Contribution of First Nation stewardship programs in monitoring the health of the Salish Sea
Presentation Abstract
The Tsleil-Waututh are the ‘People of the Inlet’, with Burrard Inlet at the heart of the territory. Our history, identity, and rich culture are deeply connected to our lands and waters. We uphold our obligation to protect our territory. Unchecked urban and industrial development within the territory has degraded the health of our Inlet. In response, Tsleil-Waututh Nation developed a marine stewardship program based on community-identified goals. These goals include the ability to harvest healthy traditional foods from the Inlet, to practice cultural expression and ceremonies in clean waters, and to restore the health of our Inlet. Shellfish closures have been imposed in our territory for decades. TWN is increasing its focus on monitoring and enhancing shellfish stocks within the Inlet. TWN strives to return healthy shellfish as a traditional food source from traditional harvesting sites to the community. In 2013/2014, TWN has made considerable advancements in pursuit of this focus. TWN partnered with Swinomish Tribal Council to assess potential climate change impacts to the respective community’s shellfish beds and effects to the respective community’s health and well-being. TWN continued to monitor contamination in shellfish tissue samples collected from traditional harvesting sites in Burrard Inlet. Community consumption surveys are to be completed by TWN in 2014 to determine existing consumption patterns and to better assess potential exposure to environmental contaminants for community members. TWN has three previous years of shellfish monitoring data in collaboration with Environment Canada and Health Canada. TWN is working with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to monitor biotoxins in shellfish tissue (DSP and PSP). TWN will be working with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to develop a Community Harvest Plan for a Food, Social, and Ceremonial (FSC) harvest, supported by laboratory analysis of tissues and TWN stock assessments.
Session Title
Session S-10H: Salish Sea Foods: Cultural Practices, Sustainable Markets, and Environmental Stewardship
Conference Track
Social Science Plus
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
1-5-2014 5:00 PM
End Date
1-5-2014 6:30 PM
Location
Room 6C
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Tsleil-Waututh Nation; Shellfish fisheries--Research--British Columbia--Burrard Inlet
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Burrard Inlet (B.C.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Contribution of First Nation stewardship programs in monitoring the health of the Salish Sea
Room 6C
The Tsleil-Waututh are the ‘People of the Inlet’, with Burrard Inlet at the heart of the territory. Our history, identity, and rich culture are deeply connected to our lands and waters. We uphold our obligation to protect our territory. Unchecked urban and industrial development within the territory has degraded the health of our Inlet. In response, Tsleil-Waututh Nation developed a marine stewardship program based on community-identified goals. These goals include the ability to harvest healthy traditional foods from the Inlet, to practice cultural expression and ceremonies in clean waters, and to restore the health of our Inlet. Shellfish closures have been imposed in our territory for decades. TWN is increasing its focus on monitoring and enhancing shellfish stocks within the Inlet. TWN strives to return healthy shellfish as a traditional food source from traditional harvesting sites to the community. In 2013/2014, TWN has made considerable advancements in pursuit of this focus. TWN partnered with Swinomish Tribal Council to assess potential climate change impacts to the respective community’s shellfish beds and effects to the respective community’s health and well-being. TWN continued to monitor contamination in shellfish tissue samples collected from traditional harvesting sites in Burrard Inlet. Community consumption surveys are to be completed by TWN in 2014 to determine existing consumption patterns and to better assess potential exposure to environmental contaminants for community members. TWN has three previous years of shellfish monitoring data in collaboration with Environment Canada and Health Canada. TWN is working with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to monitor biotoxins in shellfish tissue (DSP and PSP). TWN will be working with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to develop a Community Harvest Plan for a Food, Social, and Ceremonial (FSC) harvest, supported by laboratory analysis of tissues and TWN stock assessments.
