Phase 1 of plan part of an effort to define a people, increase band’s influence over land-use decisions
David Burke
dburke@whistlerquestion.com
Lil’wat Nation leaders this week took a bold step toward asserting a greater measure of influence over their people’s traditional territory, releasing phase 1 of a Lil’wat land-use plan that has been some 10 years in the making.
Chief Leonard Andrew, speaking to a gathering that included both native and non-native leaders, the media and his own people on Tuesday (Oct. 17) at Xit’olacw Community School, said the plan represents a significant step toward defining who the Lil’wat are as a people and their close relationship to the land.
Indeed, inside the front cover of the plan is a statement that concludes, “The Lil’wat have always been, and will continue to be, a people of the land.”
The plan is meant as a document that will help guide discussions about future land-use issues in the 797,000-hectare traditional territory that includes Mount Currie, Pemberton and Whistler and all the land surrounding them, Andrew said.
However, it should not be taken as a threat toward the Lil’wat’s First Nations or non-First Nations neighbours, he said.
“Weare not here to challenge anyone, but what we are saying is that this is what we feel needs to take place within our traditional territory,” he said.
Andrew said staff at the Mount Currie Band (Lil’wat Nation) have been working hard on the document for several years, largely out of a desire on the part of the nation to assert its influence over land-use decisions in the face of increasing development pressure, some of it related to the 2010 Olympics.
Non-native leaders welcomed the document as a good starting point for future discussions.
John Turner, chair of the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) board of directors, said that although he hadn’t had a chance to review it thoroughly, he planned to approach it as a document to be respected.
“I think my long-term goal is for the harmonization of all of the land-use plans in the corridor, and I welcome those discussions,” Turner said.
A government-sponsored Sea to Sky Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) has gone forward to the provincial government but has not yet received formal government assent. That’s partly because land uses are also subject to negotiation with First Nations.
The Squamish Nation, part of whose claimed traditional territory overlaps with the area claimed by the Lil’wat, has had a separate land-use plan for several years. But this is the first time the Lil’wat Nation has had a land-use roadmap of its own.
Liz Jones, Lil’wat land and resources director, said discussions involving the Lil’wat and the B.C. government — often referred to as “government-to-government” negotiations — are just in their early stages.
Band Councillor Lucinda Phillips called the release of the first phase of the land-use plan “an exciting day,” both for her personally and for the Lil’wat people.
“One of the main objectives is to assert our aboriginal title and rights in our own territory,” Phillips said.
Whistler Councillor Gordon McKeever said that on first glance, it appeared thatthe Lil’wat had kept the plan “fairly general” and that it largely respected existing uses. He noted that the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) and area surrounding it are designated as “Conditional Economic Development Area” under the plan.
“That seems like, at least, a term that’s compatible with our community,” he said.
The plan divides the land base into 13 regions divided on the basis of watersheds. Within each region are smaller polygons that place broad designations on each — Nt’ákmen (protected areas), Collaborative Management Area, Cultural Education Area, Stewardship Area, Conditional Economic Development Area and Managed Resource Area.
The “Collaborative Management Areas” include all the provincial parks inthe territory, which make up some 30 per cent of the total acreage, Jones said. Most of those were established with little or no consultation with the Lil’wat, she said.
The objective of the Lil’wat is to reach agreement with the Province to collaboratively manage those areas, she said.
One of the four areas falling under the “Nt’àkmen” designation — i.e.highest level of protection — is a polygon in the Upper Soo Valley northwest of Whistler. The area appears to be slightly larger than a 7,000-hectare area pegged as a “wildland zone” at the Sea to Sky LRMP table.
The Association of Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE) has, for the past 3 1/2 years, been promoting the area for some sort of “special management zone” status under what it calls the Upper Soo Legacy.
Whistler Councillor Eckhard Zeidler, who as a member of AWARE’s board has promoted the Upper Soo Legacy concept, said that while nothing should be taken for granted, the Lil’wat plan’s Upper Soo designation is “very gratifying.”
“I think the First Nations have been on the land (for a long time) and they know what the values there are far better than someone like me ever could,” Zeidler said. “So I’m absolutely thrilled to see that our instincts about the incredible value of the Upper Soo Valley have been reinforced by what we see in the Lil’wat land-use plan.”
Jones said those who drew up the Lil’wat plan did not consult with AWARE and probably had different reasons for making such a designation. As with any element of the plan, any decisions will be the subject of government-to-government negotiations, she said.