1854 Treaty Authority News

1854 will be hosting a 4-part archery clinic with the Nett Lake Youth Center, starting Thursday March 1st. Participants must be at least 10 years old, and have a signed authorization/release (permission) form - you can download it here, or pick one up at the Center. Read the informational letter, and check out the program flyer below for more information.

Is your school class or civic group looking for a speaker for an upcoming public event? 1854 Treaty Authority is now booking outreach presentations!

It's that time of year...when the thermometers drop below zero, and our biologists are busily crunching numbers from all the data they've collected last year. 1854's resource management staff have been pumping out reports of all kinds, from the monitoring efforts of fish habitat in the St. Louis River Estuary, to surveys for larval sturgeon, water quality on various lakes, small mammals, big game and furbearer harvest, moose foraging, and wolves in and around Duluth. 

If it's too cold for you to put a line out, how about curling up by the fire with a good... report??

St. Louis River Estuary Bottom Trawling Survey Summary Report 2017

Larval Lake Sturgeon Survey 2017

2017 St. Louis River Wild Rice Monitoring Report

Moose Browse Project 2017

2017 Wolf Project Report

2017 Small Mammal Survey Report

2017 Big Game and Furbearer Harvest Report

Sandy Lake and Little Sandy Lake Monitoring Report 2017

The 1854 Treaty Authority Duluth-office will be closed mid-day, Wednesday January 31st for the 2018 Annual Meeting. Staff will return to open the office from 2pm through the end of the day, and we will return to normal business hours on Thursday February 1st, from 8am-4:30pm. As always, if you need something give us a call before stopping in!

The Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (“the Band”) formally submitted water quality standards (“WQS”) for final action to the US Environmental Protection Agency (“US EPA”) in April, 2017.  The US EPA approved the majority of the WQS in September; however the bacteria criteria were not approved due to inconsistencies in the time period for determining the geometric mean and statistical threshold value. 

The Band has corrected the inconsistency in the criteria and intends to resubmit them to US EPA for final action.  Under the Band’s Water Resources Ordinance and applicable federal regulations, the Band is required to give public notice of these changes and provide an opportunity for interested parties to comment on them.

See the public notice for Grand Portage Reservation’s corrected bacteria criteria.

The 1854 Treaty Authority hosts First Foods, a continuing education/public outreach winter series at our Duluth-office. The intent of this program is to educate the public on traditional and treaty reserved food staples, raising environmental awareness and encouraging the stewardship responsibilities of all who live in the Arrowhead region - a value in-line with cultural beliefs. 

To increase awareness of traditionally harvested resources, of ecological and cultural significance, we are bringing in some of our partners in education to discuss nutrition, research on diet and health, and traditional ecological knowledge, preparation and storage. Workshops on wild fruits, local fish and a food sovereignty project will provide the platform for collaborators and participants to share their knowledge.

Join us as we kick off the first of three workshops, on Tuesday March 13th, at 6pm. (Due to weather, this program was rescheduled from Tuesday February 20th.) Fond du Lac's 13 Moons program coordinator Nikki Crowe will share information on wild fruits and jams, including some ethnobotany with research on diet and diabetes and the importance of knowing how we used plants in the past. These programs are FREE, but space is limited! Register online HERE, or through the QuickLinks on the 1854 Treaty Authority website homepage.

Educators: we can sign off on CEU's to fulfill cultural integration criteria for classroom curriculum. Just ask!

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact Cultural Preservation Specialist, Marne Kaeske: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

The 1854 Treaty Authority Duluth-office will be closed Monday January 15th in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We will return to normal business hours on Tuesday January 16th, from 8am-4:30pm. Stay warm out there!

1854’s biologists are tasked with preserving the populations of culturally significant species within the 1854 Ceded Territory, which also means keeping the balance of high quality habitat for those species to thrive. The work of our invasive species staff includes monitoring and research of bakaan ingoji ga-ondaadag (non-local/invasive beings), controlling them to maintain a balance, and bring awareness to the public about their presence and capabilities.

From time to time we get questions like “I think there are invasive plants on my property. What is the best way to get rid of them?” For those individuals that are moved to be active stewards for their time on turtle island, we hear you. There ARE things you can do it your backyard - like controlling common and glossy buckthorn, right now, during the winter!

