U & D

There have been at least three specific recent events that illustrate the complex issue of Native sovereignty in Maine: the ongoing debate over the proposed LNG facililty at Sipayik / Split Rock on the Pleasant Point reservation; the meeting between Penobscot (and other) tribal leaders with Tribal officials from Venezuela; and the participation of the Wabanakis in a national resolution to restore full sovereignty to the Maine tribes. All are grounded in – you guess it – tribal economics. At issue in each is also tribal sovereignty, specifically the degree to which a Maine tribe has control over its economy and its development.

The middle and high school teacher who looks at these issues, if only briefly, can frame some discussions that get to core issues related to contemporary sovereignty. This are the most difficult issues to include in the classroom.

I will look at each issue separately, seeking to find not answers, but information and a process for teaching.

Quoddy Bay LNG

It surprised me to find the LNG facility, specifically the Quoddy LNG project, not mentioned at the Pleasant Point – Passamaquoddy website, while other important tribal actions, such as the successful fight to have Ntolonapemk federally cleaned up and placed on the historic register, are documented here. On the other hand, the Passamaquoddy Tribe of Maine – Indian Township contains a link directly to Quoddy Bay LNG, a site developed specifically for this project with Quaddy Bay LLC, the Oklahoma company developing the project. According to this site, Pleasant Point was selected for development after an invitation by the Passamaquoddy tribe. According to a December, 2004, article in the Bangor Daily News, “a nonbinding Passamaquoddy Nation vote supported the project, 193-132.” This information is confirmed in a report by Micmac reporter Maureen Googoo. Read a critical discussion of this vote in this interview with Pleasant Point Passamaquoddy David Moses Bridges (download a podcast) and in this article from Cultural Survival.

According to Quoddy Bay LNG, the economic advantages of the facility, in one-time and yearly income to the tribe, and in job opportunities, would be significant. According to Googoo, this income would provide support for essential community programs as well as individual incomes from jobs and local contracting.

A sovereign nation would have the power to “make such a deal,” but so would a town or city – a municipality – within Maine – Harpswell, for example, defeated a similar proposal by citizen vote. The fact that there is negotiation does not necessarily confirm or arise from the fact that the Pleasant Point tribe is a sovereign state. Were it so, then there might already be an LNG terminal there.

Another point to consider is the town of Perry’s veto of the licensing, which was possible because of a 1986 land conveyance agreement. Read about that limitation of sovereignty here. The Tribal Council is pursuing the Quoddy lease anyway.

The lease deal is still up in the air. Leading the opposition is a coalition group called Save Passamaquoddy Bay, comprised of individuals and organizations from the three nations inhabiting the shores of the Bay:

(image source)

Passamaquoddys from bands on both sides of the border have joined the Alliance (unfortunately, the link shown above is not active, so we can not access their information and opinion directly). They are acting as individuals within sovereign nations, some in opposition to their own nations and tribal Councils. Which is also true for the Canadian and US citizens and groups (organizations, towns) in the Alliance. There is even a line of “Against LNF in Passamaquoddy Bay” products available from Zazzle. This line, by the way, was created by a home-business in Georgia – too bad the Alliance did not ask a Passamaquoddy artist to do the design. In 2007, Nulankeyutomonen Nikihtahkomikumon brought suit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs to reverse their approval of the project (read the court ruling reversing dismissal of the suit, which also offers a good review of the issue). Success of this suit will overturn the approval of the initial lease, the first step in the facility development process.

The Passamaquoddy nations have actively supported a revision to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (S 2822) that would repeal expansion of FERC’s control of the LNG application and approval process. Currently, the Act allows FERC to approve a project over local objection, including the objection of a sovereign Native nation. This change in the bill would increase Passamaquoddy sovereignty over this decision.

There are many points of disagreement: environmental impact of the terminal (fisheries, whaling, impact of the pipeline on wildlife and wildlife refuges), impact upon Passamaquoddy cultural heritage and sacred sites, safety of the Bay water passages (including possible terrorism), FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) licensing, the role of FERC in the decision overall, the role of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the approval of the lease, Canadian concerns about ships containing hazardous materials in already dangerous passageways, concerns about changes in quality of life, effects on the tourism economy VS. economic gains from the terminal.

What we have is a two-fold sovereignty issue: As leaders of a sovereign nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribal Council has entered into an agreement to develop a LNG facility. As members of a sovereign nation, Nulankeyutomonen Nikihtahkomikumon have formed an alliance with like-minded groups in Canada and the US, and they have filed suit under the Leasing Act to reverse federal decisions that do not respond to their concerns. As such, they are acting as members of a sovereign nation that is restricted by a paternal federal government (leases of Native lands are subject to federal approval). No matter how you look at it, this issue is example of restricted sovereignty.

In this time of election turmoil, we non-Natives can certainly understand how a large issue can divide a nation. From my point of view, the fact that the Maine Passamaquoddy are taking an active part in this decision is an important expression of sovereignty. The fact that they do not have a large role – or even a major role – in the final decision is a limitation of their sovereignty. To take a line from a Downeast editorial, “The final decision rests in Washington, D.C., and Ottawa, Canada, and there’s not a whole lot the local folks can do about it.”

Are the Passamaquoddy local folks, or a sovereign nation?

It is not my intention to take sides – but teachers who open this issue to class discussion should use the resources in this post, and MaineNewsstand, ProQuest, etc., to gather information on both sides of the question.

If you want to teach about this current issue:

• Provide a current blow-up of the Passamaquoddy Bay map
• Review the location of Passamaquoddy ancestral lands, reservation and tribal land locations – remind students that the US/Canada border is not an obstacle to tribal economy, trade, hunting, etc.
• Provide a blank timeline so that students can accurately map the events of the last 5 years
• Make a word wall or chart – Words: LNG, FERC, Passamaquoddy Bay, tankers, Coast Guard, Sipayik, reservation, descendents’ rights, homeland, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), cultural identity, Pleasant Point, Indian Township, sovereignty, economy, Leasing Act
  
• Social Studies MLR: A1, B1, B3, C2, D2
• Possible speaker: David Moses Bridges, Vera Francis
• Overview articles:
  • from Environmental News Service