Tsilhqot'in National Government Geographic Location

Tsilhqot'in National Government

Member Bands

Alexandria Indian Band [?Esdilagh First Nations]
Location
: Located around the town of Alexandria between Williams Lake and Quesnel. Main community is Alexandria Reserve No. 3, on the right bank of the Fraser River, 7 km south of the town of Alexandria. (14 reserves on 1,304.1 hectares.) (Source: First Nations Profiles, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and British Columbia First Nations websites)

Number of Band Members
: 178 (Source: Registered Population as of June 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)

Alexis Creek First Nation (Tsi Del Del)
Location
: Located 110 km west of Williams Lake on Highway 20. Main community is at Redstone Flat No. 1, on the Chilanko River, 20 km west of the junction with the Chilcotin River and 7 km south of Puntzi Lake. (25 reserves on 2,610.7 hectares.) (Source: First Nations Profiles, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and British Columbia First Nations websites)

Number of Band Members
: 634 (Source: Registered Population as of June 2008 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)

Stone Indian Band (also known as Yunesit'in First Nation)

Location
: Located around Hanceville, 90 km west of Williams Lake. Main community is at Stone No. 1, 7 km west of Hanceville on the Chilcotin River. (Five reserves on 2,146.4 hectares). (Source: First Nations Profiles, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and British Columbia First Nations websites)

Number of Band Members
: 406 (Source: Registered Population as of June 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)

Tl'etinqox-t'in Government Office (formerly known as Anaham Indian Band)

Location
: Located 100 km west of Williams Lake near Alexis Creek. Main community is at Anahim Flat's No. 1 on the banks of the Chilcotin River. (19 reserves on approx. 11,300 hectares). (Source: First Nations Profiles, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and British Columbia First Nations websites)

Number of Band Members
: 1,479 (Source: Registered Population as of June 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)


Xeni Gwet'in First Nation (formerly known as Nemiah Indian Band)

Location
: Located in the Nemiah Valley, 150 km southwest of Williams Lake on Chilko Lake. Main community is at Chilko Lake Reserve No. 1A on the east shore of Chilco Lake at the mouth of the Nemaia River, (Eight reserves on 1,200 hectares.) (Source: First Nations Profiles, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and British Columbia First Nations websites)

Number of Band Members
: 404 (Source: Registered Indian Population by Sex and Residence June 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)

Background

Participation
: Government representatives are working to build relationships with the Tsilhqot’in National Government (TNG) member bands outside of the British Columbia Treaty Commission six-stage treaty process. The TNG is recognized by the Government of Canada as a tribal council representing five member bands. TNG is not part of the BC treaty process, nor are any of its five member bands.

Location
: Member bands are generally located throughout the Chilcotin Plateau, west of the Fraser River, between Riske Creek (20 km west of Williams Lake) and the Coast Mountains, except the Alexandria band which is north of Williams Lake on the east side of the Fraser River.


Total band members
: 3,101 (Source: Registered Indian Population by Sex and Residence 2001, Registered Population as of June 2010, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada)

Discussions

B.C. Government staff undertake discussions with First Nations outside the treaty process on a wide range of topics related to the resolution of the land question. Discussions are informal so the level of interaction varies according to specific situations and needs. Initiatives can involve building relationships with First Nations, and addressing concerns associated with asserted traditional territory.

Tsilhqot’in Framework Agreement

The Tsilhqot’in Framework Agreement is a strategic engagement agreement (SEA) between BC, TNG and the Tsilhqot’in Nation signed in 2009. The $1.26 million agreement formalizes a single window for referrals on natural resource applications within the traditional territories of five TNG -member communities. Feedback on the referrals will be collected, consolidated and provided to provincial resource ministries.

The $1.26 million is provided over three years for hiring and training staff and establishing an on-line referral submission portal. The new process is designed to be a more co-operative form of decision-making that will lead to increased certainty for resource activities in Tsilhqot’in traditional territory.

The five participating TNG- member communities are: Alexandria Indian Band [?Esdilagh First Nations], Alexis Creek Indian Band, Tl’etinqox-t’in Government Office, Stone Indian Band, and Xeni Gwet’in First Nations Government. The agreement covers approximately 9.7 million hectares west of Williams Lake, and represents nearly 96 per cent of the Tsilhqot’in traditional territory.

Forest and Range Agreements

In March 2009, five Tsilhqot’in Nation communities signed the Tslhqot'in Nation Interim Agreement on Forest & Range Opportunities, amended in May 2009 to include a sixth First Nation, the Toosey Indian Band, which is a member of the Carrier Chilcotin Tribal Council. The five-year forest and range agreement with the Province, providing $7.7 million in shared revenue and access to 844,000 cubic metres of timber. Participating communities are: Alexandria Indian Band [?Esdilagh First Nations], Alexis Creek Indian Band, Tl’etinqox-t’in Government Office, Stone Indian Band, Xeni Gwet’in First Nations Government, and Toosey Indian Band.

Various TNG communities currently hold, or have held, forest licences through joint ventures with industry and through their own listed companies. The Ministry of Forests and Range continues to explore ways to increase First Nation participation in the forest sector.