Co-management will provide the Sliammon an
opportunity for resolving resource conflicts and conservation and
management between themselves, the BC government and industries.
Co-management provides an opportunity for compatible multiple uses
of lands, waters and resources that benefits Sliammon, the general
public and the local and provincial governments.
Co-management means the parties work
together in an equal partnership to manage lands and resources and
share in the economic benefits of lands and
resources.
Sliammon
demonstrate there willingness to involve the public and third
parties in land-use planning and there are a number of current and
past partnership that have provided protection of the Sliammon
rights and interests. Examples include:
1. Okeover Round Table – Community
Stewardship Initiative (PRRD / Sliammon / government &
non-government agencies),
2.
Theodosia Adaptive Water Management Committee (MoE / Sliammon
/ BCIT),
3.
Consultation Protocol Agreement (MoF /
Sliammon),
4.
Theodosia Watershed Restoration Program (FRBC / MoE /
Sliammon)
5.
Okeover Park Expansion / Monitoring Project & Desolation
Sound Marine Park Archaeological Inventory Study (BC Parks /
Sliammon)
(Sliammon Treaty Society web).
Theodosia Watershed
The Theodosia
Watershed covers 134 square kilometers within the northwestern
segment of the definite portion of Sliammon territory. This
watershed characterizes only 2% of the total Sliammon traditional
territory (Sliammon Treaty Society web).
Traditional Occupancy and
Use
Theodosia
Watershed is highly important in terms of traditional possession and
use by the Sliammon people. Given the strength of documentary and
oral history information for this area, Sliammon will be able to
establish aboriginal title and rights to the entire Theodosia
Watershed.
Traditional Use
Studies &
Co-Management
There
are advantages for the Sliammon First Nations and the BC government
to conduct cooperative, comprehensive traditional use studies as an
approach to resource management. First, a comprehensive study
coordinated Sliammon community can help define areas where potential
conflict in resource use may occur in the future. If studies of
current and historical traditional use are considered prior to
establishing a resource development plan, along with the results of
other natural and cultural resource inventories, the Sliammon First
Nations will have an opportunity to participate more
significantly in discussions without having
to react to infringements onto their land by
non-native groups causing unwanted blockades that
hurt both sides, socially, economically and environmentally.
In turn, the Sliammon First Nation can provide non-native resource
managers with detailed maps which show areas of traditional
use, so they can be avoided, so that
costly plans are not developed only to be stopped
by the Sliammon due to a dispute of the
project.
The
results of a traditional use study can provide common ground on
which consultation, negotiation and cooperation between First
Nations, Provincial and Federal governments, and third-party
interests such as the pulp and paper industry and
loggers can be situated. Such is the case with the Sliammon,
Pacifica Papers Inc. and the BC government, in relation to the
restoration of the Theodosia River.
To
the Sliammon, wilderness areas provide an important places for
interaction between the human and non-human worlds. The complex
nature of the relation of First Nations people to the land and
resources must be placed in context in traditional use studies,
interlacing together factors of practice,
tradition, custom, and belief so that the modern
world can understand the need for the Sliammon to manage their own
land, and for the rest of us to respect their
wishes.
First Nations' organizations conducting
traditional use studies need to be explicit in describing the
ownership of the data and the process for decision-making with it in
the information sharing agreements they negotiate with the
Province.
Sliammon has also developed resources in
G.I.S. and electronic mapping. Sliammon will share this
information and these resources to support planning, monitoring and
enhancement activities.
(Sliammon Treaty Society web).
