The Blueberry River First Nations has just launched a lawsuit against the province of British Columbia, alleging its treaty rights have been violated by decades of development — a legal challenge that could affect the province’s planned Site C hydroelectric dam project, as well as the expansion of mineral, oil and gas extraction in the province’s north.
The Blueberry River band’s lawsuit argues the cumulative effect of development in its traditional territory has harmed its way of life in violation of Treaty 8, which was ratified in 1900. “There are vast dark zones in our territory where we are no longer able to practise our treaty rights,” Chief Marvin Yahey told a news conference Wednesday. He said oil and gas wells, pipelines and clearcuts had changed the land so much it would be unrecognizable to the band’s ancestors and that development continued to shrink the group’s territory at a rapid pace.
The statement of claim contends the band’s lands and its rights to hunt and fish have been eroded cumulatively over multiple decades, something other Treaty 8 bands have not argued in court before.
Construction is scheduled to start on the Site C hydroelectric dam project in June, but it’s one of the developments the band wants halted.
This is a very significant event for Treaty 8 because if Blueberry River does win the case and the Site C dam is not built, it will affect all of Treaty 8 members, especially those who were counting on jobs at the dam. It may also cause some conflict between T8 members, matters that will have to be dealt with carefully. It will be important to stay updated about this case.
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