Year: 2006
Abstract:
The objective of this traditional land use study was to identify and document the traditional lands of Fort McMurray First Nation and to preserve the knowledge of Elders and ancestors for future generations. It is also hoped that it will serve as an important source for the protection and monitoring of the natural environment within the traditional lands of Fort McMurray First Nation. A traditional land use study committee consisted of four Elders, a project coordinator, interviewer, and two technical assistants. Fish Creek Consulting was commissioned to assist in the management, conducting, and final writing of the study. Interviews were conducted with 36 Elders and land users over a period of several months. The interview questionnaire was devised by the traditional land use study committee, and included several innovations, such as questions specifically for women. Historical research and ground truthing of gravesites, cabins, and spiritual sites were also carried out. This study begins with a four-chapter overview of the history of the area, covering the earliest people, ancestral traditional land use during the fur trade era, conflicts and agreements with Europeans, and the foundation and early years of the town of Fort McMurray. Six chapters are devoted to traditional land use, including trapping; big-game hunting; fishing; bird hunting; and plant, berry, and medicinal plant collecting. The culture of Fort McMurray First Nation is discussed over four chapters and includes significant cultural sites, traditional daily life, women and traditional life, and traditional stories. The final chapter concludes the study and presents Elder and Land User biographies. Quotations from the interviews are used throughout and many of the subsections on particular animals were written by Elders and land users. The study found that members of Fort McMurray First Nation were able to maintain many aspects of their traditional livelihood up to the 1960s and 1970s, when oil sands development began in earnest in the area. Increased development since that time has dramatically disrupted wildlife habitat and greatly impacted on the ability of members of Fort McMurray First Nation to practice constitutionally-protected traditional land use.
