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Blueberry River First Nations Blueberry River First Nations INITIAL SCOPING AND COMMUNITY PROFILE Final Report FOR THE PROPOSED WYNDWOOD PIPELINE EXPANSION PROJECT Rachel Olson PhD, and Firelight Research Inc. with Blueberry River First Nations April 24, 2017 Final Report / April 24, 2017 Prepared and authored by: Dr. Rachel Olson and Firelight Research Inc. with Blueberry River First Nations On behalf of: Blueberry River First Nations Submitted to: Norma Pyle, Blueberry River First Nations Thanks and acknowledgements go to Blueberry River First Nations (BRFN) members, elders, knowledge holders, land users, staff, and leadership who contributed. This Report could not have been completed without their support and expert knowledge. The following project team was involved in collecting, analysing and writing this report. • Principle Investigator: Dr. Rachel Olson • Project Manager: Steve DeRoy • Researchers: Andrew Thompson, Boyd Barrett and Charlotte Moores • Mapping and GIS: Andrew Thompson Disclaimer: The information contained in this Report is based on research conducted by Firelight Research Inc., as well as published works and archival research. It reflects the understandings of the lead authors and is not intended to be a complete depiction of the dynamic and living system of use and knowledge maintained by BRFN members. It may be updated, refined, or changed as new information becomes available. All mapped information is based on interviews with BRFN knowledge holders conducted within constraints of time, budget, and scope. Base map data originate from the National Topographic System and Natural Resources Canada. The information contained herein should not be construed as to define, limit, or otherwise constrain the Aboriginal or Treaty rights of BRFN or any other First Nations or Aboriginal peoples. 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of contents ................................................................................................. 2 List of figures ....................................................................................................... 4 List of tables ........................................................................................................ 4 Acronyms and abbreviations .............................................................................. 5 1. Introduction ................................................................................................... 6 1.1 Overview ............................................................................................................ 6 1.2 Limitations ......................................................................................................... 7 2. Background ................................................................................................... 7 2.1 Blueberry River First Nations ........................................................................... 7 2.1.1 Overview ...................................................................................................... 7 2.1.2 BRFN traditional land use and economy ..................................................... 8 2.2 The history of cumulative effects on BRFN subsistence and culture ........ 10 2.2.1 The early fur trading era ............................................................................. 10 2.2.2 Treaty 8 ...................................................................................................... 10 2.2.3 Early to mid-1900s ..................................................................................... 10 2.2.4 1950s onwards .......................................................................................... 11 2.2.5 BRFN today (2017) .................................................................................... 11 3. Cumulative impacts facing BRFN today ................................................... 11 3.1 Existing cumulative impacts on BRFN territory ........................................... 11 3.1.1 Cumulative impacts today (2017) .............................................................. 11 3.2 BRFN experience with cumulative impacts .................................................. 14 3.2.1 Land disturbance ....................................................................................... 15 3.2.2 Decreased access to the land ................................................................... 17 3.2.3 Decreased connection to the land ............................................................. 18 3.3 Socio-economic impacts ............................................................................... 21 3.3.1 Education ................................................................................................... 21 3.4 Language use .................................................................................................. 22 3.5 Health and social services ............................................................................. 23 3.6 BRFN traditional use of the proposed Wyndwood Pipeline Expansion Project General Supply Area .................................................................................... 23 4. Conclusion ................................................................................................... 26 2 4.1 Summary .......................................................................................................... 26 4.2 Gaps and further research needs .................................................................. 26 4.3 Closure ............................................................................................................. 27 Citations ............................................................................................................. 28 Interview citations ............................................................................................. 31 Appendix 1 ......................................................................................................... 33 3 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: BLUEBERRY RIVER FIRST NATIONS TRADITIONAL TERRITORY .................................... 9 FIGURE 2: OIL AND GAS ACTIVITY IN BRFN TERRITORY ......................................................... 13 FIGURE 3: FORESTRY AND OTHER INDUSTRIES IN BRFN TRADITIONAL TERRITORY ................... 14 FIGURE 4: EDUCATION ACHIEVEMENT COMPARISON, 2006 TO 2011 (STATISTICS CANADA, 2013) ................................................................................................................................. 21 FIGURE 5: POST-SECONDARY QUALIFICATIONS, 1996 TO 2011 (STATISTICS CANADA, 2013) ... 22 FIGURE 6: POPULATION WITH ABORIGINAL LANGUAGE MOTHER TONGUE (STATISTICS CANADA, 2013) ........................................................................................................................ 22 FIGURE 7: BRFN TLU VALUES IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED WYNDWOOD PIPELINE EXPANSION PROJECT GENERAL SUPPLY AREA ............................................................. 25 LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1: BRFN SITE-SPECIFIC USE VALUES WITHIN THE GENERAL SUPPLY AREA ................... 24 4 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AB Alberta BC British Columbia BRFN Blueberry River First Nations CEAA Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency CIA Cumulative Impacts Assessment CV Curriculum Vitae EA Environmental assessment EAO Environmental Assessment Office FSR Forest Service Road Firelight Group Firelight Research Inc. GIS Geographic Information System GSA General Supply Area ha Hectare km Kilometre(s) kPa Kilopascal(s) M Metre n.d. No Date NEB National Energy Board PhD Doctor of Philosophy the Project The Wyndwood Pipeline Expansion Project the Proponent Westcoast Energy Inc., doing business as Spectra Energy Transmission ROW(s) Right-of-Way(s) VC(s) Valued Component(s) 5 1. INTRODUCTION Blueberry River First Nations (BRFN) are experiencing cumulative industrial impacts on their lands. This report aims to use incidental BRFN traditional knowledge, gathered for geographically distinct projects, to provide a preliminary profile to inform the scoping of an assessment of impacts of the proposed Wyndwood Pipeline Expansion Project (the Project). This report is intended to provide information for the scoping of appropriate Valued Components (VCs) for a full assessment of Project impacts, along with an initial profile of Blueberry use and values. Because of the continuously shifting current use (a result of ongoing industrial disturbance and alienation in Blueberry’s territory) and the fact that the incidental information presented in this report does not consider the extent to which lands and resources impacted by the proposed Project are no longer useable, a comprehensive study of traditional land use is required in order to determine the current status of BRFN traditional land use to inform an assessment of Project impacts on BRFN. Due to time and capacity constraints imposed by the National Energy Board process for the Project this was not feasible. BRFN members have in-depth traditional knowledge of the environment, its waters, plants and animals, and human environmental interactions. This knowledge is also informed by many decades of observing how industrial development has changed the environment in northeastern BC, and how these changes to the environment have also impacted BRFN members’ ability to practice their Treaty Rights. This long-term observation has shown BRFN that the cumulative weight of an ever-intensifying network of industrial impacts of varying sizes have devastating impacts. Forest cover and wetlands are diminishing, and traffic, noise, pollution, and overhunting
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