Transcript The Upper Columbia River and the FCRPS

The Upper Columbia United Tribes
(UCUT)

Formed in 1983 to provide a common voice for
our region through the collaborative efforts of the
Upper Columbia River Tribes.

Formed to ensure a healthy future for the
traditional lands of our ancestors and for the
benefit of all people.

Proactive, collaborative and science-based
approach to promoting culture, fish, water, wildlife,
and diverse habitat.
UCUT MEMBER TRIBES
 Coeur d’Alene Tribe: “The Discovered People” or “Those Who Are Found
Here”
 Current enrolled membership: 2,188
 Reservation: (Idaho): 334,500 acres
 Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation:
 Current enrolled membership: 9,353
 Reservation (Washington): 1.4 million acres
 Kalispel Tribe of Indians: The "River/Lake Paddlers" or "Camas People"
 Current enrolled membership: 409
 Reservation (Washington): 4,700 acres Pend Oreille County and off-Reservation
land in Airway Heights
 Kootenai Tribe of Idaho: "The Kootenay who remained"
 Current enrolled membership: 145
 Reservation (Idaho): 2,200 acres
 Spokane Tribe of Indians: "Children of the Sun"
 Current enrolled membership: 2,621
 Reservation (Washington): 156,000 acres
Mission Statement
To unite Upper Columbia River Tribes for the
protection, preservation, and enhancement of
Treaty/Executive Order Rights, Sovereignty,
Culture, Fish, Water, Wildlife, Habitat and other
interests and issues of common concern in our
respective territories through a structured
process of cooperation and coordination for the
benefit of all people.
Upper Columbia Basin (U.S.)
UCUT Governance
 One Commissioner and one alternate/delegate
from each tribe, with a strategy/technical
committee.
 UCUT employs five total staff.
 Organizational structure is de-centralized, using
a regional approach for natural resource issues,
emphasizing coordination and collaboration
across a large geographic area.
 Efficiencies and effectiveness are ensured by
complementing and supplementing existing
natural resources expertise of Member Tribes.
UCUT Collaborative Projects
UCUT Fish & Wildlife Coordination Project:
 Inter-governmental contract with BPA to inform,
coordinate participation in, and facilitate consensusbased decision-making.
 Participation in forums related to the Columbia Basin
Fish and Wildlife Program.
 Communicates UCUT positions to regional decisionmakers.
 Develops collaborative relationships with regional
partners.
UCUT Collaborative Projects
UCUT / BPA Memorandum of Understanding:
 35% of the annual power production from the Columbia
River federal hydropower system comes from the Upper
Columbia River.
 Yet, the Upper Columbia eco-region only receives 13% of
the Columbia Basin funding for fish, wildlife, and habitat
mitigation.
 A primary intent of the MOU is to increase the proportion of
mitigated habitat in the U.S. portion of the Upper Columbia
River basin.
 Through the MOU, the BPA recognizes its trust responsibility
to use the management capability and regulatory authority of
the UCUT to carry out fish, wildlife, and habitat protection and
mitigation.
UCUT Collaborative Projects
UCUT Wildlife Monitoring and Evaluation Program
(UWMEP):
 Uses protocols developed from the Albeni Falls M&E
Plan in collaboration with Eastern Washington University
faculty and the expertise of the UCUT.
 Monitors habitat structure, vegetation composition and
population responses of vertebrates.
 Compares reference sites (DFC) to responses from
management actions at mitigation sites.
 Potential use as a model for Wildlife M&E for the
Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Program, using a
regional approach.
UCUT Collaborative Projects
Timber, Fish, and Wildlife Agreement and the
Forests and Fish Report Habitat Conservation Plan
and Adaptive Management Program:

Participate in research and monitoring efforts under the
consensus-based framework of the 1987 Timber, Fish, and
Wildlife Agreement and the 1999 Forests and Fish Report,
including contracts that address forest health issues in
Eastern Washington.

Emphasis on technical information and science-based
recommendations to adjust guidance of forest practices in
Washington State in order to best protect the natural and
cultural resources of the UCUT, while maintaining a viable
timber industry.

Cooperator with the Family Forest Fish Passage Program.
UCUT Collaborative Projects
Drumheller Springs Urban Natural Park:
 12 acre natural area in the City of Spokane to
which the UCUT have strong cultural and
historic ties.
 Adopted by the UCUT which provides in-kind
labor and materials to maintain, clean, and
improve park infrastructure.
 Provided for the benefit and use of all people.
UCUT Collaboration
 Coordination of the Columbia River Treaty
with other Sovereigns.
 Impacts from the Treaty are more severe to the UCUT
than any other U.S. tribes.
 Blockage of anadromous fish.
 Reliance on upper Columbia River water by
downstream users.
 Assistance with funding for Lake Roosevelt
management and other federal
appropriations.
 The UCUT are the First Affected by operations
of the FCRPS and the Last and least to be
Mitigated for those impacts.