[OR_Archaeology] Klamath Tribes to purchase 90, 000-acre Mazama Forest

[Susan White]

Article from Indian Country Today Newspaper
log onto the following for story     
http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/36747499.html
 Klamath Tribes to buy 90,000-acre Mazama Forest
By Terri C. Hansen, Today correspondent
Story Published: Dec 29, 2008
Story Updated: Dec 26, 2008 

CHILOQUIN, Ore. * It*s a new chapter in the history of the landless
Klamath Tribes in southern Oregon. They*re buying back part of their
lost reservation * and with that returns their tradition of caring for
and being nurtured by their native land. 
 The Klamath, Modoc and Yahooskin peoples who make up the Klamath
Tribes, entered into an option agreement Dec. 18 to purchase the
90,000-acre Mazama Forest in south central Oregon near their tribal home
of Chiloquin.
 The forest was part of 1.2 million acres reserved for them in an 1864
treaty, but liquidated by Congress in 1954 during the now repudiated
policies of the Termination Era. The tribe regained federal recognition
in 1968 * but not their reservation.
 "People have asked me, what will you do to get the land back? And I*ve
told them, *whatever it takes,** said Klamath tribal chairman Joe Kirk.
*And now I*m excited.* Two years ago the tribe asked the national
conservation organization Trust for Public Lands for help in buying
their land back. *They really beat the streets for us,* he said.

*The land is important to this wrongly terminated tribal nation,* said
Charles F. Sams III, director of TPL*s Tribal and Native Lands Program.
*It*s a major achievement in their long struggle back to cultural
independence and economic self-reliance.* The tribe plans to take
ownership of the land this fall.
 Not only will land provide the tribe with financial stability, *it*s a
significant part of our spiritual and cultural identity,* Kirk said.
*There are culturally sensitive areas to take care of, that hopefully
have not been lost to past activities.*
 The federal government will pay $21 million to cover part of the cost
of the land, as part of the $1 billion Klamath Basin Restoration
Agreement, which includes the agreement last summer to remove four
hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River, blamed for destroying salmon
runs in the river and in the Pacific Ocean. 
 A handful of locals in the rural communities of the Klamath Basin are
opposed to the plan. *Why should the taxpayers foot the bill to buy land
to establish a separate country for the Klamath Tribes? Isn*t this
fostering separatism, apartheid and racism?* asked a letter to the
editor signed *we in the Basin Alliance.*
 And last August the group, who calls itself the Klamath Basin
Alliance, Inc., placed a display ad in the local paper asking readers to
sign a form that would reject the land agreement. The ad, which didn*t
list any groups or people who make up the *Alliance,* argued that the
Klamath Tribes sold their reservation as *willing sellers,* and they*ll
get 92,000 acres of land bought with *taxpayer money.* 
 But the ad was deceiving. The federal government is paying about
two-thirds the cost of the yet to be appraised land. The Klamath Tribes
is responsible for the rest.
 In treaties with the United States, the Klamath peoples ceded 18
million acres of prime timber and farmland for guarantees in perpetuity
of their sovereignty, a 2.2 million acre reservation, the protection of
their natural resources, and social services that included health care,
education and housing.
 By 1953, the tribe was nearly at an economic par with mainstream
society. Tribal members didn*t receive land payments when they were
terminated; instead they were paid for the value of the ponderosa pine
on the land. The loss of land and social services for the tribe
following termination is estimated well in excess of $200 million.
 Racism and bigotry is hard for Kirk to understand. *I think we should
maintain our identities, and emphasize our commonalties,* he said. The
tribe is looking to foster good will among the tribes* non-supporters.
*The tribe is the fourth largest employer in the county. It has a
rippling effect. Say if our casino closed, folks working for the Pepsi
plant would lose their jobs.*
 The tribe has developed a forest restoration and management plan for
the Mazama Forest that will be a cornerstone for their economic
development. Improving the health of the forest is a priority. *Portions
of the land have been over-harvested, and some hasn*t been managed well
at all,* Kirk said. The tribe plans to manage the forest in an
environmentally sound manner to provide a steady supply of timber to
their tribal enterprises planned at the tribes* Giiwas Green Enterprise
Park, 25 miles from Chiloquin.
 Ms. Taylor R. David 
Klamath Tribes Public Info./News Dept. Mngr.
P.O. Box 436
Chiloquin, OR 97624
800-524-9787 or (541) 783-2219 ext. 147
email: taylor.david at klamathtribes.com
website: www.klamathtribes.org ( http://www.klamathtribes.org/ )
?iyyamni dic'ii waytas pac'it- 'Have a nice day today'
 
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