IN THE MATTER OF NATIONAL ENERGY BOARD Hearing Order OH-001-2014 Trans Mountain Pipeline ULC Application for the Trans Mountain Expansion Project WITNESS STATEMENT OF BERNADETTE WANDA MANUEL Introduction 1. My name is Bernadette Wanda Manuel, and I am a member of the Upper Nicola Band (“Upper Nicola”). 2. I was born and raised in Nicola Valley, at Spaxomin. I went to school here, and have spent the majority of my life here or in other parts of Syilx Territory. My father was the late Herb Manuel, from Spaxomin, and my mother was the late Dorothy Saddleman, from Coldwater. My paternal grandparents were Francis Saddleman, from Quilchena and Mary Jane Captain, from Coldwater. My maternal grandparents were Daniel Manuel from Spaxomin and Susan Bent, from Shulus. I also have relatives from Boston Bar. I have two brothers and one sister, and I am the third child of Herb and Dorothy Manuel. 3. My Dad could speak numerous interior languages including St’at’imc, Syilx, Nlaka’pamux, and Secwepemc. He also knew and understood the Chinook language, the trade language. My father was very knowledgeable with respect to our culture and teachings, and his knowledge was sought by others. I grew up with the Syilx culture and teachings, with my father being one of my primary teachers, along with my older brother, Fabian Manuel. 4. I currently work for the Upper Nicola Band as the Cultural Heritage Project Manager. Part of my job is to ensure proponents/consultants comply with Upper Nicola laws, policies and protocols with respect to our cultural heritage, archaeological sites and environmental matters. I administer and manage special cultural heritage projects and studies, conduct cultural heritage research, and Syilx Aboriginal title and rights research in Upper Nicola’s area of responsibility. I have learned about Upper Nicola/Syilx Territory, and about the history, culture and traditions of our people through being raised by, and spending a lot of time with my father and my older brother, as well as living in our community and speaking with, our elders and other cultural advisors, who have both passed on and are living today. I employ this knowledge in the course of my employment as the Cultural Heritage Project Manager at Upper Nicola. Archaeology and Cultural Heritage 5. I am aware of at least 249 recorded known archaeological sites in the Upper Nicola Landscape Unit of Merritt Timber Supply Area, which includes areas in and around the Upper Nicola Valley, Nicola Lake, Stump Lake, Minnie Lake and Chapperon Lake. These recorded sites do not account for known or unknown archaeological sites that are - 2 - inaccessible to us due to access issues with privately held lands. The recorded sites include, but are not limited to, cultural material, bone, basalt, fire-cracked rock, burial sites, habitation sites such as keekwilee (“pithouses”) and cache pits, petroforms and pictographs. 6. There are keekwilees located on the north side of Nicola Lake, at Monck Park, as well as in other parts of our territory, including near Stump Lake, Nicola Lake, Klupp Creek area, near Maggie Bay and near Douglas Lake, among other places 7. I’m also aware of many burial sites within our territory, especially in mountainous areas. These areas were the preferred way of burials for our people prior to the imposition of westernized burials. We are concerned about how the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (“Project), and other projects, will lead to erosion of these sites from construction and operations, as well as opening these areas up to others who do not respect these sites. That is why we keep the locations of these sacred sites confidential—because people come and disrespect these sites. It is very important to Upper Nicola that we be able to monitor any development, construction or operation activities in our territory so these sites are protected. 8. I am also aware of a number of recorded and unrecorded transformer stone sites in our territory, which have spiritual and cultural significance to our people, including near Stump Lake. These are known as coyote landmarks. The coyote landmarks continue to be sites where we go for ceremonial purposes and to teach our young people about our laws and sacred teachings. Again, we keep these sites confidential, given that outsiders have either removed stones or defaced them in places throughout our Territory. I am also aware of fasting sites, which our people still go to today for spiritual and cultural purposes. 9. I am also aware of village sites and campsites in various areas of our territory, including in the Local Study Area and Regional Study Area for the Project. There is a winter village site at the north side of Nicola Lake, as well as a camping site on the south side of the lake. These sites are important because they show our use and occupation of our territory in the past, but also because we continue to use these places today to camp, carry out ceremonies, and as places to teach our young people about our culture and traditions. 