Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan 1854 Ceded Territory Including the Bois Forte, Fond Du Lac, and Grand Portage Reservations
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Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan 1854 Ceded Territory Including the Bois Forte, Fond du Lac, and Grand Portage Reservations THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN FUNDED IN PART BY THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS TRIBAL CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION GRANT PROGRAM AND RIGHTS PROTECTION IMPLEMENTATION CLIMATE CHANGE FUNDING. FUNDING WAS MANAGED BY THE 1854 TREATY AUTHORITY. THE CONTENTS OF THIS DOCUMENT DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS AND POLICIES OF THE BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, NOR DOES MENTION OF TRADE NAMES OR COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS CONSTITUTE ENDORSEMENT OR RECOMMENDATION FOR USE. Cover Photo Credits from Left to Right Golden Sugar Maple, Suzi Duke, Wiki Commons 2016 Wild Rice, 1854 Treaty Authority Moose, Billy Idle from Stø, Norway, Wiki Commons 2016 Lester River, Aaron Roe Fulkerson, Wiki Commons 2016 Sturgeon, Aah-Yeah, Wiki Commons 2016 Recommended Citation Stults. M., Petersen, S., Bell, J., Baule, W., Nasser, E., Gibbons, E., Fougerat., M., 2016. Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan: 1854 Ceded Territory Including the Bois Forte, Fond du Lac, and Grand Portage Reservations. Duluth, MN: 1854 Ceded Territory. ii Acknowledgements This project was completed through a collaboration between the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and 1854 Treaty Authority. It represents the collaborative effort of the more than 25 people who attended in-person workshops, participated in online webinars and conference calls, and reviewed written outputs of this project. Their participation is directly responsible for the success of this plan and will continue to be central to this ongoing effort to build climate change resilience for the 1854 Ceded Territory and reservations. Thank You Core Team! A “Core Team” of tribal staff were particularly valuable in the project as they helped refine and guide the effort. They participated in every aspect of the project including bi-weekly conference calls. Without their participation this project would not have been possible. Thank you to the Core Team, listed in alphabetical order by last name: Name Organization Jamie Adams Fond du Lac Phil Defoe Fond du Lac Wayne Dupuis Fond du Lac Gabrielle Holman Bois Forte EJ Isaac Grand Portage Shannon Judd Fond du Lac Andrea Junker Fond du Lac Tyler Kaspar 1854 Treaty Authority Shannon Kesner Fond du Lac Bill Latady Bois Forte Sonny Myers 1854 Treaty Authority Seth Moore Grand Portage Nancy Schuldt Fond du Lac Linda Tibbetts-Barto Bois Forte Darren Vogt 1854 Treaty Authority Margaret Watkins Grand Portage Joy Wiecks Fond du Lac iii Table of Contents 1. Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................... 9 1.1 Collaboration ..................................................................................................................................................... 9 1.2 Climate Change Across the Region .................................................................................................................... 9 1.3 Vulnerability Assessment Results .................................................................................................................... 11 1.4 Actions to Build Resilience .............................................................................................................................. 12 1.5 Next Steps ....................................................................................................................................................... 13 2. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 14 2.1 Bands and Treaty Rights in the 1854 Ceded Territory ..................................................................................... 14 2.2 Reservations and the 1854 Ceded Territory .................................................................................................... 15 2.3 Natural and Cultural Resources within the Ceded Territory ........................................................................... 15 2.4 Climate Change and Resources ....................................................................................................................... 16 3. Climate Change ........................................................................................................................................... 18 3.1 Global Climate Change .................................................................................................................................... 18 3.2 Localized Climate Information for the 1854 Ceded Territory and Reservations ............................................. 20 4. Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Actions ....................................................................... 28 4.1 Vulnerability Assessment and Action Prioritization Process ........................................................................... 28 4.2 Key Focus Areas ............................................................................................................................................... 30 4.3 Air Quality – Focus Topic ................................................................................................................................. 31 4.3.1 Climate Threats to Air Quality ................................................................................................................. 34 4.3.2 Air Quality Vulnerability Assessment Results .......................................................................................... 34 4.3.3 Customized Adaptation Strategies for Air Quality ................................................................................... 35 4.4 Aquatic and Terrestrial Plants ......................................................................................................................... 37 4.4.1 Wild Rice (Manoomin) – Focus Species ................................................................................................... 38 4.4.2 Culturally Significant Plants – Focus Species ........................................................................................... 43 4.4.3 Berries ..................................................................................................................................................... 46 4.5 Culturally Significant Places ............................................................................................................................. 50 4.5.1 Climate Change and Culturally Significant Places ................................................................................... 51 4.5.2 Culturally Significant Places Vulnerability Assessment Results ............................................................... 52 4.5.3 Adaptation Strategies ............................................................................................................................. 53 4.6 Fisheries .......................................................................................................................................................... 54 4.6.1 Walleye (Ogaa) – Focus Species .............................................................................................................. 55 4.6.2 Lake Sturgeon – Focus Species ................................................................................................................ 59 4.6.3 Brook Trout .............................................................................................................................................. 62 4.6.4 Northern Pike .......................................................................................................................................... 64 4.6.5 Cisco ........................................................................................................................................................ 66 4.6.6 Lake Trout ................................................................................................................................................ 69 4.6.7 Lake Whitefish ......................................................................................................................................... 72 4.6.8 Black Crappie ........................................................................................................................................... 74 4.6.9 Other Fish Species (perch, bluegill, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, burbot) ................................... 76 4 4.7 Forestry ........................................................................................................................................................... 80 4.7.1 Paper birch – Focus Species ..................................................................................................................... 81 4.7.2 Sugar Maple – Focus Species ................................................................................................................... 84 4.7.3 Black Ash ................................................................................................................................................. 87 4.7.4 Northern White Cedar ............................................................................................................................. 90 4.7.5 Quaking Aspen ........................................................................................................................................