January 29, 2021 Seminole Tribune
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Durante Blais-Billie PECS students raise Seminoles step up to named to museum post money for S. Sudan help Haskell v COMMUNITY v 8A EDUCATION 1B SPORTS v 5B www.seminoletribune.org Free Volume XLV • Number 1 January 29, 2021 Hard Rock Tribe’s vaccine distribution in full swing Tejon moves BY DAMON SCOTT closer to Staff Reporter breaking HOLLYWOOD — The Seminole Tribe started its Covid-19 vaccine program in late December and has since administered ground the shot to hundreds of tribal members and BY DAMON SCOTT key personnel. Staff Reporter Some of the first to receive the vaccine were tribal leaders and public safety and A partnership between Hard Rock health care workers. Seminole Fire Rescue International and the Tejon Tribe to develop staff, which has been administering the a hotel and casino recently took a significant shots, then began to vaccinate health clinic step forward. patients, disabled elders and those with The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) diabetes. signed off on the proposed project Jan. 8 – Vaccine availability has since been one of the last hurdles to clear before the Hard opened up to any tribal member 18 years Rock Hotel & Casino Tejon could eventually and older. After tribal members who wish move toward a construction timeline. to receive the vaccine have been given an The $600 million project is to be built on opportunity, including non-tribal spouses a site in Mettler, California – 14 miles south that live with tribal members, tribal of Bakersfield and 90 miles north of Los employees will be in line for the shot. Angeles. California Gov. Gavin Newsom Dr. Vandhana Kiswani-Barley, the must now approve the BIA decision. If he interim executive director of Health and does, the Department of Interior can take the Human Services for the tribe, has been land into trust. overseeing vaccine distribution with the “From the start of our relationship with head of public safety, William Latchford. the United States government in 1851 our In late January, she reported that the Tribe has fought for a homeland for our tribe continued to receive doses of the people,” Octavio Escobedo III, chairman of vaccine through the Indian Health Service, the Tejon Indian Tribe, said in a statement and was set to begin booster shots for some. The tribe is using the Moderna vaccine – a after the BIA approval. “Today we are … Damon Scott closer to that dream.” two shot series. The second, or booster shot, is given 28 days after the first. When both Big Cypress Councilman David Cypress shows his approval as he receives a Covid-19 vaccine shot from Stephen Zitnick of Seminole Fire Rescue at tribal Escobedo said the project would enable headquarters in Hollywood on Dec. 28. the tribe to “move closer to the promise shots are given its effectiveness is 94.5%. of self-determination through economic development.” The BIA has agreed, saying Virus threat been disproportionately affected by the to get the vaccine to motivate others in the Howard said. “I wanted to pave the road for it would allow the tribe to be self-sufficient pandemic, with generally higher infection community. them as a leader.” and maintain a stable source of revenue to The tribe has been moving with and death rates per capita than the rest of the “I wanted to set an example for other provide for governmental programs. urgency, as the virus worldwide continues population. tribal members who aren’t sure what the shot to be a perilous one. Native Americans have Elected tribal leaders said they wanted is going to do,” Brighton Councilman Larry F See VACCINE on page 9A F See GAMING on page 6A Tribe gains control of BC Haaland has vital role wetlands, saving millions in Biden’s BY BEVERLY BIDNEY President Donald Trump signed the the project 20 years ago when he worked clear the project wasn’t working and the Staff Reporter Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, for the South Florida Water Management tribe began seeking deauthorization. The after it passed Congress. District as a liaison between the district and community perceived the project as the tribe climate BIG CYPRESS — Starting in the “The design of the project proved to be the tribe. The Corps was responsible for the shouldering the responsibility to clean up 1990s, the U.S. government aimed to fatally flawed and the tribe never realized any engineering of the project. water from other users. change restore the water system on the Big Cypress of the intended benefits while contributing “My job was to look at the viability “They are right,” Cunniff said. “The Reservation with a project that was supposed millions of dollars for its construction of the project,” Myers said. “It was poorly water coming in is problematic and the tribe to rehydrate wetlands, improve water quality and maintenance,” said Kevin Cunniff, designed and not well thought out.” has spent a lot of money to clean it. This has and enhance water storage capacity. Instead, Environmental