Our invasive species crew has put together some great resources on “successful buckthorn removal for beginners”, which include options for that fit your values, infestation and pocketbook. Check out the materials below, and miigwech for protecting the 1854 ceded lands for future generations.

What YOU Can Do: Buckthorn Brochure

Identifying Invasive Buckthorn & Honeysuckle, and their Native Plant Look-a-likes in NE Minnesota

Buckthorn Treatment Options

The 1854 Treaty Authority Duluth-office has closed at noon today, Wednesday December 27th, due to furnace issues. We will re-open tomorrow Thursday December 28th at 8am. We are sorry for any inconvenience it causes you! 

We will be closed Monday January 1st for the New Years Day holiday.

1854 Treaty Authority's Biboon (winter) newsletter is HOT OFF THE PRESS (...or fresh in your e-mail IN box). It features an update on notification of unattended lines while ice fishing - Band members can notify us in an online form. Don't miss our seasonal reminders - we want everyone to be safe and informed while out harvesting this season. Check out some of the public lands in the southern end of the 1854 Ceded Territory that we're working to improve habitat on, review the evergreen mitigoog (trees) of the northwoods, and get a sneak peek at our Duluth winter program series.

If you haven't already, pick up a copy of our publication The Right to Hunt and Fish Therein; Understanding Chippewa Treaty Rights in Minnesota's 1854 Ceded Territory. As always, if you have any questions don't hesitate to give us a call! 

READ IT HERE

On Saturday, 1854's Enforcement and Education staff certified three (3) new hunters in a firearm safety field day in Isabella, Minnesota. Tribal youth from both Bois Forte and Grand Portage exhibited the three rules of safe hunting:

    

This first Whitefish Netting season dates for inland lakes in the 1854 Ceded Territory has been approved and posted. Select lakes open October 13th. See the Posting.

Last week at the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society's Great Lakes Region conference, 1854's Environmental Biologist, Darren Vogt, was awarded as the Biologist of the Year! Shakopee Mdwekanton hosted tribal natural resource management folks from Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota at Mystic Lake Resort and Casino. Participants listened to updates on funding sources, participated in a USDA wildlife trapping training, competed in a shoot, networked, and attended presentations on wildlife, fisheries, education and environmental projects. Congratulations Darren, and great job to all who coordinated, learned something new and shared their knowledge.

1854 Treaty Authority's Dagwaagin (fall) newsletter features an article on the final settlement reached at the St. Louis River Interlake Duluth Tar site, and the 2017 Moose Hunt announcement. Don't miss our seasonal update and reminders - we want everyone to be safe and informed while out harvesting this season! Check out what we've been up to throughout our busy summer, and stick the last page of the newsletter on your refrigerator - it has the 1854 Ceded Territory 2017 Hunting and Trapping Season dates.

1854 hosts MANOOMIN CAMP with FDL's 13 Moons program, to take place Saturday August 26th from 9am-3pm at Leeman Lake, also known as Ricehaven.

This is an opportunity to try your hand at harvesting and finishing rice. There is no need to bring any equipment (although you can if you want), with the exception of a ricing permit or an 1854 ID (daily MN State permits are available).

Short, themed discussions throughout the day will covers topics such as management, nutrition, treaty rights, safety/regs, and ecology. **If you plan to stay all day, BYOL (Bring Your Own Lunch).

1854 will be hosting a 4-part archery program in Grand Portage, starting August 17th! Anyone is welcome to join in the fun, but participants must be at least 10 years old, and everyone must have a signed authorization/release (permission) form - you can download it here, or pick one up when you join us. Read the informational letter, and check out the program flyer below for more information.

Natural resource trustees announced an $8.2 million settlement with XIK, LLC, Honeywell International, Inc., and Domtar, Inc. to resolve a claim for natural resource damages at the St. Louis River / Interlake / Duluth Tar (SLRIDT) site. The 1854 Treaty Authority, on behalf of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, has been involved with the process with the interest of restoring natural and cultural resources in the St. Louis River estuary. Read the press release from the Department of Justice.