in Grays Harbor, and 973 unit trains per year to the Port of Grays Harbor, they did not share the basis for that conclusion in any of the SEPA documents.” Order at 31.
The Board also stated that the agencies could not simply rely without on other laws to mitigate risks and damages. “[T]he Board encourages the Co-leads to identify potential impacts and then analyze how existing laws will mitigate for those impacts.” Order at 36.
Although the Board did not decide other issues raised in the case, the Board went out of its way to identify “troubling questions of the adequacy of the analysis done regarding the potential for individual and cumulative impacts from oil spills, seismic events, greenhouse gas emissions, and impacts to cultural resources.” Order at 33. Of particular concern to the Quinault, the Board discussed the failure the ensure that the projects would not harm historic or cultural resources. The Board also stressed the importance of assessing the types of crude oil that would be at risk of being spilled. “[C]ertainly an impact with the potential to ‘wipe out generation(s) of a livelihood of work they [the shellfish folks or agricultural families, or tribes and local communities] have enjoyed and are skilled to do’ should be explicitly addressed.” Order at 34-35.

The Board’s decision comes as the risks of crude-by-rail oil shipments has come into public focus. In July, a crude-by-rail train exploded and leveled a portion of a small Quebec town, tragically killing almost 50 people. That horrific scene replayed last week, as a similar crude oil train derailed and exploded in Alabama, with fortunately no loss of life. The Grays Harbor projects are the first of almost ten projects slated for Washington’s coast that have been challenged; the enormous Tesoro-Savage proposal on the Columbia River is currently undergoing permitting review.

A copy of the Board’s decision is at http://earthjustice.org/documents/legal-document/pdf/crude-by-rail-final-decision.

What 10 percent can do for you

Cash, cards, insurance, and memberships. *Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News*

No Excuses: Fiscal responsibility and financial planning

By Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News

Tulalip − With the holidays coming into full swing and people struggle to make ends meet, family budget and financial planning are too often a second thought.

“In general, American families lack budgeting and financial planning,” said Dave McLean, the housing finance and budget advisor at Tulalip.

“The best thing families can do is sit down and specify their needs and wants. Bills and groceries are needs, for example. Make a financial plan and budget to cover your living costs, then the rest of your money can go towards purchasing things you want, or into savings. As a general rule you should save about 10 percent of each check,” explained McLean.

A financial plan that includes allocating money to savings sets you up for success later on in life.

“Start at 10 percent,” said McLean. “Ideally it should be more than that, but it’s specific to each budget. When you want to buy a house, the down payment is typically 5 percent of the total cost of the house. Your savings should be enough to cover that. Continue saving money and grow your nest egg. The money you put away should see you through your retirement, in addition to any retirement plan or pension you may have.

“Credit is another aspect of fiscal responsibility. Financial planning will assist you in paying off large dividends, like a car payment, and monthly bills, all of which build your credit. How much money you save plays into that as well.

“Credit cards are great at establishing credit early on, but should be used carefully. Be sure to eliminate your incurred debt as soon as possible. The best plan is to pay off your credit card each month, both building your credit score while sticking to your budget.”

Not everyone has the necessary skills to budget effectively. McLean mentions that there are numerous budgeting classes offered at community colleges, churches, and even suggests budgeting manuals that can be found at the library.

Mclean said, “Nobody has an excuse not to pay more attention to budgeting. It is an important skill that will help everyone later in life.”

Fears Confirmed: Offshore Fracking A Toxic Mess

Center for Biological Diversity analysis reveals list of toxic chemicals in offshore fracking often dumped with wastewater into ocean.

Offshore oil drilling platform ‘Gail’ operated by Venoco, Inc. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

By Jacob Chamberlain, Mint Press News

Offshore hydraulic fracturing operations off the coast of California use highly toxic chemicals that are often released directly into water along the state’s coast, the Center for Biological Diversity revealed today, calling on the state’s Coastal Commission to halt fracking for oil and gas in state waters.