Resource Management Despite Myers’ reservations, the project been a source of contention for the last 20 efforts the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation Department (ERMD) director. was approved and went forward. It was years. It’s why the tribe continued to pursue Water Conservation Project never worked as The tribe and Corps split the cost of supposed to hold water, but it never did. The deauthorization.” BY DAMON SCOTT intended and became a costly albatross for the project, which stretched into the tens of pumps were located near the outflow canal, With deauthorization, the money being Staff Reporter the Seminole Tribe. millions. It was supposed to include four so water in the basins went directly into the spent annually has been stopped in its tracks. “The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers large basins to hold water and provide better canal without any treatment. “The real success story is we got rid of the Rep. Deb Haaland, the New Mexico authorized the water system in 1996 [and] quality of water treatment before sending it ERMD regularly analyzes water samples wasteful project and stopped the bleeding,” Democrat from Laguna Pueblo, is expected built it in the 2000s in a phased approach,” out of the reservation through BC’s canal to measure concentration of pollutants in Myers said. “It was hemorrhaging.” to play a high profile role in the new said Paul Backhouse, the Seminole Tribe’s system. Only three of the basins, also the water, including phosphorus and other “The tribe will save about half a million administration’s battle against climate Heritage and Environment Resources Office known as yellow gate facilities, were built nutrients. dollars a year on maintenance costs and is no change. (HERO) senior director and Tribal Historic on several thousands of acres of land on the “Our system is about knowing what longer answerable to the [Corps] about water Soon after then-President elect Joe Preservation Officer. “It’s rubbish, it doesn’t reservation. comes in and how it leaves the reservation,” going through BC,” Backhouse added. “The Biden named Haaland as his pick to run work. We finally got them to deauthorize it “The greater time you have water on Cunniff said. “Water coming in is already project was an abject failure, it never held the Department of Interior, he also placed which means the tribe can use the land to do land, the better it is,” Cunniff said. “Holding high in phosphorus and nitrogen. We tried to water. The work of getting it deauthorized the 60-year-old on a newly formed climate with what they want.” water within natural lands was to be an keep them in the natural areas identified as is very important. It will save significant change team. The water conservation plan, also effective way to prevent excess nutrients being the project footprint.” money.” The team includes Gina McCarthy, known as the Critical Project, was officially from going downstream.” The first two basins were constructed former President Obama’s Environmental deauthorized Dec. 27, 2020, when former HERO senior scientist and liaison Stacy in 2008 and 2013. After the third yellow F See DEAUTHORIZATION on page 2A Protection Agency administrator, and D. Myers was involved at the inception of gate facility was completed in 2017, it was Jennifer Granholm, the former governor of Michigan, among others. The team is thought to represent the largest group of climate change experts ever brought together in the White House. President Biden said the team would make clean energy jobs and environmental protections a priority in his administration. His environmental reform efforts are expected to move forward quickly. Indeed, one of his first actions after taking office Jan. 20 was to bring the U.S. back into the Paris climate accord – an international agreement designed to abate the catastrophic effects of global warming. Biden’s climate change plan is also touted as economic stimulus. It calls for 500,000 new electric vehicle charging stations, the construction of 1.5 million new energy-efficient homes and public housing units, and the creation of a “civilian climate corps” to carry out climate and conservation projects. Meanwhile, Haaland has a history of work on environmental issues. In her acceptance speech after being nominated to lead the Interior, she said she’d “move climate change priorities, tribal consultation and a green economic recovery forward.” Haaland was a co-sponsor of the Green New Courtesy image Deal legislation. An overview of the Army Corps’ basins on the Big Cypress Reservation. Basins 1, 4 and 2 were completed in 2008, 2013 and 2017; basin 3 was never built. F See HAALAND on page 3A INSIDE: Editorial......................2A Sports.............................5B Visit the Tribune’s website for news throughout Community..................3A Education....................1B the month at seminoletribune.org 2A • The Seminole Tribune • January 29, 2021 Seminole Tribe’s concerns noted in Everglades report BY DAMON SCOTT near the Brighton Reservation.