The Hereditary Chief’s Council of Lax Kw’alaams have issued a statement on the lack of consultation on the use of traditional lands.
The council, which represents the nine tribes of Lax Kw’alaams, released the statement on Sept. 20 over the establishment of the Great Bear Rainforest and the proposed Oil Tanker Moratorium Act by the provincial and federal governments.
The statement declares the council’s frustration with the federal government’s delay in consulting them with regards to both of these actions, which they say will have significant impacts on the ability of the council’s members to make a living.
“As Indigenous peoples, we want to preserve the right to determine the types of activities that take place in our territories, and do not accept that the government should tell us how to preserve, protect and work within our traditional territories,” reads the statement.
The oil tanker ban was introduced by the federal government on May 12, 2017. The bill proposes to ban any tankers carrying more than 12,500 metric tons of crude or persistent oil along the North Coast to Haida Gwaii. On Sept. 27, the Oil Tankers Moratorium Act had its second reading in the House of Commons.
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