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FLATHEADBEACON.COM REBUILDING A NATION
MAY 13, 2015 | 19
John Murray, Blackfeet Historic Preservation officer, talks about oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine area. GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
environmental and historic preserva- tion laws. While other oil companies have terminated their leases, Longwell has stood his ground and in 2013 filed a lawsuit so his company could begin drilling. A federal judge has yet to make a decision on the matter.
Tribal historic preservation officer John Murray said the tribe has met with Longwell on three different occasions, including last month, but Murray said Longwell remains uninterested in relinquishing his claims. Murray, who has been working on the effort to protect
the area for a number of years, said he is confident the tribe will prevail. He hopes that someday, the Blackfeet will be able to co-manage the land with the U.S. Forest Service.
“We need to protect this land not just for the Blackfeet people but for you and your offspring,” he said, adding that it is the setting for various Blackfeet cre- ation stories.
Another critical environmental proj- ect on the reservation is the finalization of the Blackfeet Water Compact. Ne- gotiated for 20 years and passed by the Montana legislature in 2009, the water rights agreement has languished in Con- gress ever since. The agreement would formalize the tribe’s water rights and unleash funding needed for critical im- provement projects on the reservation.
In April, Montana Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines introduced legislation to finalize the water compact, but sourc- es close to the tribe expect it will be an- other year before there’s a vote. Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke also came out in sup- port of moving the legislation through the Senate and House. Chairman Barnes said working with Montana’s Washing- ton, D.C. delegation would be critical to getting the compact passed.
The tribe is also working with others in Indian Country to protect bison on the Great Plains. In September 2014, the Blackfeet joined other tribes from the United States and Canada to sign the Northern Tribes Bison Treaty, which seeks to coordinate management and preservation efforts and allow the animals to roam freely across the international border. The treaty was significant as it marked the first time that these particular tribes had signed an agreement in more than 150 years. Barnes said preserving and expanding the tribe’s bison herd would have both cultural and economic benefits.
Barnes and just about anyone else on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation agree that the economy is among the biggest challenges facing the area. Unemploy- ment rates of 75 percent are not uncom- mon on the reservation. In hopes of im- proving that, earlier this year the tribe began planning a new dialysis treatment facility and nursing home that would create short-term construction jobs and long-term health care jobs. The tribe is also working with the Blood Tribe Agri- cultural Program in Alberta to possibly export hay.
But locals are not waiting for the
Alger Swingley, Blackfeet Outfitters owner and member of the Blackfeet Country Chamber of Commerce. GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON