30-day Delay of Sentence

I received a 30-day delay of sentence today on a misdemeanor trespass charge involving a May encampment of the Kennecott Eagle Mineral Company’s porthole next to Eagle Rock which is on Ceded Territories.

Pryor’s case would likely serve as a precedent and I therefore didn’t expect I would have a fair trial.

I decided to accept the plea agreement I offered to the prosecutor after seeing the outcome of Cynthia Pryor’s case, held earlier this year.

In Pryor’s case, the judge did not allow the Lease into the court room, which involved the not yet decided EPA’s decision, on issuing a permit and the Lease states Kennecott must have all permits before the lease is valid.

When I abide by all terms of the 30-day delay, the prosecution has agreed to dismiss the charge.

Defense attorney Karrie Wichtman of the Lansing firm of Rosette and Associates said “The no contest plea allowed Charlotte to admit no wrongdoing” because she did nothing wrong.

Wichtman said, “The tribe is one of the only entities that could effect change in this situation.”

Me and Chris Chosa, were among six people at Eagle Rock on May 27. Four protesters left the site when asked, while Chris and I were not willing to leave our Ceded Territories we were arrested.

Chosa and I were part of a group of people who had set up an encampment at Eagle Rock, to pray and exercise our Treaty Rights-

Hunting, (we had eight deer tags issued to us from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community)

Gathering, (we gathered medicines, food, and building materials)

and fishing rights.

The encampment – which also included non-Native Americans – are concerned about tribal access to Eagle Rock and we have no access at this time- a site considered sacred by all Native Americans in our Treaties – and Acid Mining pollution of our water,  including the Salmon Trout River and Lake Superior.

The Sacred rock outcropping is located on State land “leased” to Kennecott for the mine’s surface facilities in Michigamme Township. The State of Michigan denied Keweenaw Bay Indian Community to Lease this Sacred Site a few years ago to preserve it and keep it safe.

I plan to run for a seat on the tribal council to try to change things from within. I feel the council could be doing more to try to enforce our rights , which is located on treaty lands and they’re not,  probably because of prior commitments.

Written By: John Pepin of the Mining Journal

Revised by: Charlotte Loonsfoot

Woodland Rd. Adjustments

Woodland adjustments considered

Marquette County, townships seek alternative By JOHN PEPIN Journal Staff Writer

POSTED: September 9, 2010

MARQUETTE – With the Woodland Road project shelved over federal objections, the Marquette County Board voted unanimous support Tuesday for a new alternative.

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“It’s kind of a collaboration between the road commission, the county and the townships,” said Commissioner Deborah Pellow of Ishpeming. “It’s kind of a joint effort to move forward the Woodland Road.”

The county board is asking the Marquette County Road Commission to develop a new all-season primary county road to run north 22 miles from U.S. 41 to Marquette County Road IAA.

The Woodland Road, which was withdrawn from permit consideration in May, was to be a private road with public access, aimed primarily at providing a haul route for timber and gravel companies and the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company.

Woodland Road LLC includes the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company, A. Lindberg and Sons, the Michigan Forest Products Council and John Jilbert Companies.

The Woodland Road was also to bring other benefits including new recreational access, reduced truck traffic through Marquette, Ishpeming and Negaunee and better access for emergency transport vehicles.

Kennecott was to fund the $50-80 million cost of the Woodland Road, slated to run from U.S. 41 north to Marquette County Road AAA.

The new route proposed, a bit to the west, would still be paid for by Kennecott, but would be a public road, built to all-season standards, with a new purpose stated as providing “enhanced vehicle access to the adjoining lands in the north-central portion of Marquette County … and additional recreational and economic development opportunities in this undeveloped area of Marquette County.”

The road commission would maintain the road. The exact route would be worked out in consultation with state and federal regulatory agencies. But in general, the road would run north from U.S. 41, somewhere within a four-mile-wide corridor, two miles on either side of Marquette County Road FY.

Commissioner Paul Arsenault said the road would open up the area to development, increasing the tax base.

Commissioner Robert Struck said with road funding hard to come by, this is a good opportunity.

“The big issue is we have a private investor willing to put the money up to fund it,” Struck said.

Several local units of government have supported the idea of a north-south route to alleviate truck traffic headaches expected to increase with operation of Kennecott’s mine on the Yellow Dog Plains.

The new road would also be expected to improve safety on heavily traveled routes in the area including U.S. 41, by reducing traffic volumes.

“Safety is the No. 1 concern,” Arsenault said.

County and township officials met within the past week or so to discuss the new road. Their hope is the new focus as a public road, with alternatives to be considered within the corridor, may better chances for approval from regulatory agencies.

“Thoughts are this may move the process a little more smoothly, possibly,” said county board Chairman Gerald Corkin. “

In March, U.S. EPA officials were joined by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in a federal objection to the DNRE issuing a permit for the Woodland Road project – mainly over issues related to wetlands mitigation and insufficient alternate route analysis.

Woodland Road LLC had 90 days to address concerns before the DNRE was set to rule on the permit. The permit application was withdrawn May 7 with the issues unresolved.

“Their concern, of course, is the wetlands impact,” Pellow said. “That’s what’s going to be the battle when it comes down -it is going to be the wetlands.”

Kennecott Mine opponent Teresa Bertossi of Marquette told Corkin during public comment at Tuesday’s meeting he was “mistaken that there was broad public support” for the Woodland Road.

She asked why the road commission would consider building more roads when it can’t maintain what it currently has.

“That road would kill one of the last remaining frontiers east of the Mississippi River,” Bertossi said. “That’s the bottom line.”

John Pepin can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206. His e-mail address is jpepin@miningjournal.net.

This is not good, The wetlands are just as important on this alternative Rd (The Red Rd. is included in this plan)  as it was for the first woodland road plan.

Marquette needs new County Board Members who know what they are talking about !!!

Camp Looks Good…

Camp is well and in place, we seen a buck maybe a four or six pointer tonight. I was doing my fast this past weekend and I seen lots of those yellow birds that Kencot says are not there at least ten of them if not more. A friend from Wisconsin came to camp and stayed for a few days, his presence was enjoyed. There were signs of bear and lots of deer noises in the area.

Not much new from this end just keeping an eye on everything. We have a fire burning at home in Baraga for the elders and other people to bring their tobacco and pray, the trip out to camp is hard on vehicles and bodies. Its been hard to keep wood stocked up at home for the sacred fire but every time we put the last piece in, there is always someone there bringing us a little bit more. I guess the Sacred Fire is strong and needs to be alive.

We are the woman standing up “The Protectors of the Water”

1st Month At Camp

This month at camp has been very interesting. We had 10 people at camp for a week and our friends from Minnesota had to go home and take care of their things. One of them stayed with his dog Yucca, he is a very good watch dog and he listens to Micah very respectfully.  Art came to help us for a few weeks and he has to go do a 13 month walk in October. Michelle and Tom also joined us for a couple of weeks and they are really good fisherman, we had fish fry a few times when they were here. They also have beautiful and well-behaved children that spent a couple of days with us to and we couldn’t ask for better people to come out to camp with us.

My 17 yr. old daughter Shauna, my 16 yr. old  son Chris, my 6 yr. old son Virgil, my 1 & 1/2  yr. old son Robert have been staying at camp with me. I have only went home 4 days out of the month but get to see them often. Virgil has been staying at camp with us the most. He loves it here, the things he wants to do the most everyday is fish and split wood:) Jerry, Robert’s dad brings my children back and forth from camp as much as he can. He helps us get wood, water, and food every few days. We are going to get married in October.

