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Local Coordination to Preserve Culturally Sensitive Plants
Sarah RyanBig Valley Rancheria EPAWestern Region Pesticide Meeting May 2005
Pesticide Issues in Lake County:
Pesticide drift and historical pesticide residues
Lack of education about Tribal use of plants
Unknown contamination of sensitive plants
Some Findings: Elevated levels of copper,
barium, zinc in tules At Big Valley,
organochlorine pesticides, arsenic, elevated copper, lead, iron and zinc found in sediment along the eastern boundary of Rancheria
Basketweavers are altering their methods to avoid possible contact with pesticides
Actions taken: BVR received US EPA
funding - quantify pesticide routes of exposure for local Tribes
Tribes began project with CA Dept of Food and Agriculture to sample tules for fluridone herbicide used in hydrilla eradication program
Extensive comments and interaction with county on its Aquatic Plant Management Plan
Clear Lake Region Pesticide Environmental Risk Project
Community scoping meetings
Native plant list Pesticide assessments Workshops
Tule Project with CDFA Began as a response in November 2004 to
concern that Tribes raised about pesticide residue in traditional foods
Tribal/CDFA meeting in January 2005 to discuss tule consumption (how, when and where)
CDFA currently developing methodology for analyzing fluridone in tules, water and sediment, at Clear Lake in 4 different locations (chosen by the Tribes)
CDFA will conduct sampling during May 2005, (pre and post fluridone application) and share info
Do you eat tules? Please come to the Housing office at 11am this Thursday, J anuary 6th to be part of a California study on
pesticides in tules
Please come to a short EPA meeting to discuss tule
consumption with the California Department of
Food and Agriculture. They will be testing the
tules for pesticides and want to talk with Tribal
members about tules. They want to know the
following about your tule consumption:
How many tules do you eat?
What time of year do you eat them?
Do you cook or prepare them in any way?
Clear Lake Integrated Aquatic Plant Management Plan
Tribes offered information on use and consumption of lake plants/animals
Tribes made detailed comment on 2 drafts of plan, made corrections to assumptions about Tribal use of Lake
Native Plant List Compile list of plants with
collection times, uses, general gathering areas
Overlay with local pesticide use info (what, where, when)
Use information to determine the plants that need attention
Create pamphlet that educates the public about need for native plant preservation
Summary of Local Coordination Assessments will assist Tribes
with management of resources Tribal discussion of concerns
about sensitive plants Coordination with state on
pesticide sampling of traditional food
Tribal consumption information included in county pesticide risk assessment
Education of local community with native plants pamphlet
Keep vigilant and stay involved:
County’s Aquatic Plant Management Plan did not use Tribal consumption numbers
Pesticide drift incidents continue to occur Pesticide sampling rarely takes place on foods
consumed by Tribal members “How can we eat our subsistence food if our food
is contaminated?”
This is a work in progress…
