Water
First Nations & Métis
Grade 8 – SK Curriculum
Earth & Space Science- Water Systems
WS8.1 c – WS8.2 c – WS8.3 a
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations have a strong spiritual connection with
water. Water is considered living and must be respected.
Traditional Knowledge
• Elders give their knowledge through stories told
to the children:
• Water is sacred;
• Water is given to us by Mother Earth;
• The respect we give to Mother Earth is to not
pollute or waste the waters.
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations peoples
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have a variety of cultural
and social practices that
involve water:
Places of prayer;
Bathing;
Oral stories;
Purification ceremonies;
Medicine making.
Traditional Knowledge
• First Nations Fishing;
• First Nations people
harvested the fish
resources of SK long
before European
influence and in the
forested areas of the
Province, fish were a
major contributor to
sustaining life.
First Nations & Métis
• First Nations peoples harvest:
• Lake trout, walleye, northern pike, suckers, perch,
whitefish, and Arctic grayling were some of the species
commonly utilized.
• Respect for nature, life and its offerings were strongly
emphasized at the time of these traditional practices and
still are today.
First Nations and Métis
• Traditional Fishing Practices:
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birch bark canoes
spears
snares attached to poles
fish traps
All were methods used to harvest fish from the surrounding
waters.
First Nations & Métis
• Fish were preserved by
freezing in the winter.
• Drying or Smoking in the
summer.
First Nations & Métis
• Fishing Practices:
• Gill net fishing:
• Gill nets are walls of netting which may be set at or
below the surface, on the waterway, or at any depth in
between. Gill netting is probably the oldest form of net
fishing, having been in use for thousands of years by
First Nation Peoples.
Gill Net Fishing
• True gill nets catch fish that
attempt to swim through the
net, which are caught if they
are of a size large enough to
allow the head to pass through
the meshes but not the rest of
the body.
• The fish then becomes
entangled by the gills as it
attempts to back out of the
net. The mesh size used
depends upon the species and
size range being targeted.
Northern Saskatchewan First Nations
• Northern SK communities such
as Black Lake, Hatchet Lake
and Fond du Lac First Nations:
• Fish are still a major staple in
the diet.
• Some of the traditional fishing
methods are still used along
with modern fishing equipment
and techniques.
First Nations & Métis
• Treaty Rights & Fishing:
• “The legal recognition of Aboriginal rights to fish and
hunt has a long-standing history in Canada.”
“These rights are protected in the Canadian Constitution
and are given priority in resource allocation over all other
uses. Only valid conservation concerns can be given
priority over these rights.”
First Nations & Métis Fishing Rights
• “The application of Métis Aboriginal rights to fish and
hunt for food in Saskatchewan is evolving and still
unclear.” Métis rights are not the same as the universal
rights held by First Nations Peoples under the Treaty
Rights.
The government does require a First Nations and Métis
peoples to buy a fishing license to fish a ‘stocked lake’.
First Nations & Métis
• Aquatic plants
Many of the water plants
were eaten raw in salads;
water celery, lemon grass,
duckweed and mint.
First Nations uses for Cattails
• Food: The roots may be ground into a flour. The sticky
sap between the leaves is an excellent starch and can be
used to thicken soups and broths.
• The white colored shoots at the base of the leaf clusters
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can be boiled or steamed or sliced and eaten raw in
salads.
Medicine: Pollen was placed directly on cut to control
bleeding. Also, taken internally for internal bleeding,
menstrual pain, or chest pains.
Aquatic plants First Nations uses:
• Arrowhead – tuber similar to a
potato that could be picked
and boiled and eaten as a
vegetable.
• Water Lily – leaves boiled and
used as a gargle for sore
throats or drank for treatment
of diarrhea.
Aquatic Plants
• Water Hemlock:
Toxic plant –
VERY POISONOUS ROOTS
a marble size portion of
the fleshy root is enough
to kill an animal or a
human.
• root contains cicutoxin
First Nations & Métis
• Wildlife
• Moose Hunting:
• Moose can live on pine needles and bark but prefer grasses and
aquatic plants such a lily pads and skunk cabbage. It is very
common to see Moose along the shores of rivers and lakes.
During a fishing trip to Black Lake the First Nation guide told stories
of hunting moose while fishing because they see the Moose over
and over again during the summer along the shorelines.
The moose is shot and then it is tied by the horns to the back of the
boat and hauled back to town through the water. All parts of the
moose are used: meat, fur, horns, organs etc.
