The Lil'wat meeting was held on Saturday, Feb 5th at the Ullus. Thanks to Lucinda Phillips and her workers, every household on reserve had received a copy of the agreements as well as the summary and pamphlet before Saturday. It seemed like not many people were going to make it out to the meeting, but in the end more than 70 community members came to learn about the agreement and have their voices heard!
Here are some of the questions (with answers) we heard that day:
Q: Is Lil’wat having a say in how the money is split?
A: Lil'wat would receive a $10 million settlement, and it will be up to the community on how it is spent.
Q: Are we going to keep the money in the community or will it go to paying band debt?
A: The money must be spent to benefit the community, in any number of broad ways such as employment, language, culture, education, social well-being, and more. Debt servicing isn't one of the agreed ways in which the money will be spent.
Q: How did Lil’wat come up with the $10,000,000 number for the community?
A: The $10 million is a negotiated amount, and is a part of the overall St'át'imc settlement. All settlement amounts are based on impacts. The main impacts of Hydro on Lil'wat territory is 2 transmission lines and the damming of Daisy Lake.
Q: Why are we not involved in the nation agreement?
A: Lil'wat IS a part of the nation agreement, and only opted out of the Participating Communities (PC) agreement that sets up a Trust and distributes the settlement monies from that trust. Lil'wat is a party to other agreements such as the certainty and relationship agreements, and would continue to work with the other St'át'imc communities.
Q: Why isn’t there revenue sharing?
A: This settlement is for impacts, and isn't based on revenue. It also creates a relationship moving forward. Revenue sharing is still on the table and would be worked on after the agreement. Keep in mind that the Bridge River System in St'át'imc territory generates about 5% of BC's electricity, so comparisons to total BCH revenue isn't accurate.
Q: What about EMF in the agreement?
A: Effects of EMF on health are NOT settled in this agreement, and could be settled separately.
Q: Are we having another meeting?
A: Yes, Lucinda Phillips is organizing a number of meetings, including elders and youth meetings.
Q: Are there any plans to bring back the depleted fish to our rivers?
A: Yes, one of the main parts of the agreement the Chiefs fought for is the Bridge River Water Use Plan, which aims to bring back salmon by changing how water is managed in the system.
Q: If this agreement is signed we should use the interest and leave the rest in the bank?
A: Investing the Lil'wat settlement is an option and will be up to the community. Investment certainly results in much higher benefits in the medium and longer term.
The presentation was followed by a brief Q&A, which was then followed by a wonderful lunch. After lunch, Tom Molloy from BC Hydro addressed the community, and fielded questions. BC Hydro representatives then left, and the floor was open for community discussion and answers from St'át'imc Hydro.
Initially the questions revolved around the settlement amount and the details of the negotiations. In the end, the focus of the community was on the culture and health of community spirit. A beautiful song was sung, which I understand was a Lil'wat longing song. It was beautiful and really helped ground everyone for the rest of the discussion. Mike Leach was on hand at the meeting and addressed questions about the agreement from the St'át'imc Chiefs perspective.
It was a very good day, thank you everyone for coming out, and for having those of us non-Lil'wat in your territory.
Jacob Beaton
