COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: The next witness that has signed up is Sam Towarak.
(Pause.)
For those who may not know Mr. Towarak, he's a Commission member, as well.
COMMISSIONER TOWARAK: Thank you, Mr. Thompson. I was on the phone with -- I would like to introduce with me Roy Oden, who's the President of the Native Village of Koyuk; and we had had some conversations together regarding subsistence; and I thought I'd -- since I didn't see him, and maybe was worried that he wasn't here; and I drug him out of the subsistence hearing upstairs; and that'll be the discussion I want to share with you today.
Roy and I had a long discussion over the phone; and he spoke to me as a Commission member; and we thought we'd relate the issue that we're bringing today at the economic hearing; and then possibly the one this afternoon at the governance.
The issue is one of guiding, trapping, big game hunting, in heavy subsistence areas. It would possibly exclude brown bear hunting; but it would mainly deal with trapping -- the issue of trapping, as well as the issue of hunting for caribou, and moose, etcetera. Many of the northwest rural regions have plans in place. Examples of those are the Northwest Area Plan, the Coast Zone Management Plan, and some of the permit processes like the BLM. Guide hunting directly conflicts with some of these subsistence and land-use policies of the area; and we need to put some teeth into these particular plans. Solutions are needed to avoid conflicts with these guides, many of whom are genuine in crying to develop a way of life.
What the state needs to do is consciously honor all land use plans. There needs to be some enforcement; and it needs to be visible and not uncomfortable to the residents of the area. I would predict to you that this issue will be escalating. It'll not only be escalating with regard to the land-use policies of all the Native corporations, but it'll be escalating with regard to the federal plans. Also, maybe there is some subject to abuse by big game guides. I can ask maybe Roy if he wanted to elaborate a little bit more into some of the background behind this particular issue. Roy?
MR. ODEN: Yeah, we've -- it seems like we've been fighting tooth and nail with the state governments on some of the policies what they had set forth. Like, for example, Northwest Area Plan, and our Bering Straits Coastal Resource Plan. They put in all these good words on regulating subsistence, management of lands; but then they can go ahead and break their own rules and regulations concerning subsistence, and big game guiding, and trapping -- subsistence trapping. And that is of great concern to our village, and we've -- I've got into contact with Sam on this issue. And it's -- who knows what'll happen; but my prediction is whatever happens will set a precedent down into the future on every -- on this issue.
(Pause.)
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: Questions of Mr. Oden? Comments?
MR. SHIVELY: Do you have a specific example?
MR. ODEN: Yeah. Back home, we're -- well, we're going to have a hearing with a hearing officer, and it concerns a big-- game guide that's applied for a subsistence trapping cabin. And he went to the local levels of the state government; and because of the policies that are in place, the -- he was denied. But then he went to other governmental agencies, or the Commissioners, or Governor Hickel, and they o -- they took action for another government body, and gave him the right to do this, citing technicalities that they -- well, for subsistence, they made a technicality -- on that land-use plan, they made a technicality on that; and they gave him access or permission.
And that's what we're trying to fight.
MR. SHIVELY: And he lives in Anchorage or someplace?
MR. ODEN: No, he lives in Fairbanks.
MR. SHIVELY: Thank you.
COMMISSIONER TOWARAK: It'll be a growing problem; I think it's just one of many; and I'm beginning to see some in the northwest -- the NANA area. The Bering Straits area it's -- I think, brown game -- brown bear guiding we're able to live with; but when it -- when you start opening it up to a little abuse, it starts escalating; and I think, more and more, we'll start seeing-it either at the confrontational level, in the courts, or at the federal area.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: The -- it's just on state land, or is this. . .
MR. ODEN: It's on federal land. I could be wrong; but part -- well, he had -- originally, he was camping and trapping in a BLM land; and then the BLM in our regional non- -- I mean, our regional corporation, booted him out. And he jumped from here to there, you know, and using old cabins, and I'd know - - he wants to build a cabin where trad -- the way we've always camped and trapped is we just put in a tent, and then we have somebody with us; because, you know, if you're out alone, if you drop in water, or if you get wet, or, you know, get lost, you're with somebody. And he claims that -- well, anyway, it's on state lands (laughing).
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: We're -- just curiously, we're -- we've run into a situation where we've got regions now arguing with each other. We've got some people within our region complaining that an individual from another region is coming in and guiding; and, in this case, we believe that they're using Doyon land, so we'll be discussing this between regions; and then, obviously, with the individual. We have a little more -- we have -- we can take more direct action; becau -- obviously, we can refuse access to him; and if he is trespassing, we can ask that he be removed then. And -- but it just shows you another level that --
COMMISSIONER TOWARAK: In fact, this particular hunter might have been kicked out of Doyon (laughing) land.
(Laughter.)
I think that's probably why he showed up. Oh, I think a lot of people are serious about this effort; and we thank you for the time that you've given to us.
COMMISSIONER THOMPSON: Thank you.
MR. ODEN: Yes, thank you.
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