In an analysis sent by letter to the Commission ahead of a meeting this week in Newport Beach, The Center for Biological diversity pulls from data disclosed by oil companies and obtained from government documents that highlights seven risky chemicals used in “hundreds of recently revealed frack jobs in state waters” that directly violate the Coastal Act.

Multiple oil platforms, according to the research, are discharging wastewater directly into the Santa Barbara Channel, according to a government document, and other areas along the California Coast.

The letter states:

In the offshore context, fracking fluid is either discharged into the ocean or transported for onshore underground injection. When disposed of at sea, these chemicals enter the marine ecosystem. The Coastal Commission acknowledges that approximately half of the platforms in the Santa Barbara Channel discharge all or a portion of their wastewater directly to the ocean. This produced wastewater contains all of the chemicals injected originally into the fracked wells, with the addition of toxins gathered from the subsurface environment. These discharges of toxic chemicals directly contravene the requirements of the Coastal Act, which charges the Coastal Commission with the “protection against the spillage of . . . hazardous substances.”

“The Coastal Commission has the right and the responsibility to step in when oil companies use dangerous chemicals to frack California’s ocean waters,” said Emily Jeffers, a Center attorney. “Our beaches, our wildlife and our entire coastal ecosystem are at risk until the state reins in this dangerous practice.”

The research shows that at least one-third of chemicals used in offshore fracking operations “are suspected ecological hazards” and are suspected of “affecting the human developmental and nervous systems.”

The chemicals include X-Cide, which is “classified as a hazardous substance by the federal agency that manages cleanup at Superfund sites.”

“Because the risk of many of the harms from fracking cannot be eliminated, a complete prohibition on fracking is the best way to protect human health and the environment,” the letter states.

A recent report by the Associated Press showed that California coastal regulators were unaware until recently that offshore fracking was even occurring.

This article originally appeared in CommonDreams.

Feds Reach Out to Natives on Climate Change at Tribal Nations Conference

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Building on the participation of tribes announced in President Barack Obama’s recent executive order laying out a plan to deal with climate change, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) announced that it too would partner with the administration.

As the White House Tribal Nations Conference wrapped up, NCAI announced measures to work directly with the federal government to address climate change effects in Indian country.

Several federal officials noted the severe impacts that climate change has had on American Indians and Alaska Natives, the NCAI said in a release. During the conference, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Obama and others spoke directly to those issues in Indian country and about how the government can work with tribal leaders to best address these challenges.

Jewell set the tone for ongoing cooperation, the NCAI said in its statement, by speaking “of the ongoing dialogues we need to have as we work together toward tribal self-determination and self-governance and promoting prosperous and resilient tribal nations.”

Obama, having named Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Karen Diver and Northwest (Alaska) Arctic Borough Mayor Reggie Joule to the new State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, reiterated his commitment to working with tribes on the issues.

“The health of tribal nations depends on the health of tribal lands. So it falls on all of us to protect the extraordinary beauty of those lands for future generations,” he said at the Tribal Nations Conference. “And already, many of your lands have felt the impacts of a changing climate, including more extreme flooding and droughts. That’s why, as part of the Climate Action Plan I announced this year, my administration is partnering with you to identify where your lands are vulnerable to climate change, how we can make them more resilient.”

Obama referred to tribes extensively in the seven-point plan, which he issued on November 1. Many tribes already have action plans in place, since they have been forced to deal early on with the ramifications of a rapidly changing environment.

The NCAI also noted tribal references from Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz, who talked about the more than 30 Alaska Native villages “facing imminent threats from rising seas levels,” as well as the ways in which climate change has hindered hydroelectric and other energy projects. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy asked tribal leaders to “help us explain why climate change must be addressed now and why it is our responsibility” to combat it for seventh generation and beyond, the NCAI said.

“It is critically important that tribal leaders are at the table because too often, Native voices are left out of federal conversations around mitigating the effects of climate change,” the NCAI said in its statement. “Indian country faces some of the most difficult challenges stemming from climate change because of the remote location of many tribal lands and, particularly in Alaska, the dependence on the land and animals for subsistence living. NCAI applauds the Administration for this effort and is hopeful that by working together, government-to-government, tribal communities will have the tools necessary to address climate change.”