https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-raush-indigenous-protected-area/
"In the heart of B.C.’s Cariboo region lies an old-growth rainforest valley
untouched by industrial logging or road building. Salmon and trout spawn in a
glacier-fed river bounded by wetlands. Caribou, grizzly bears and wolverines
roam among cedar and hemlock trees hundreds of years old. Settlers called the
valley Raush, an abbreviation of Rivière au Shuswap, referring to the Secwépemc
peoples whose name they struggled to pronounce.
This week, two years after local ranchers and loggers objected to clear-cutting
plans for the valley, the Simpcw First Nation declared the Raush River
watershed an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area (IPCA), signalling their
intention to protect the valley and exercise their right to control what
happens there.
“The area has had little resource development, and we intend to conserve it,”
George Lampreau, Kúkwpi7 (Chief) for Simpcw stated. “Protecting the Raush as an
IPCA allows us to continue to yecwmenúĺecw (take care of the land) as we have
for time immemorial.”
The Raush, ringed by the snow-tipped northern Columbia Mountains, is the
largest undeveloped, unprotected watershed in southern B.C. It’s part of the
province’s vanishing inland temperate rainforest that scientists warn is
nearing a state of ecological collapse following decades of industrial logging.
Speaking to
The Narwhal, Lampreau recalled being awestruck by the crystal
clear Raush River as he and others flew in a helicopter in the fall of 2021,
entering the sizeable valley from the southwest where it connects with Wells
Gray Provincial Park in an important provincial wildlife corridor.
“It is totally amazing,” he said. “It’s something to see a landscape that does
not have a cut block or road in there, other than probably some historical
trails or First Nations trails through the valley that were along the river for
access. It’s untouched and pristine and it is so beautiful.”"
Via
Future Crunch:
<
https://futurecrunch.com/good-news-women-uzbekistan-conservation-colombia-river-florida/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