I received a couple of deer tags from KBIC and we are trying to fill them so we can have some meat at camp. We gathered lots of blueberries for pancakes, blueberry leather, and for snacks. I gathered Cedar for the fire and the fast I went on. We had to get some plantain in case anyone gets stung by a bee or bit by a spider. We got Birch Bark for starting the kitchen fire, making baskets, and for feeding the Sacred Fire. Our friend Rich gathered saplings for the long house and built it last weekend, Miiqwech Rich.

Our friends Amy, Eva, Kristie, Cynthia, E (Eathen), Khalil, Bob, Dan, Katherine, Ellie, Kristina, Dustin, & their children have come out to camp helping us in someway or just visited which we all enjoyed very much, and we are so thankful for their time to come out with their busy schedules.

We brought everything from storage in Big Bay out here to clear up their space, the only thing we don’t have is the recorder and the flip camera which we could use because there are some people shooting off their guns on the road to the Yellow Dog River close by the camp and some  4 – wheeler group dropped off some old food and meat close by the camp to attract the Coyotes and other wildlife, but they don’t bother us at all they are fine with us being there. Some people even knocked down our signs by the road. We are on Private Property and we have means to protect ourselves if we need to. This is a peaceful camp with children and we are not bothering anything out here I hope we can all get along and respect each others space.

Every morning and every evening we hear a pair of Sandhill Cranes. Almost every night we hear the  Coyotes yipping in the distances. We heard a Bear breaking up a stump not to far from camp and we seen fresh Moose dung on the way to the river. We have Flying Squirrels, Chipmunks, and Red Tail Squirrels. Lots of Dragonflies and a Yellow female Humming Bird, our Yellow Dog Plains humming-bird Something came into camp last Saturday night and Yucca chased it out but took a chunk of hair we found the next morning.

Drew Nelson, the man who wrote and sang Ishkodaa(fire) for Eagle Rock came out to camp this weekend and brought many gifts and we gave him and his wife Nicole an Eagle Rock T-shirt and some other things he needs for his journey. We brought part of the Sacred Fire to Baraga so the Elders and others from KBIC can put their Saamaa(Tobacco) in the fire, we will be bringing the fire back on September 4th to join the original fire at camp.

This Sacred Fire is the last one of the four around Eagle Rock and we need to keep this burning for as long as it takes to keep our Sacred Site,  our water, and our wildlife safe from the toxins Kennecott and the State of Michigan will create by mining Metallic Sulfide under the Salmon Trout River.

There is a lot of traffic on Triple A, the MJ Van Damme were bringing in dirt from GGI rd. over by the Yellow Dog River on 510 to create 20 ft. screening berms around the inside of the fence. Kennecott hired a tree service company that are cutting the tree’s along the Triple A road and are slowing down traffic with road crews that are asking people if they are going to their camp or just for a ride. What business is it of theirs to know where people are going? After the heavy rain last weekend the road was washed out in many places and large stones were protruding. Cars were having a hard time with this and with the soft wet sand they have been spreading around on these roads. Kennecott changed their design for their water treatment facility and the DEQ approved it without any review, over site, or public comments. They are breaking their lease and laws left and right and no consequences by the State!

Please feel free to come and join us to help put a stop to Kennecotts continued destruction. WE need help out here so please take some time out of your busy schedule and spend some time with us gathering, hunting, hide tanning, fishing, cooking, cleaning, and tending the Sacred Fire.

We will never quit because this is the way we live, is off the land. Our Sacred Sites are all we have left so we need to protect our resources with the power of prayer and the Sacred Fire brings those prayers to the Creator with tobacco. We have lived off this land and the waters for many generations. We were given the animals, the plants, and the water for all of us to survive and we will not let anything destroy our resources for our generation or the generations to come.

