TITLE: Urging that the United States Protect Areas of Cultural, Archeological, and Historical Significance to the Miccosukee People in its Efforts to Restore the Everglades
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, the United States (U.S.) Government has a legal and moral responsibility to preserve traditional cultural territories in a way that shows respect for these places that hold cultural, historical, and spiritual importance to Indian Tribes and their quality of life; and
WHEREAS, the Miccosukee people have called the Everglades home for hundreds of years and restoration of their homelands, the Everglades, is a top priority of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida; and
WHEREAS, it is a paramount endeavor that the Everglades be restored and measures are executed in a manner that protects historical and culturally sensitive resources allowing the Miccosukee people to continue practicing their traditional ways; and
WHEREAS, the approach of the U.S. in its efforts to restore the Everglades has been disjointed, resulting in decisions that harm the Miccosukee people; and
WHEREAS, the National Park Service (NPS) portion of the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act authorized and directed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to construct a 1-mile bridge costing $81 million on the Tamiami Trail, which goes through Miccosukee territory, against the objections of the Miccosukee Tribe; and
WHEREAS, the NPS seeks to construct an additional 5.5 miles of environmental skyway bridging and elevate the remainder of the 10.7 miles of the Tamiami Trail at an estimated cost of $310 million in an attempt to increase water flow into Everglades National Park; and
WHEREAS, the NPS portion of the FY12 Omnibus Appropriations Act authorized this additional 5.5 miles of environmental skyway bridging but did not provide the funding for it; and
WHEREAS, the NPS has requested $30 million in the FY2014 Budget to begin construction of a new 2.6 mile bridge on the Tamiami Trail that will cost approximately $110 million; and
WHEREAS, skyway bridging of the Tamiami Trail will negatively impact Miccosukee lands and destroy areas of significant cultural, historical, and archeological value to the Miccosukee people; and
WHEREAS, skyway bridging of the Tamiami Trail will not achieve its intended environmental purpose of conveying large volumes of water into Everglades National Park because of upstream flow constraints and water quality issues that have not been properly addressed; and
WHEREAS, there are already water delivery structures in place that would allow water to flow into Everglades National Park, including flood gates and culverts under the Tamiami Trail that would allow water to flow into the Park if properly maintained and used as intended; and
WHEREAS, culverts are effectively used throughout the Everglades to convey water and are found throughout Everglades National Park; and
WHEREAS, scientific studies have shown that properly maintained culverts and the addition of swales will effectively convey water to the Everglades National Park at a fraction of the cost of bridging; and
WHEREAS, Everglades restoration will never be accomplished if the water flowing from the north, where agricultural and urban areas are located, to the south, where Miccosukee lands and Everglades National Park are located, is not treated for extremely high levels of contamination by nitrogen, phosphorus, pesticides, and herbicides; and
WHEREAS, water entering Miccosukee lands, especially through the L-28 canal system, have phosphorus levels up to 10 times greater than that found to be protective of the Everglades ecosystem; and
WHEREAS, the water quality in many areas of the Everglades, including Miccosukee lands, does not meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved Miccosukee water quality standards or the state of Florida’s standards; and
WHEREAS, the EPA, the Department of Interior, the NPS, and the Army Corps of Engineers recognize that water from the northern reaches of the Everglades must be treated for nutrient pollution prior to being redirected into the Everglades; and
WHEREAS, the Army Corps of Engineers discharges large volumes of this contaminated water directly onto Miccosukee lands and utilizes Miccosukee lands as a de facto stormwater treatment area, i.e., repository for contaminated water; and
WHEREAS, the Army Corps of Engineers manages the water levels on Miccosukee lands and other parts of the Everglades and has not properly addressed these water levels, resulting in flooding of culturally sensitive areas and harm to wildlife and vegetation to which the Miccosukee people are connected.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the agencies of the federal government involved in Everglades restoration and the United States Congress to engage in government-to-government consultation with the Miccosukee Tribe on Everglades restoration legislation, initiatives, plans, and projects; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI expresses its strong opposition to the bridging of the Tamiami Trail by the United States, acting through the National Park Service and the Army Corps of Engineers, due to its harmful impacts on the Miccosukee people and Miccosukee lands; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the United States, including the National Park Service and the Army Corps of Engineers, to cease its bridging of the Tamiami Trail; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the United States Congress to ensure that there are no appropriations for bridging of the Tamiami Trail and that there is no further legislation enacted to facilitate bridging of the Tamiami Trail; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the United States, including the National Park Service and the Army Corps of Engineers, to clear and maintain the culverts under the Tamiami Trail and to add swales where necessary to effectively convey water to Everglades National Park; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the United States, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Interior, the National Park Service, and the Army Corps of Engineers, to treat the polluted water in the Everglades, especially the water flowing onto Miccosukee lands so that it meets the standards protective of the Everglades ecosystem; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the United States, including the Department of Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers, to engage in government-to-government consultation with the Miccosukee Tribe regarding the L-28 canal system in the Western Everglades to consider all options to address the water quality and that results in a solution that is consistent with the Miccosukee Tribe’s policies and ways of life; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NCAI calls upon the Army Corps of Engineers to better manage the water levels over which it has jurisdiction to protect the Miccosukee people’s traditional ways of life, their culturally sensitive and archeological resources, and the wildlife and vegetation; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this resolution shall be the policy of NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.