Posted by [EMAIL PROTECTED] : [note: some addresses have been blind copied] From: David McLaren <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Message-Id: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Wed, 01 Dec 1999 22:00:16 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: NAWASH BULLETIN: MNR bans purchase of Nawash fish; Nawash nixes MOX 1 December 1999 MNR BANS PURCHASE OF NAWASH & SAUGEEN FISH The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources has banned the sale of fish caught around the Bruce Peninsula, effective November 19, 1999. In a directive to commercial fish buyers, provincial fisheries officer Kevin Barber ordered an immediate ban on all p urchases of all fish species except chub from both the Lake Huron and the Georgian Bay side of the Bruce Peninsula. Only one or two non-Native commercial fishermen ply these waters since the MNR bought out most of the commercial licences last year. Th e order, which is to be reviewed in the new year, effectively puts Native commercial fishermen out of business. The sports fishery was not affected by the MNR measure. The ban was issued without consultation or notification to either the Chippewas of Nawash or the Chippewas of Saugeen. It was issued two days after the Supreme Court of Canada released the "clarification" of its September 17th Marshall decision. In it s clarification the Court re-iterated its position that federal and provincial governments can regulate Native rights, but not without consultation or justification. Nawash has no way of knowing whether the stats collected by the MNR from fish buyers do, as the MNR claims, indicate that the TAC (total allowable catch) for the commercial fishery has been exceeded. This is because the MNR has refused to share the in formation it collects with Nawash, who has been collecting information from its own fishermen for the past few years. Nawash fishermen report their catches to the Nawash fish assessment plant. There, Nawash biotechnicians record and track what Band members are catching and where they are being caught. If catch figures for an area reach the TAC, the Band closes the ar ea to its fishermen--as it did in March 1999. MNR, however, only has the total numbers of different species as reported by the fish-buyers. The best solution would be to combine the assessment efforts of both governments, but the MNR has resisted this . It's as though the Ministry were more willing to use the health of the fishery as a bargaining chip in negotiations rather than reach agreement on comanagement with Nawash. LETTERS to the Minister of Natural Resources Hon. John Snobelen 6630 - 99 Wellesley St. W., Toronto ON, M7A 1W3 Fax: 416-314-2216 E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Or, to his persoanl assistant, Christine Barker: [EMAIL PROTECTED]) NAWASH NIXES MOX The Joint Chiefs and Councils of the Chippewas of Nawash and Chippewas of Saugeen, passed a resolution opposing the shipment of MOX fuel into the Bruce Nuclear Power Development facility near Kincardine in their traditional territories. The BCR was pa ssed October 14, 1999 and reads: Whereas the Joint Chiefs and Councils of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territories are concerned about the safety and security issues regarding the plan to ship and transport MOX fuel in our traditional territories and further; Whereas the Joint Chiefs and Councils of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territories are committed to the protection of the environment and the sustainable use of all the natural resources in our traditional territories; Be it therefore resolved that the Joint Chiefs and Councils of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territories do hereby stand opposed, by every possible means, to the shipment and transport of MOX fuel in our tradtional territories. FOR MORE ON THESE & OTHER STORIES: http://www.bmts.com/~dibaudjimoh/page4.html ------------------------------------------ David McLaren [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit Nawash on the Web: http://www.bmts.com/~dibaudjimoh ------------------------------------------