10. I am also aware of trail systems through the hills around Stump Lake, as this was and is an area where our people hunt deer and moose during certain seasons of the year. I am also aware of the existence of culturally modified trees in our territory, including near Stump Lake. 11. I also know that people go high up into the Mountains, including in the areas where the proposed pipeline is to be built, to go hunting. I am concerned about how this would be affected by construction and operation of the pipeline. Fisheries 12. Fisheries in our territory are very important to Upper Nicola members. I know that Upper Nicola members fish for kokanee and rainbow trout at Nicola Lake throughout the year. There are a number of creeks that flow into the lake throughout the north and east sides, - 3 - including the Nicola River, Moore Creek, and Quilchena Creek. I am aware of evidence of fishing weirs near the mouth of Nicola Lake and further down the Nicola River. Today, our people net fish and raft fish to harvest salmon and freshwater fish. 13. Upper Nicola has always cared for and managed our fisheries and continues to do so as an exercise of Syilx title and rights. For example, in order to protect and manage the harvest of s’pukli7c (burbot), in 2002, Upper Nicola implemented a slot type size limit on Nicola and Douglas lakes whereby s’pukli7c between 40-60 cm were not to be retained. This was done to reduce harvesting pressure on spawning stocks. 14. As well, between 1998-2002, in association with the Nicola Watershed Stewardship and Fisheries Authority, I know that Upper Nicola undertook surveys of our fisheries on Nicola and Douglas Lakes, in order to better understand the health of the fish stocks. More recently, we have been concerned about the population levels of salmon and kokanee in the Nicola River watershed. Since 2008, we have, along with the Okanagan Nation Alliance (“ONA”) and the Nicola Tribal Association, carried out research and monitoring of kokanee populations in order to better understand the health of these stocks. Plants 15. I, along with other Upper Nicola members, continue to gather food and medicinal plants. Some of these include Arrowleaf Balsamroot, Black Gooseberry, Black Huckleberry, Cow- parsnip, Black Huckleberry, Devil's Club, Indian Hellebore, Labrador Tea, Nodding Onion. For example, in the spring, I go onto our territory and harvest bitterroot for food purposes, along with other members of my community. I am concerned, and other Upper Nicola members have told me they are concerned, about herbicide spraying that would take place if the Project were constructed and maintained, which would have negative impacts on the traditional plants which we collect in the Project area and, particularly, the negative impacts on bitterroot. I and other Upper Nicola members are also concerned about herbicide runoff into our streams, rivers and lakes and into our groundwater, which would impact our plants and animals that we depend upon for food, cultural and medicinal purposes, and also potentially our drinking water which is drawn from wells. 16. I, along with other Upper Nicola members, am also concerned about the spread of invasive plant species that would come into the territory with construction equipment and soil disturbance during construction and operation of the Project. In particular, we have concerns about the spread of knapweed in our territory, which was brought to our lands with previous development. Upper Nicola follows SuxWtxtEm, which means sustaining the diversity of species and their habitats in perpetuity for the well-being of future generations. As part of following SuxWtxtEm, Upper Nicola has the goal of removing noxious and invasive plants from Syilx territory. As part of implementing this goal, if there is any re-seeding in our territory which must take place, as part of development, it should be done by hand rather than by air or vehicle, and re-seeding should done by Upper Nicola to ensure that our lands and our waters are protected. - 4 - Mountain Pine Beetle 17. As noted in the Traditional Use Study prepared for Upper Nicola for the Project, which will be filed as part of Upper Nicola’s evidence, Upper Nicola has concerns about the cumulative impacts of development in our territory, including impacts of mountain pine beetle, and how this relates to potential impacts posed by this Project, including impacts on water quality, geo-hazard issues, fish and fish habitat and wildlife. 18. I am aware that Upper Nicola has identified the following as some, but not all of, the impacts of the mountain pine beetle epidemic, including the loss of the traditional practice of controlled burning, which contributed to the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic itself, the inability to gather traditional foods and medicines, loss of trees that hold significance in an individual’s or family’s life, loss of pine trees for making traditional products, impacts to soil, including soil disturbance and erosion, increase in noxious weeds, reduction of water flows in the summer, impacts to animals and plants that rely on healthy forests.