Using Fire in Support of Traditional Foods: Mt. Huckleberry Case …€¦ · Using Fire in Support...
Transcript of Using Fire in Support of Traditional Foods: Mt. Huckleberry Case …€¦ · Using Fire in Support...
Using Fire in Support of Traditional
Foods: Mt. Huckleberry Case Study
LIBBY NELSON, SENIOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ANALYST , TREATY RIGHTS OFFICE, TULALIP TRIBES,
ROSS FENTON, FORESTER AND PROJECT MANAGER, TULALIP TRIBES, AND HOLLY ZOX, BOTANIST,
CONSULTANT
WEST SIDE FIRE WORKSHOP, DEC. 3, 2018
On this side of the stream [Skagit River] we found the whole forest burned
by late fires, ignited by persons lately encamped here. Smoke was still
arising in all directions from numerous footlogs and trees etc. Fires are very
frequent during the summer season in these Mountain forests and are often
ignited purposely by some of the Indians hunting in these Mountain regions,
to clear the woods from underbrush & make travel easier. Once ignited,
they generally burn the whole summer, and only the drenching rains of the
fall are able to check their further spread. (Custer 1866:20).
Some Background….
In 2007, Tulalip, a treaty tribe, and the US Forest Service, signed a government-to-government agreement (MOA) to serve as basis for improved communication and partnering in stewardship.
One concern voiced by tribes: mountain huckleberries, important cultural resource, seemed to be dwindling, and access to berry fields, particularly for elders was becoming increasingly difficult
Traditional foods, like huckleberry, important for health reasons and as means to sustain tribal culture and connection to ancestral mountain homelands.
Public lands like the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest play an important role in providing these foods, though areas limited.
For thousands of years, Tulalip’s ancestors used fire and other means to promote a
diversity of plants and animals, and to
maintain the open conditions that favor
huckleberries.
In contrast, the Forest Service has for
decades suppressed fire.
Decreasing logging (as an alternative form
of disturbance) and “Late Successional
Reserves” designated under the Northwest
Forest Plan has also lead to a decline in
meadow habitat.
In responding to Tulalip’s treaty/cultural needs,
MBS District Ranger suggested a remote, but
road-accessible high elevation area (5000’) in
the Skykomish watershed for huckleberries.
This area, now referred to as swədaʔx ̌ali, a
Coast Salish Lushootseed word for “Place of Mountain Huckleberries”, was formerly owned
by Weyerhaeuser and logged heavily in 1980s;
today significant portions of the area are open
shrub communities, dominated by huckleberry.
In 2011, the 1,280 acre area was formally designated, under our MOA, as the “swədaʔx̌ali
Co-Stewardship Area” -- where Tribes and USFS
work together to manage the area.
Primary goals in co-stewardship: maintain existing
huckleberry, enhance other areas for huckleberry
and other important cultural plants and medicines,
and for wildlife, and wildlife forage.
10 year (adaptive) management plan: Developed
by Tulalip, with assistance from USFS staff, and
others with expertise in huckleberry biology and
conservation.
Three years into implementation of our plan: focus so far centered on extending the productive life of
a large existing huckleberry-dominated meadow,
but threatened by dense number of emergent
conifers.
Our Approach: a mix of western science and traditional ways native people managed
huckleberry –including: pruning, manually removing competing vegetation, selective thinning, and fire.
Historical records show tribes kept huckleberry stands healthy and plentiful by setting fires;
this practice was discouraged by non-Indians who began settling on these lands in the mid to late 1800s, and fire suppression became government policy.
“This is God’s Country. Don’t set it on fire and
make it look Like Hell.” (Stevens Pass, 1925)
East side of the Cascades: Colville, Yakama and the
Gifford Pinchot National Forest have all, for several
years, been using fire to increase productivity of
huckleberry.
On the west side, archaeological and oral history
documents use of fire, but specific details about
traditional burning are less well documented and
understood.
Experimentation with prescribed burning techniques: While our 10 year plan calls for using fire to sustain and enhance treaty resources, we have learned that
burning on public lands today can get complicated.
ROSS FENTON --- TULALIP TRIBES FORESTRY PROGRAM
TULALIP FIELD PROJECT LEAD
E-MAIL: [email protected]
Fire as a tool…
Indigenous use of fire for vegetation management well documented.
East Coast >>> Great Plains >>> West Coast.
Cascade region = Natives managed mountain huckleberries.
Centuries ago, forest composition was very different.
Today, fire suppression policies have created large scale, overstocked
timber stands throughout the West.
Huckleberry enhancement:
Tulalip Forestry
Recently completed our 5th season of successfull fieldwork.
Sites: Federal lands within Stillaguamish & Skykomish watersheds.
Fieldwork is guided by a ten year Co-stewardship agreement and
Yearly Implementation Plan (YIP).
YIP is a “dynamic” document; fieldwork changes are made in direct
response to local environmental conditions.
Current project area:
Sswedafzali
Slope gradients: 8% to 65%
Primarily West facing aspect
Subalpine, true fir tree species dominant.
Tree age: 5 to 38 years; Heights: 2’ to 20’ feet
Diameter (at base) = 2” to 12” inches
“Dog hair” High density of trees per acre (TPA)
Huckleberry enhancement:
Field Techniques
Prescriptive broadcast burning not yet an option.
Mechanical means to accomplish objectives
(i.e. Chainsaws, weedeaters, chipper, hand tools)
Labor & re$ource intensive.
One challenge: Industrial Fire Precautionary Levels (IFPL)
Ambient conditions dictate power tool usage.
Removal methods:
Competing vegetation
8 to 12 workers daily (2 weeks)
Power tools most effective means
2 to 3 person teams “felling/stacking/skidding” (EarthCorps, 2017)
Low gradients: Tarps skid debris to roadside (chip & mulch)
Steep slopes: Pile material for burning
Pile dimensions: 10’ wide x 10’ tall avg.
Burning debris has proven more efficient than chipping.
Accomplishments to date:
Sswedafzali
Seasons 1 - 3
Approximately 10 acres treated
2.5 acres of removed material was chipped
and spread. (in Fall, 2016-17)
USFS fire crew burned ~2.5 acres of removed
material from 2016-17. (in October, 2018)
5 acres material was removed in Fall, 2018.
Planned to burn in Fall, 2019 (USFS fire crew)
Remaining trees per acre = ~80 to 100
(dominant trees)
Additional details:
Remote area: Food, water, shelter, first-aid, communications
Multiple safety protocols & logistical considerations. “If…Then…”
Multi-agency coordination.
U.S. Forest Service Burn Plan requirements.
[Q:] Will a USFS fire team be available?
Industrial Fire Precautionary Levels (IFPL) timing key to more acreage.
Burn phase (October, 2018)
October, 2018
October, 2018
October, 2018
The final result!
Huckleberry Management Monitoring:
Assessing EffectivenessPermanent Monitoring Plots
% cover trees, shrubs, big
huckleberry, Cascade
blueberry
Treatment notes
Huckleberry condition class
Stand condition class
Huckleberry yield
1/20 Acre
Permanent Plots Monitoring
Burn Pile
Before and after burning
Thank-you to all parties involved!
EarthCorps (2017 & 2018 season)
Tulalip Cultural & Natural Resources staff
U.S. Forest Service staff
Volunteers, consultants, interns, seasonal
employees, Tulalip Youth programs