Using water quality research to bring healing and sovereignty to the Apsáalooke.
in Restoring our waters is restoring ourselves - EHN
Author JoRee LaFrance collects a water sample near the headwaters of the Little Bighorn River. Credit: Talon_Lonebear
It was a cold winter day when my káalixaalia, great-grandmother,
sat us down to tell stories.
When the snow sticks to the ground, we, as Biiluuke or Our Side, tell our traditional stories so that they are passed down from generation to generation. One of my favorite stories was about a young boy named Uuwaatisaash, or Big Metal, who was pushed off a cliff by his stepfather after a day of hunting.
As his stepfather returned to camp leaving him to die, Uuwaatisaash heard our language in the distance, and they spoke of saving a boy who was stuck in a shrub.
The voices he heard were voices of Iisaxpúatahchee
Sahpua, the seven sacred Big Horn rams, who saved him and chose to raise him as
their own. He grew up into a prominent warrior and was given seven sacred
teachings that he would bring back to my people.
When I was 8 years old, a bilingual afterschool program took me on a trip that left memories I still carry. A boat drove us into the deep canyons of Iisaxpúatahcheewilichke, Big Horn Lake. As we cruised by cliffs incised by Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe, the Big Horn River, we witnessed the power that it held: cliff sides looked as if a knife made a clean cut through a cake, except it was through sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous layers of the Earth.
I will hold this day with me forever because me, my twin sister and other
Apsáalooke/Crow youth saw where Uuwaatisaash was pushed off the cliffs, and
where Iisaxpúatahchee Sahpua had saved him.
As Biiluuke people, we revere Iisaxpúatahchee Sahpua and we show our honor and respect for them. One of our Apsáalooke warriors, Bear Crane, taught us that in order to honor and respect the power of Iisaxpúatahchee Sahpua, we need to take care of our mountains and rivers.
“To this day the
Bighorn and Little Bighorn Rivers carry the memory of the Seven Sacred Rams,”
he said, “we were told to never change the names . . . they have retained their
ancient names, assuring that the land will always be ours.”
We have known that the water is a reflection of us since time immemorial. However, our rivers and water have been impacted by human activity such as agriculture, sewage waste and abandoned mines.
But I and other
Apsáalooke researchers are working together to understand the quality of our
water systems and how this poses risks to our community members and cultural
practices. As Apsáalooke researchers we are testing the water of our neighbors,
friends and family — and by leading this research we are contributing to our
individual, community, cultural, and tribal autonomy.
Our hope is to provide foundational research that will help our
Nation set water quality standards to protect our precious water sources so
that we can continue our cultural and ceremonial practices.
The
land that raised me
I grew up with my twin sister along Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe
Aliakaate, the Little Bighorn River, at the foothills of my outside heart
Iisaxpúatahchee Isawaxaawúua, or commonly known as the Big Horn Mountains;
which sits at the southern end of our 2.2 million acre reservation in
southeastern Montana. My reservation is bigger than the state of Rhode Island
as it is the largest reservation in Montana, the fifth largest in the United
States, and home to my people and three mountain ranges and watersheds.
Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe Aliakaate holds a special place in my heart. It begins in Iisaxpúatahchee Isawaxaawúua and then flows directly onto the reservation with only 16 miles of the river located on Apsáalooke ceded lands in present-day Wyoming.
The rest of the river flows north on to Apsáalooke lands and joins the Big Horn River, Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe, just before the reservation ends. Most of the river Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe Aliakaate is in the hands of my people and it is our responsibility to take care of and protect this important body of water.
The Little Bighorn River is used year-round for ceremonial, municipal, agricultural and recreational purposes in my community. Apsáalooke people have a deep connection to its pulse.
We have been taught that when the cotton first falls in spring, we must feed the river by preparing our finest meats and offering them to the river to ask for protection and to show respect for buluksée, the water creatures.
