YUROK RESERVATION LANDS 1893-1992
Primitive Indian Tribes Living in California, US.
Forest reservation is one of the major natural resources in a country, and the government needs to take proper control measures to ensure the forests are maintained. Other resources include plants and rivers that provide rainfall to the community. Yurok forests history has helped readers understand how the forest came into existence today and its geographical scope of natural resources along the region. Yurok indigenous resources cover more than 400,000 acres of land, and it includes a narrow strip of territory along the coast from a little river in Wilson Creek inland along the Klamath and Trinity River.
Settlements of Yurok people were established along the river edges and above the water surface on ancient river terraces to avoid periodic flooding in the area that can affect the residents. A significant effort was house construction, and each house had a name that represented the owner of the house. Social relationships between the Yurok and neighbors was very diverse and of importance as they carried out trade a significant activity in their economy (Huntsinger et al 348).
In 1953, a law was passed and enacted in the field of criminal justice, and it was known as Public Law 280. This bill was initiated to bring California Indian Reservations under the criminal, and civil jurisdiction of the state is eliminating it as a government responsibility. It created confusion further resulting to poor protection for Indians on reservations in a time of emergency issues. It was due to this misunderstanding that made the California Indians in 1957 to call for a repeal of the same law for equality to all citizens (Dutschke 19). In 1958, a code was provided for the distribution of all Rancheria land and assets and directed that a plan made on who to benefit for the resource distribution under a group called Inter-Tribal Council of California (ITCC). Its aim was to protect Indian land ownership, preserve their privileges, unity and cultural values (20).
In 1964, Indians Claim Commission leaders approved the settlement, and Congress accepted to fund them that same year. An ecological sustainability was to create similar framework linking the environment and social understanding in matters relating to natural resources. It can be achieved by considering equal tribal rights and history in decision-making on natural resources policy also including a substantive participation among the public.
Surveying processes of Euro-American settlement of present-day California were very instrumental to crafting giving rise to decision makers to draft law that will limit indigenous rights to land owners in the year 1985. They constructed their homes using materials such as redwood planks; baskets were woven of brown and bear grass. These items were acquired from the Klamath River water wash using two strategies.
Abuse of Native American populations and injustices done to them by the federal Indian policy currently have been documented using the concept of distributive justice to frame analysis. Its aim was for equity rationalization and allotment of resources. In addition, the majority of the Yurok Indian Reservation is now under corporate and state ownership. Some changes were alone to the forest through the transformation of land with tall redwood groves, scattered oaks, and woodlands to a network of redwood, Douglas fir plantations and dense plant regrowth in 1983 (Huntsinger and Diekmann 342). Analysis of the federal land titles gave rise to four major policy distribution to shape the Yurok forest. These included the designation of reservations along Klamath banks, two was the allotting of the reservation and the forced-fee payment period on land to the Indian deal. Third was the termination and forest relocation era and finally was the term of self- determination of environmental change (345) and their aim was to ensure there is equality and fairness to all the citizens when distributing land.
It included a way of usufructuary rights to hunt and gather fishing sites that will make them have access to resources at a nearby location, and they were designed by individuals or villagers collectively. Another strategy was the active management of the watershed for the secure diversity of plants and animals across space (4). In the US, social, cultural and economic activities of the Indian policy for land management and distribution were adequately discussed and documented by the leaders.
Yurok forest and land resources have been better and protected by a right- based method to equity which included putting more emphasis on representation and protection of the less influential citizens when it came to allocation and management of the resources. From a distributive- justice point of view, access to land changes policy and distribution of natural resources these impacts the ecological outcomes for land tenure now and in future hence consequences must be considered in the conference meeting (4).
Another policy was providing liability insurance protection for cultural burn practitioners and clarifying agency policies relating to cultural burning. An example is Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and California Air Quality Resource Board (CAQSB) with an aim of exploring avenues for collaboration on how agency funding can be used to accomplish cultural burning (FLN 4).
In conclusion, forest reservation is of high impact to a country as it offers many opportunities for residents and the foreigners. Local people use timber from the woods as firewood some for building their houses. Efforts should be made by the government to stabilize, enlarge and restore management practices and applications. Also, people should find ways to influence management on private lands within their territory and legislation measures for the owned properties if damages arise.
Works cited
Huntsinger, Lynn and Diekmann Lucy. The Virtual Reservation: Land Distribution, Natural Resources Access and Equity on the Yurok Forest. Natural Resources Journal 2013. Vol 50. (http://nature.berkeley.edu/huntsingerlab-wp/wp- content/uploads/2013/08/106- huntsinger-diekmann-yurok.pdf).
Dutscheke Dwight. An Ethnic Historic Site for California. NPS online books. 2014. Web 30 April 2016 (http://ohp.parks.ca.gov/pages/1054/files/american%20indians%20in%20california. pdf).
Huntsinger, Lynn, McCaffrey Sarah, Watt Laura and Lee Michele. A Yurok Forest History. Sep 1994. Web 30 April 2016. (http://www.yuroktribe.org/departments/forestry/Documents/YurokForestHistory1 994.pdf>
<https://www.google.com/search?q=kuruk+fire+youtibe&ie=utf-8&oe=utf- 8#q=karuk+fire+youtibe).
Fire Learning Network Notes from the field (FLN). Klamath-Trinity Cultural Burning Network. March 2015. Web 30 April 2016 (https://www.conservationgateway.org/ConservationPractices/FireLandscapes/Fire LearningNetwork/USFLNPublications/Documents/78_NotesFromTheField_Cultur alBurnNet_Mar2015.pdf)
