By STEPHANIE SHOR
Sealaska received 70,000 acres of the Tongass National Forest in a land transfer Friday, culminating decades of negotiations. Bud Cribley, director of the Alaska division of the Bureau of Land Management, attended the ceremony that finalized a 375,000-acre entitlement under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
“This is important from a historic standpoint of the significance of that act,” Cribley said.
Members of the Sealaska board stood behind Cribley and Sealaska President and CEO Anthony Mallott as they signed the land transfer, making the deal official.
The celebratory ceremony’s attending members included the U.S. Forest Service, Sealaska Board and representatives from the offices of Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Rep. Don Young, who both supported the inclusion of the provision in a defense bill. The bill passed Congress in December 2014 after more than 12 years of work.
Sealaska Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary Jaeleen Araujo said she drafted the first version of the bill decades ago and watched many board members come and go along what she called “a long road.” Many of Sealaska’s members involved in the process had since retired and some, like Clarence Jackson, had passed away.
Former Sealaska board chairman Albert Kookesh said he was grateful for the opportunity to witness the conclusion of so many years of work with multiple entities, including Native villages across Southeast and over 300 meetings.
He said he recalled many nights flying back and forth to various communities trying to convince people to agree to the bill. He said it was tiring and expensive, almost $10 million total, and he often wondered, “Why am I doing this?”
He said he was glad that they never gave up the fight, even with some opposition from conservation groups, who he said were given 150,000 acres of old-growth timber as a compromise.
The 150,000 acres will be deemed “non-developmental,” similar to a wilderness designation.
Kookesh referenced a story about Angoon and the stream through it that is still bountiful even with the community surrounding it.
“We’re the first conservationists,” he said. “Give us credit for that land that we own that we’re going to take care of it.”
According to Sealaska, its granted land comprises 2 percent of the total area of the Tongass National Forest. Board Chairman Joseph Nelson said they needed to maintain the idea that the entire Tongass is a Native place and that this is the culmination of 40 years of effort, but it was really only the start of their work for social justice.
“The land is who we are,” he said.
About 490 acres of land are considered culturally significant and are considered historical sites or burial grounds. The Native corporation estimates there are 76 sacred sites in the area.
More than 68,000 acres of the transferred land will be available for logging and Sealaska hopes that it will provide other economic opportunities for Southeast Alaska and the corporation’s more than 22,000 shareholders.
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