RDOS backs grant funding applications for Okanagan waterways
Two letters of support have been issued by the RDOS for grant applications that will boost the health of waterways in the South Okanagan.
Tag: Okanagan Nation Alliance
Funding shuffle approved to advance floodplain regeneration
The Regional District of Okanagan & Similkameen (RDOS) Board of Directors has voted to re-allocate budget funding for the Osoyoos Indian Band and the Okanagan Nation Alliance to continue progress on a significant conservation project.
Restoring salmon to Okanagan basin is priority one
Encouraging efforts are underway to improve the Okanagan River system’s beleaguered salmon population, including the opening today of the Okanagan Lake Dam Fish Passage.
After 100 years salmon can finally return to Okanagan Lake
For the first time in nearly 100 years salmon have regained access to Okanagan Lake’s cool deep waters and 14 crucial spawning creeks with the opening of the Okanagan Lake Dam Fish Passage today (August 19).
ONA fisheries warns on low salmon numbers
The fisheries department of the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) is warning the community of a limited harvesting season of sc̓win (sockeye salmon) in the coming weeks, due to a forecast predicting low fish returns.
UBC profs’ ‘outdated and regressive’ lawsuit denounced
Indigenous leaders are condemning a lawsuit by a group of University of British Columbia (UBC) professors and one graduate student who are against the school making land acknowledgements, along with other diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
Okanagan fish passage to be re-opened after blocked for decades
More than 70 years after a dam blocked salmon from moving through their historic habitat, members of the syilx Okanagan Nation are celebrating the creation of a future fish passage.
Pocket Guide
Water source protection gets new focus
Following their recent attendance at the 2024 Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) Convention Okanagan Basin Water Board Directors noted that communities across the province are facing increasing infrastructure costs for water filtration and treatment while having little authority to protect source waters.
Record salmon run thanks to concerted conservation effort
The 2024 salmon run is the largest sockeye since records have been kept, with an estimated 850,000 sockeye salmon detected leaving the ocean and entering the start of the Columbia River basin at Astoria, Oregon.
First Nations get seat at Columbia River negotiations
First Nations leaders say wild salmon, ecological health and Indigenous rights must be at the forefront of efforts to update a 60-year-old international deal governing the waters of the Columbia River.
Okanagan returns to Drought Level 2 on back of heatwave
The Okanagan has returned to Drought Level 2 as the ongoing heatwave has erased gains made in above average rainfall in May and June, with mounting concern over water for firefighting and fish survival.
Whirling disease next front in war on invasive species
The war on aquatic invasive species was given a boost recently with British Columbia’s chief veterinarian issuing an order making it illegal to transport watercraft in the province with the drain plug still in place.
Okanagan Nation celebrates grizzly bear reintroduction plan
Grizzly bears are set to return to the North Cascades Ecosystem after decades of advocacy and collaboration crucially involving the Syilx Okanagan Nation have resulted in the approval of a restoration plan.
Okanagan water board calls out feds on invasive mussel funding
The Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB) has decried the potential cutting of funding by the federal government which supports invasive mussel inspections in BC calling it “unacceptable and unjustifiable”.
Pocket Guide
OIB looks to the sun for renewable energy plan
The newly formed not-for-profit, Indigenous-led Okanagan Language and Sunshine Society (OKLSS) is aiming to build a solar-powered facility that will function as a training centre for First Nations.
Support emphasized at syilx nation drug forum
During the annual syilx Nation Drug Forum on May 13, syilx people from across the Nation came together to discuss ideas and share resources on how to support loved ones struggling with drug and alcohol misuse, where the theme of taking care of one another was emphasized by organizers and guest speakers.
Working together to create healthy fish habitat
Waterways in the South Okanagan are running too fast, too shallow, and too straight to sustain a diverse array of fish species, according to studies by the Okanagan Nation Alliance.
Old ideas bring new life to Okanagan water habitats
By Madeline Baker, Times Chronicle This is part two in a series on the Okanagan Nation Alliance...
Okanagan Nation water forum kicks off with Maori success story
Indigenous environmental activists from opposite sides of the globe shared their successes and strategies at a recent Okanagan Nation Alliance water forum, where representatives from among the eight member communities that compose the alliance learned about the first river to be legally recognized as a person.
Indigenous leaders react to Pope Francis apology
The long-awaited papal apology for the Roman Catholic Church’s role in wide-ranging abuses at...
Okanagan Nation gets equal water voting rights
The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA) was granted equal voting powers and governance by the Okanagan Basin Water Board (OBWB)’s three regional boards. ONA has held a seat on the water board since 2006 but were previously limited in their ability to vote on financial matters.
Okanagan Nation calls for criminal investigation over residential schools
The Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA), representing eight First Nations in the region, is calling for churches and the Canadian government to face criminal investigations relating to the deaths of First Nation children at residential schools.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip undergoing kidney transplant
Dale Boyd Local Journalism Initiative Reporter President of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBIC),...