Drew Nelson at the Peter White Library

This year our annual meeting will be quite different from past years. On August 28, 2010, we will be joining up with Drew Nelson, a singer/songwriter from Michigan who is touring internationally and nationally, for an evening of fantastic music and fun. Our 15th annual meeting is co-sponsored by the Peter White Public Library and features a songwriting workshop for teens and adults at 3-5pm in the Community Room of the Peter White Library. Drew will assist participants in creating their own lyrical vision and offer encouragement. At 6pm, the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve staff and Board of Directors will meet to have their annual review of successes and outline of future work. YDWP members are encouraged to come and participate. There will be refreshments and a vote for new members of the Board. At 7:30pm, both Mike Waite and Drew Nelson will play for us for the rest of the evening and talk about how the people, community, and groups like ours can come together to solve larger problems. Donations are accepted at the door and the event is open to all. If you have questions, please call 906-345-9223 or email ydwp@yellowdogwatershed.org.

The Front Entrance to the New Camp

We had our signs knocked down the other day, so we had to get cameras to keep an eye on things when we are not out at the road. I don’t think too many people will miss our driveway.  We hope to see more people come out to camp and visit. It really brings our spirits up to have friends come and share laughter and conversations. Thank you very much for all the people who have come to visit and camp with us Miiqwech !!!

Mark Your Calenders

We are having a crew come out to camp on August 16th & 17th to build a temporary A-frame structure for the Elders who come out,  so they are comfortable when camping.  We would greatly appreciate anybody who would come out and help us. There will be food prepared for all the meals, feel free to bring any additional dishes.

If you have any questions please E-mail me at   loonsfoot292000@hotmail.com or contact the Save the Wild U.P office at 228-4444.

www.savethewildup.org

Pictures at camp

Thank you for the pictures of the new camp.

More on the new camp at Yellow Dog Plains

KBIC tribal member Charlotte Loonsfoot, along with family and friends, have returned to the Yellow Dog Plains to pray, gather berries, fish and camp in protest of the Kennecott Eagle Mine.

“On Sunday, after the walk to Eagle Rock we set up camp on the Yellow Dog Plains. It is a new camp to bring awareness to the world of how Sulfide Mining in the Great Lakes is going to pollute our fish, wildlife, and people,” said Charlotte Loonsfoot.

“S.T.O.P. (Stop Toxins and Other Pollutants) is the name of our group passed down from our elders at the Keweenaw Bay Indian Reservation. We are going to fish, hunt, and gather on our Ceded Territories of the Anishinaabeg people. We will be learning how to live off the land like our ancestors did before we were moved to reservations. By having this camp we are continuing our presence in opposition of the Kennecott Mine. We will not give up fighting to protect our water. Come join us to help preserve the health and safety of our future, ” says Charlotte.

On May 27, 2010, Charlotte Loonsfoot and Chris Chosa were arrested for trespassing on state land and treaty protected ceded territory. Kennecott, working with local law enforcement removed the camp structures and community garden and fenced off public access to Eagle Rock, an Anishinaabeg sacred site. Kennecott continues to strip off all trees, plants and topsoil on several acres around Eagle Rock.

Heavy trucking has impacted travelers along the AAA road attempting to access area waterfalls, fishing holes, private camps and blueberries. Kennecott security heavily monitors the area near the fence line.

Fellow campers from Minnesota intend to maintain a presence on the Plains while monitoring activity in the area. Says Rorie, “We are hoping and praying that the people responsible for making the decision to mine this sacred land turn their actions around. We encourage people from across all walks of life to come together to protect the land and water that sustains us all.”

For more information on the encampment, visit savethewildup.org or call 228-4444.

New Camp Up at the Yellow Dog Plains

Yesterday after the walk to Eagle Rock we set up a new camp on the Yellow Dog Plains. It is a new camp to bring awareness to the world of how Sulfide Mining in the Great Lakes is going to pollute our fish, wildlife, and people. We are going to fish, hunt, and gather on our Ceded Territories of the Anishinawbay people. We will be learning how to live off the land like our ancestors did before we were moved to Reservations. By having this camp we are continuing our presence in opposition of the Kennecott Mine. We will not give up fighting to protect our water. Come join us to help the preserve the health and safety of our future.