Page A2 — Terrace Standard, Wednesday, March 13, 1991

Natives warn resource;

‘ when B.C: joined Conk diva fe
--Hon in 1871, »

- Don Ryan

TERRACE — A native leader
has warned resource companies
from acting on last week’s B.C,
Supreme Court decision which
dismissed a native claim to a
large portion of northern B.C.
Don Ryan, from the Gitksan
and Wet’suwet’en which asked
the court to state they own and
contro] 57,000 square
kilometres from the west of the
Hazeltons to near Burns Lake,

said resource companies, in-

cluding Skeena Cellulose here in
Terrace, will face ‘direct’ ace
tion’’ if they log. or mine the
land that was under dispute,
“1m giving them advice, I’m
giving advice to all third party

interests to let this thing lie, ”
said Ryan.

“They'll face sothething else,
if they. think they can assert this
type of. bullshit decision ‘on our...

territory. They’! | ‘have

something to think about," he,

said, ~ :

The 400-page - ‘decision by
Chief Justice Allan McEachern
of the “B,C. Supreme Court
found that natives don’t have ti-
‘tle and control over land they
claim. :

He said that any such title to
land was eliminated when Great
Britain assumed sovereignty
over what was to become British
Columbia in the early 1800s and

McEachern did say native
have aboriginal rights which’ he:
defined ,.as' the chance to: hunt, :
fish and. gather. berries on unoc-

: cupied Crown. land’ until ‘that

land is needed for resource ac-
tivity,

But he did recommend that
the provincial government. in-
clude natives in any discussions

_ and decisions on how land. will
7 be logged: Or mined, - ;
* And-he said land: claims and: oo

native issues won't be solved by:

court action but should be soly-

ed by elected officials.

Although jhe Gitksan and

Suspicions aroused from timing —
of Nisga’a framework agreement

TERRACE — A native leader
says the provincial government
will. use an agreement to
negotiate the Nisga’a land claim
to gain political points now that
a B.C. Supreme Court has
dismissed the claim of the
Gitksan and Wet’suwet’en toa
large portion of northwestern
B.C.

Gitksan leader Neil Sterritt
also suspects there was no coin-
cidence ‘that the announcement
of the Nisga'a deal came just
one day before the March 8
release of the court decision,

“How did the province know
they had to be reasonable?’
said Sterritt just hours after the
supreme court decision was

Road

released,

‘It must have been a wink-
wink, nod-nod to appear
reasonable,’’ said Sterritt,

‘*| think it’s connected, I’m

not. surprised by anything

anymore,’’ he added..
Sterritt was the leader of the

' Gitksan and Wet’suwet’en

when they first filed their
supreme court action in 1984.

The March 7 announcement
by’ provincial native affairs
minister Jack Weisgerber that
his government was ready to
sign an agreement on what will
be negotiated with the Nisga’a
and how those negotiations will
take place follows several mon-
ths of preliminary talks.

to gold

may be very

TERRACE — Official figures
haven't been released yet, but a
proposed road into the precious
mineral-rich Iskut Valley area
north of Stewart is said to be
substantially — over _ Projected
casts,

Mines ministry spokesman
Tom Greene said last week he
can't release the figures or com-
ment on suggestions the road
could cost at least twice its once
estimated $20 million price tag,

“I can tell you the govern-
ment is still committed to
building that road as soon as
possible. The plan is for road
construction to start this year,”’
said Greene.

The road is seen by the pro-
vince and by mining company
backers as a cheaper way of get-
ting to, exploring and develop-
ing property in the remote area.
Access is now only by air.

Greene did say there have
been some design changes on
the road route since it was first
proposed and the first cost
estimates made in 1988,

‘I’m not an engineer but I do
know there have been some
close looks at the alignment,
Jooking at sid2 hill areas where
there are flood plains or en-
croachment areas,’’ said

Greene.

He added that provincial of-
ficials are meeting with the
engineering firm of Klohn
Leonoff, the company that did
detailed road routing last year,
to look at all aspects. he

That route study, worth
$850,000, included environmen-
tal effects of a 72km road
leading in from Bob Quinn
Lake on Hwy37, It would then
turn south to the Eskay Creek
property with another spur con-
tinuing west to the area around
Cominco's SNIP gold mine.

At the same time, Greene said
there is no word on who will
finance the road and how the
construction cost package will
be put together.

“We're waiting . for some
direction from cabinet, They
make that decision,’’ said
Greene,

One-third of the study was
financed by the provincial
government, one-third by Cor-
ona Corporation which has pro-
perty with Prime Resources at
Eskay Creek and one-third by
Cominco,

Corona Corporation
spokesman Mac Gibbs said last
week he also believes the road
cost is over projected costs but
wasn’t prepared to release

Those talks began last fall
after the province said it was
willing to join existing negotia-
tions between the Nisga’a and
the federal government.

The Nisga’a claim 5,000
square miles of land centered on
the Nass Valley.

Although the federal govern-
ment and the Nisga’a already
had an agreement on what to
negotiate, a new one was needed
when the province said it
wanted to join the talks.

Provincial participation is
considered crucial because it has

constitutional authority’ and.
jurisdiction - over land and

resources,

cost
high |

details,

He added that Corona. of-
ficials are meeting with. Klohn
Leonoff to go over. its route and
road costs.

_AWelre, interested: in. fi nding
out exactly what's, involved,
Gibbs said, * it no? . -

Cominco ‘official. Merlyn
Royea said the construction of
the road-to his company’s pro-

perty could occur after the other: ;

sections are built.

That’s because the SNIP’

mine was budgeted to operate:}:

with air and hovercraft.
transportation | costs, said
Royea,

“Those on the Eskay Creek
property have a more serious.
need (for a road) than we do,
We're already operating,’’ said
Royea. —

He added. that any Cominco.
decision to participate in the
road will rest with those costs:
opposed to the casts of servicing
the SNIP mine by air and by
hovercraft.

Mines ministry spokesman.
Greene said the provincial
cabinet will be making a deci-.
sion soon on the kind of com-
pany that will be set up to:con:
Struct, operate and maintain the
road,

Lauten Sco
Ost FO lbs

‘iton for size.
3 weeks - — only $49. *

-. Neil Sterritt

; Celfil e's plans to. og. on

i Gitkédn-claimed* land. east of
: Ryan. and, ‘Terrace. _
ther hative leaders all bur sala” * ‘The company built ¢ a bridge

such a move will occur,

An appeal to either the B.C.
Court of Appeal: or to the
Supreme’ Court of Canada
could take at least three years
but until :it-is-heard, Ryan said .
companies should 'thold back.”'

The Gitksan _and
Wet'suwet'en have been suc-
cessful in getting court: injune-
tions over the past years preven-"
ting development until their ma-
jor land claims case was heard.

’ One situation over logging on
claimed lands that never went to
court involved Skeena

|

Brenda Silsbe Author of
**Just One More Colour’”’

across the Skeena . River . two
years ago to log on the west side
ofthe river but while ‘it- built
roads and logged land on some
portions, it didn’t extend opera-
‘tions to Gitksan-claimed jand..

Ryan and other native leaders
predicted that natives will move
off their reserves on to land nd they

Claim. ... -

"This decision for me is a vic-
tory for us. You'll see the
Gitksan and Wet’suwet'en peo-
ple doing things they’ve never
done before,” Ryan said. ‘

Local childrens ‘author Brenda Slisbe will be at Misty River |
Books Friday, March 23 from 1:00 p.m, - 2:00 p.m. signing
copies of her end book “Just One More Colour".

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