First Nations & Métis
• Transportation via Waters:
• The geography of the prairie provinces, more commonly known as
the "Northwest Territory" during the days of fur trade, has three
principle water basins:
• the Red River, draining the south and eastern portion;
• the Athabasca Basin which drains the most northerly and western
area; and
• the Saskatchewan River (South SK and North SK join just North of
Prince Albert) which drains water east of the Rockies all the way to
Lake Winnipeg and finally to Hudson's Bay.
Transportation
• The Saskatchewan River with its ease of access and
navigation from Lake Winnipeg became the primary
gateway to the rich fur-bearing regions beyond.
• In addition, the Saskatchewan River provided access to
other important navigable rivers in northern
Saskatchewan; i.e., the Churchill River system as well as
the Clearwater River which provided access to the Lake
Athabasca basin.
Drainage basin picture
Final drainage
Into the Hudson Bay
Forces that shape the landscape - Rivers
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South Saskatchewan River – Saskatoon Weir
Major River in Canada
1392km long
Drainage to Hudson Bay
• South Saskatchewan
kisiskāciwani-sīpiy,
Cree for Swift flowing river
Construction of the Weir on the South Saskatchewan
• The Weir was a ‘make work project’ in the 1930’s
• Finished March 15, 1940
• Intended to help control water levels through Saskatoon
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which had fluctuated greatly before the Gardener Dam
was built.
Also intended to act as a reservoir in times of drought.
Built to ensure that the water levels remain high enough
to cover the water intakes at the power plant upstream.
There is now an area at the Weir for people to view the
Weir and the birds that gather along the Weir including
the American Pelicans.
Forces that shape the landscape - Rivers
• Pelican riding the Weir in Saskatoon
Forces that shape the landscape
Waterfalls
Waterfalls – Nistowiak Falls, Lac
La Ronge. 10m (33ft)
one of the highest in SK.
The falls are on the Rapid
River which flows north from
Iskwatikan Lake into Nistowiak
Lake on the Churchill River.
Nistowiak is Cree referring to
the convergence of waters.
Forces that shape the landscape
Waterfalls
• Manitou Falls - Fond du Lac
River.
• Other Waterfalls in SK:
• Smooth Rock Falls -Clearwater
River Provincial Park.
• Hunt Falls – on Grease River in
far North can get to it by
canoe or air only.
• There are more than 50 Falls
in Saskatchewan
Forces that shape the landscape - Rapids
• Water forces that shape
the landscape
• Rapids: Otter Rapids at
junction of Otter Lake
and the Churchill River,
SK leading to Sluice Falls.
• More than 50 rapids in SK
Forces that shape the landscape – Lakes & Creeks
• Water forces that shape
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the landscape
Lakes and Rivers cover
approx 12% of SK
• 62 Lakes in SK (official
size) if count the smaller
lakes over 100,000
• Creeks in SK
• 12 official size creeks plus
many smaller creeks
Water Quality
• Pollution of water-bodies and the effects on First Nations
Peoples.
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Waters are sacred;
Waters are a food source;
Waters are a way of life, transportation;
Drinking water on the First Nation.
First Nations & Métis
• Water Quality
• FN news release VC Whitefish re: FN that have to boil
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their water – May 28, 2010:
“There are 114 First Nation communities across Canada
under drinking water advisories. In Saskatchewan there
are boil water advisories on 12 First Nation
communities.”
Water Quality
• Pollution in SK waters:
• One example is the Pipestone Creek water pollution in
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1995 from the town of Kelvington dumping sewage into
the creek. This directly affected the First Nation of
Yellow Quill which attains some of their water from the
creek during periods in the spring when the creek flows.
The First Nation of Yellow Quill had poor water quality as
well as many forms of bacteria that could have caused
serious health risks.
Traditional Knowledge
• Water treatment plants First
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Nations
Yellow Quill FN:
1995 boil-water advisory due
to poor surface water source
Fall of 2003
A state of the art facility that
uses no chemicals, the biomembrane process uses
naturally occurring microorganisms to remove the
contaminants from the water.
The Yellow Quill First Nation bio-membrane water
treatment plant in Saskatchewan is the first of
its kind in Canada.
Northern First Nations
• First Nations communities in Northern Saskatchewan
have long voiced their concerns about uranium mining
and the dangers to the surrounding waters. Buried or
ponded mine tailings have led to water pollution
affecting the fishing communities.
• The uranium mining companies are more
environmentally aware today and taking more
precautions with tailings and decomposition of mines
than they have in the past.
Sources:
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Saskatchewan First Nations Elders
www.environment.gov.sk.ca
www.wikimapia.org
www.wikipedia.org
www.fishonline.org
http://www.npss.sk.ca
www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca
www.safewater.org
Lori Slater
B.Sc. Biology, BEd. Senior Science
• Program Coordinator – Science