Transcript Water - Prairie Spirit Blogs

Water
First Nations & Métis
Grade 8 – SK Curriculum
Earth & Space Science- Water Systems
By: Lori Slater
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations have a strong spiritual connection with
water. Water is considered living and must be respected.
Traditional Knowledge
• Elders give their knowledge through stories told
to the children:
• Water is sacred;
• Water is given to us by Mother Earth;
• The respect we give to Mother Earth is to not
pollute or waste the waters.
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations peoples
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have a variety of cultural
and social practices that
involve water:
Places of prayer;
Bathing;
Oral stories;
Purification ceremonies;
Medicine making.
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations Fishing;
• First Nations people
harvested the fish
resources of SK long
before European
influence and in the
forested areas of the
Province, fish were a
major contributor to
sustaining life.
First Nations & Métis
• First Nations peoples harvest:
• Lake trout, walleye, northern pike, suckers, perch,
whitefish, and Arctic grayling were some of the species
commonly utilized.
• Respect for nature, life and its offerings were strongly
emphasized at the time of these traditional practices and
still are today.
First Nations and Métis
• Traditional Fishing Practices:
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birch bark canoes
spears
snares attached to poles
fish traps
All were methods used to harvest fish from the surrounding
waters.
First Nations & Métis
• Fish were preserved by
freezing in the winter.
• Drying or Smoking in the
summer.
First Nations & Métis
• Fishing Practices:
• Gill net fishing:
• Gill nets are walls of netting which may be set at or
below the surface, on the waterway, or at any depth in
between. Gill netting is probably the oldest form of net
fishing, having been in use for thousands of years by
First Nation Peoples.
Gill Net Fishing
• True gill nets catch fish that
attempt to swim through the
net, which are caught if they
are of a size large enough to
allow the head to pass through
the meshes but not the rest of
the body.
• The fish then becomes
entangled by the gills as it
attempts to back out of the
net. The mesh size used
depends upon the species and
size range being targeted.
Northern Saskatchewan First Nations
• Northern SK communities such
as Black Lake, Hatchet Lake
and Fond du Lac First Nations:
• Fish are still a major staple in
the diet.
• Some of the traditional fishing
methods are still used along
with modern fishing equipment
and techniques.
First Nations & Métis
• Treaty Rights & Fishing:
• “The legal recognition of Aboriginal rights to fish and
hunt has a long-standing history in Canada.”
“These rights are protected in the Canadian Constitution
and are given priority in resource allocation over all other
uses. Only valid conservation concerns can be given
priority over these rights.”
First Nations & Métis Fishing Rights
• “The application of Métis Aboriginal rights to fish and
hunt for food in Saskatchewan is evolving and still
unclear.” Métis rights are not the same as the universal
rights held by First Nations Peoples under the Treaty
Rights.
The government does require a First Nations and Métis
peoples to buy a fishing license to fish a ‘stocked lake’.
First Nations & Métis
• Aquatic plants
Many of the water plants
were eaten raw in salads;
water celery, lemon grass,
duckweed and mint.
First Nations uses for Cattails
• Food: The roots may be ground into a flour. The sticky
sap between the leaves is an excellent starch and can be
used to thicken soups and broths.
• The white colored shoots at the base of the leaf clusters
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can be boiled or steamed or sliced and eaten raw in
salads.
Medicine: Pollen was placed directly on cut to control
bleeding. Also, taken internally for internal bleeding,
menstrual pain, or chest pains.
Aquatic plants First Nations uses:
• Arrowhead – tuber similar to a
potato that could be picked
and boiled and eaten as a
vegetable.
• Water Lily – leaves boiled and
used as a gargle for sore
throats or drank for treatment
of diarrhea.
Aquatic Plants
• Water Hemlock:
Toxic plant –
VERY POISONOUS ROOTS
a marble size portion of
the fleshy root is enough
to kill an animal or a
human.
• root contains cicutoxin
First Nations & Métis
• Wildlife
• Moose Hunting:
• Moose can live on pine needles and bark but prefer grasses and
aquatic plants such a lily pads and skunk cabbage. It is very
common to see Moose along the shores of rivers and lakes.
During a fishing trip to Black Lake the First Nation guide told stories
of hunting moose while fishing because they see the Moose over
and over again during the summer along the shorelines.
The moose is shot and then it is tied by the horns to the back of the
boat and hauled back to town through the water. All parts of the
moose are used: meat, fur, horns, organs etc.
Transportation
• The Saskatchewan River with its ease of access and
navigation from Lake Winnipeg became the primary
gateway to the rich fur-bearing regions beyond.
• In addition, the Saskatchewan River provided access to
other important navigable rivers in northern
Saskatchewan; i.e., the Churchill River system as well as
the Clearwater River which provided access to the Lake
Athabasca basin.
Drainage basin picture
Final drainage
Into the Hudson Bay
Forces that shape the landscape - Rivers
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South Saskatchewan River – Saskatoon Weir
Major River in Canada
1392km long
Drainage to Hudson Bay
• South Saskatchewan
kisiskāciwani-sīpiy,
Cree for Swift flowing river
Forces that shape the landscape - Rivers
• Pelican riding the Weir in Saskatoon
Forces that shape the landscape – Lakes & Creeks
• Water forces that shape
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the landscape
Lakes and Rivers cover
approx 12% of SK
• 62 Lakes in SK (official
size) if count the smaller
lakes over 100,000
• Creeks in SK
• 12 official size creeks plus
many smaller creeks
Water Quality
• Pollution of water-bodies and the effects on First Nations
Peoples.
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Waters are sacred;
Waters are a food source;
Waters are a way of life, transportation;
Drinking water on the First Nation.
First Nations & Métis
• Water Quality
• FN news release VC Whitefish re: FN that have to boil
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their water – May 28, 2010:
“There are 114 First Nation communities across Canada
under drinking water advisories. In Saskatchewan there
are boil water advisories on 12 First Nation
communities.”
Water Quality
• Pollution in SK waters:
• One example is the Pipestone Creek water pollution in
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1995 from the town of Kelvington dumping sewage into
the creek. This directly affected the First Nation of
Yellow Quill which attains some of their water from the
creek during periods in the spring when the creek flows.
The First Nation of Yellow Quill had poor water quality as
well as many forms of bacteria that could have caused
serious health risks.
Traditional Knowledge
• Water treatment plants First
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Nations
Yellow Quill FN:
1995 boil-water advisory due
to poor surface water source
Fall of 2003
A state of the art facility that
uses no chemicals, the biomembrane process uses
naturally occurring microorganisms to remove the
contaminants from the water.
The Yellow Quill First Nation bio-membrane water
treatment plant in Saskatchewan is the first of
its kind in Canada.
Sources:
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Saskatchewan First Nations Elders
www.environment.gov.sk.ca
www.wikimapia.org
www.wikipedia.org
www.fishonline.org
http://www.npss.sk.ca
www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca
www.safewater.org
Lori Slater
B.Sc. Biology, BEd. Senior Science
• Program Coordinator – Science