Backgrounder - Yale First Nation Final Agreement

Chief Negotiators for Canada, British Columbia and Yale First Nation have initialled a Final Agreement, an important step towards a treaty. A Final Agreement will bring certainty with respect to Yale First Nation's Aboriginal rights including title, and resources, and will provide economic benefits to the First Nation and the Fraser Canyon region.

Eligible members of Yale First Nation now have the opportunity to vote to ratify the Final Agreement. If passed, B.C., and then Canada, will begin their respective approval processes. Once it is ratified by all three parties, the next step would be signing followed by implementation of the treaty.

Final Agreement Financing
The Final Agreement provides Yale First Nation with a capital transfer of $10.7 million on the Effective Date, less any outstanding negotiation loans, and economic development funding of $2.2 million. Programs and services related to social development, education, local programs and services, physical works, and a community development officer will be supported by approximately $0.7 million in on-going annual funding including British Columbia's annual contribution of $125,000.  A combination of $0.9 million in one-time funding and approximately $0.6 million in on-going annual funding will be provided to support incremental implementation and governance activities such as lands and resource management, governance and treaty management, fisheries management, culture and heritage management, and migratory birds management. Yale First Nation will contribute to the funding of agreed-upon programs and services from its own sources of revenue.

Land
With respect to provincial laws, Yale First Nation Land, also referred to as Treaty Settlement Land, will be treated as private land. Under the treaty, Yale First Nation will own in fee simple approximately 1,966 hectares of treaty lands, made up of 217 hectares of former Indian reserves and 1,749 hectares of Crown lands. The Final Agreement will include ownership of sub-surface resources on or under Yale First Nation Land.

Approximately 21 hectares of the provincial Crown land to be transferred to the First Nation as Treaty Settlement Lands is currently designated as part of the Agricultural Land Reserve; this designation will not change.

Fishery
Under the treaty, Yale First Nation will have the right to harvest fish and aquatic plants for food, social and ceremonial (FSC) purposes. This right will be exercised within defined geographic areas as described in the Final Agreement. The Final Agreement provides for Yale First Nation treaty allocations of sockeye, pink, coho, chinook and chum salmon for FSC purposes.  The Harvest Agreement, separate from the Final Agreement, will provide for commercial fishing licences (sockeye and pink salmon) to be issued by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to Yale First Nation.  The federal and provincial governments retain authority to manage and conserve fish, aquatic plants and fish habitat, according to their respective jurisdictions.  The terms and conditions of commercial licences issued to Yale First Nation will be comparable to those for licences issued to other commercial harvesters.

Access
With some exceptions, public access to, occupation of, and trespass on Yale First Nation Lands becomes subject to the same rights, obligations and limitations as other private lands.  Yale First Nation will allow reasonable public access to Frozen Lakes Land for temporary recreational uses and temporary non-commercial purposes, including reasonable opportunities for the public to hunt and fish.

Wildlife and Plant Harvesting
Under the Final Agreement, Yale First Nation will have the right to harvest wildlife and migratory birds and to gather plants for their own use. Yale First Nation will have law-making authority to regulate their members' harvest of wildlife and migratory birds. Overall management of these activities remains the responsibility of the provincial or federal minister. Within the terms set out in the Final Agreement, Yale First Nation members do not need to have federal or provincial licences, or to pay any fees or royalties to harvest wildlife, migratory birds or plants.

Culture
The treaty ensures that Yale has the right to continue practicing its culture, including use of its language and developing laws that preserve its history and promote its feasts and ceremonies.
This includes Yale First Nation history, feasts, ceremonies, naming practices, symbols, stories, songs, and dances. It also includes the conservation, protection and design and management of heritage sites, as well as the ability to make similar laws respecting Yale First Nation artifacts owned by Yale First Nation.

Forestry
Yale First Nation will own all forest resources on Yale First Nation Land. As a treaty First Nation, the Yale Government may make laws respecting forest resources and practices on their land.

Yale First Nation
Yale First Nation has approximately 150 members. Their traditional territory and 217 hectares of reserve land is located within the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) north of Hope. Yale First Nation entered the treaty process in April 1994. In March 2006, representatives from Yale First Nation, B.C. and Canada signed an Agreement–in-Principle, laying the foundation for Final Agreement negotiations.

Treaties
Some of the issues typically discussed as part of treaty negotiations will fall within the scope of provincial responsibilities while others, such as the salmon fishery and Indian reserve lands, are the responsibility of the federal government. The treaty negotiation process in this province was developed to provide a framework for treaty negotiations among First Nations, and the governments of British Columbia and Canada. The treaty process is managed by the British Columbia Treaty Commission (BCTC), an independent, neutral body that helps facilitate negotiations among the three negotiating parties.

The BC treaty process has been in place since 1992 and is open to all First Nations in the province on a voluntary basis. It is up to First Nations to decide how they organize themselves for the purposes of treaty negotiations. At some tables there is a single First Nation represented, while at others there may be two or more.

The treaty process consists of six stages as follows:

• Stage 1 – Statement of intent to negotiate
• Stage 2 – Readiness to negotiate
• Stage 3 – Negotiation of a framework agreement
• Stage 4 – Negotiation of an Agreement in Principle
• Stage 5 – Negotiation to finalize a Final Agreement or treaty
• Stage 6 – Implementation of the treaty

In addition to improving the quality of life for Aboriginal people, treaties stimulate investment, create jobs and expand economic opportunities throughout the province.