Questions And Answers Regarding The Tribal Culvert Case

What Is The Cause Of Action The Tribes Are Claiming Under The Culvert Case?

The Washington State Department of Transportation and other state agencies have built road culverts that either were improperly designed and installed or have failed to maintain adequate fish passage. Fish blocking culverts contribute to the loss of spawning and rearing habitats for the salmon resource. They have diminished and destroyed hundreds of miles of salmon habitat and fish production. This loss of fish production has contributed to the lack of necessary non-Indian and tribal treaty-reserved fishing.

The suit challenges only barrier culverts under state roads that affect salmon runs passing through the tribes’ usual and accustomed areas fishing areas, as defined in United States vs. Washington. It does not challenge other issues, such as water rights, agricultural practices or urban land-use.

Being Frank: At The Confluence Of The Centuries

The confluence of the centuries should be like the joining of two rivers. As they merge, the memories of countless moments and places
should fold one unto another, and form a deeper, broader flow of
knowledge.

As the 19th Century merged into the 20th, my father was a young man. He lived his whole life on the Nisqually River. He was born in a wooden longhouse to parents who had lived on the same river throughout their lives. The heritage of the Nisqually has been passed from generation to generation for thousands of years. As my father
grew, he learned to fish, hunt and gather everything from cedar bark to a multitude of wild fruits and vegetables. He learned the legacies of stewardship.

Being Frank: Everyone Should Celebrate The Makah Whale Hunt

Those who do not understand the Makah will question the logic of hunting an animal that means so much to them. Yet the principle is the same for all species of fish and wildlife. Non-Indians have always tried to force their way of life on the Indian. Yet we have lived here for thousands of years, in harmony with nature. Many non-Indian ways are strange to us. They permit their chiltheir children dine on meat without teaching them to be grateful to the animals that died to feed them. Even vegetarians can be hypocritical. Agricultural practices kill more of nature’s creatures through habitat destruction than fishing and hunting ever will.