TITLE: Protection of Alaska Native Traditional Resource Management Practices
WHEREAS, we, the members of the National Congress of American Indians of the United States, invoking the divine blessing of the Creator upon our efforts and purposes, in order to preserve for ourselves and our descendants the inherent sovereign rights of our Indian nations, rights secured under Indian treaties and agreements with the United States, and all other rights and benefits to which we are entitled under the laws and Constitution of the United States, to enlighten the public toward a better understanding of the Indian people, to preserve Indian cultural values, and otherwise promote the health, safety and welfare of the Indian people, do hereby establish and submit the following resolution; and
WHEREAS, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) was established in 1944 and is the oldest and largest national organization of American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments; and
WHEREAS,Alaska Native hunting and fishing practices, including the harvesting and sharing of fish, game, and other resources and the ceremonies which accompany these practices are essential to the social, cultural, spiritual, and economic wellbeing and survival of the Alaska Native people; and
WHEREAS,Alaska Natives have served as the stewards of their traditional lands and resources maintaining healthy and productive ecosystems for thousands of years, and maintain the belief that human beings are an integral part of naturally functioning ecosystems, not separate from it; and
WHEREAS,the National Park Service (NPS) Proposed Rule- Alaska; Hunting and Trapping in National Preserves (79 FR 52595) states that “activities or management actions involving predator reduction efforts with the intent or potential to alter or manipulate natural ecosystems or processes (including natural predator/prey dynamics, distributions, densities, age-class distributions, populations, genetics, or behavior of a species) are not allowed on NPS lands in Alaska. Under the proposed rule, the regional director would compile a list updated at least annually of activities prohibited by this section of the proposed rule;” and
WHEREAS,this proposed rule does not fully consider the impact it could have Alaska Native traditional resource management practices within our traditional use areas now managed by the NPS.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED,that NCAI oppose the National Park Service’s proposed rule in its current form, which could disallow traditional wildlife population management practices, and ensure that true government-to-government consultation is held directly with tribal governments whose traditional use areas are now managed by the NPS to ensure their needs are met in the management of these lands; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED,that this resolution shall be the policy of NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.
CERTIFICATION
The foregoing resolution was adopted by the General Assembly at the 2014 Annual Session of the National Congress of American Indians, held at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, October 26-31, 2014 in Atlanta, Georgia, with a quorum present.