The Environmental Crisis on Native American Lands

Issues of environmental justice and justice for indigenous peoples are not separate, but deeply interconnected. Throughout the history of North American settlement, the territorial dispossession of indigenous peoples has gone hand in hand with natural resource exploitation. Today, from the Bakken formation in North Dakota to theTar Sands in northeastern Alberta, Canada, Indian nations often stand on the front lines of opposition to thepipelines that pump oil out of their communities — violating treaty rights, threatening the environment and contributing to climate change in the process.

The continued history of the mostly violent expulsion of indigenous peoples from their homelands is the root cause of many of the difficulties that they currently face. The poverty, joblessness, poor education and healthcare, and violence against native women and girls all stem from their dispossession of their ancestral homes and their stolen identity as a people. As their lands continue to be taken they face economic hardship from the loss of resources and weakening of their native communities. They also are facing an incredible amount of violence against native women and girls caused by the ever increasing influx of poorly managed extractive workers who temporarily live in “man camps”. Since the latest oil boom in the American midwest,violent crime,sex trafficking, and rape cases have massively increased in the native communities living there. The industry creates a culture of use and abuse- not just the land and it’s resources but it’s people too.

At 3 Generations, we have always aimed to bring world-wide attention to the environmental and cultural crisis of the degradation of Native American lands and the vulnerability of native women and children. We will continue to create films and videos that show the impact and devastation that the federal government and extractive industries cause to native lands and their people.

Last month a small team from 3 Generations visited North Dakota to get an update on the environmental impact of fracking on Native Lands. Our visit overlapped with that of Greta Thunberg, so there was much focus on her blazing environmental message. We were lucky to get a preview of her glass wet plate portrait, by famed artist Shane Balkowitsch, which is now headed to The Smithsonian Museum. (see photo).

In Bismarck we visited with Dr. Biron Baker, a family medicine physician, who appeared in our award-winning feature film A Different American Dream. Here is his verbatim update on the impact of fossil fuel extraction on health in Western North Dakota:

“In 25 years of practice, I have encountered anecdotal and empirical evidence of a higher than expected incidence of respiratory problems in western North Dakota. Accounting for all other variables, the fossil fuel industry should be explored in more depth. No other industry in our state enjoys the expansive protection that the fossil fuel industry does.  Coal is particularly dirty, and the myth of “clean coal technology” has been perpetuated upon a poorly informed populace.  Natural gas flaring is the next generation’s “clean coal”. 

In New Town, on the Fort Berthold Reservation, Tribal Environmental Director, Edmund Baker shared information about recent oil spills and the role of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on public health. We were saddened to learn that the environmental damage by the oil and gas exploitation has been even greater than anticipated when we made A Different American Dream.  EPA regulations under the present administration has relaxed rather than increased oversight. Spills are up and consequences are down. 

Anecdotally we learned that some athlete runners on the reservation can no longer run outdoors due to the VOCs from flaring causing asthma in previously healthy individuals. What disturbing news.

And yet, we see hope in the activities and commitment of young people — from Greta Thunberg to the youth on the reservation like Jayli Fimbres (see photo) who are working to preserve their land and culture.

We have been sharing updates on our social media. Please follow these stories on our website, our Facebook pages and on our Instagram.

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