This is when the river is starting to increase its water flow due to snowmelt and spring rains. With the hot sun in June, we cool off in the river but must be diligent because the river is at its strongest. It is not until we tell stories when the snow sticks to the ground that the river is at its lowest and calmest point.
Taking care of the water is to take care of our wellbeing not only as an individual, but as a people. We use the river and springs for ceremonies like the sweat lodge, Tobacco society, bundle openings, sundance and many others.
When the integrity of our waters are compromised it also
compromises our ability to safely practice our ceremonies that directly involve
water. As an Apsáalooke scientist, I am a product of the land that has raised
me, and I know it is my responsibility to care for this land that has always
taken care of me.
In my language, this feeling is expressed as immaachikítua – the
English language does not fully encapsulate the meaning of this word, but if I
were to describe it best, it would be to show a respect for the land, the
water, every being, our families, our ancestors and our future generations.
Responsibility
as an Apsáalookbia
I am a strong believer in the saying, “of us, by us, for us” and the Crow Environmental Health Steering Committee does just that. We are a small group of Apsáalooke people and a research partner who does our own environmental related research on our reservation.
Taking ownership of research
not only allows us to have a deeper understanding of our community health but
it strengthens our sovereignty to protect our waters.
Over the past 20 years, the Committee has improved the quality of our waters and my tribe’s knowledge and understanding of our environmental health. They have found that impaired waters pose a great risk to the Apsáalooke community.
Microbial contamination like coliform coming from leaking septic systems or livestock waste along with heavy metal contamination such as uranium, arsenic, manganese and zinc all contribute to low water quality, causing community health issues.
This is concerning as coliform can cause short
term illness like diarrhea and nausea but can severely impact those that are
immunocompromised. Heavy metal contamination from uranium can cause kidney
toxicity, and arsenic causes circulatory issues, while both are carcinogens.
There is a focus on home wells because many community members
live on unpaved roads in rural areas relying on groundwater or hauled water.
These sources are not tested like the Crow Agency municipal drinking system, so
unless an individual pays for water testing, they are unsure of their water
quality.
If a family’s home had a test result that exceeded the EPA maximum contaminant level of a pollutant or had a presence of coliform or E.coli, the Committee provided a 5-gallon water cooler dispenser to the household.
This would give a family direct access to safe, clean drinking water
at the very least. My own family members relied on the work we did so it made
my interest in water science and access to clean drinking water much greater.
The first step on my long journey in water quality started with my undergraduate education at Dartmouth College, where I majored in earth sciences and Native American studies. Watershed science captured my interest.
After my time at Dartmouth, I interned with the committee as part of a team
that tested for various contaminants in home wells and a few of our sacred
springs, and helped with a climate change study.
I saw a need for an understanding of surface water quality
especially in Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe Aliakaate, a river that became a familiar
friend. Growing up along this river, I was a bit naïve, assuming the water was
pristine; but I have come to learn that agricultural, municipal and township
uses, as well as illegal dumping, are changing the river and its valley.
The Little Bighorn River functions like any other snow-bound watershed in western United States and we need to understand how industries like mining, agriculture and byproducts from wastewater treatment plants are polluting it with contaminants such as heavy metals, man-made compounds like PFAS, and those that come from agricultural activity.
Through my work now at the University of Arizona’s Department of Environmental Science, I want to understand how pollutants behave as the river flow changes through seasons and to address those impacts on tribal water use. To do this, I collect weekly samples that are then sent to the Arizona Laboratory for Emerging Contaminants where we analyze for various pollutants.
In addition, I have two in-situ
multi-parameter sensors that are stationed in the river that continuously
analyze the river’s pH, temperature, turbidity, electrical conductivity and
more. I am very grateful to do work with a river that is a part of who I am.
Bimmaxxpée
- Medicine Waters
 |
| Author JoRee LaFrance setting up a water sensor. Credit: Talon Lonebear. |
My goal is to support my Nation to implement our own water quality standards based on science and culture, which is integral for us to preserve our traditional way of life by having access to healthy waters. This would strengthen our sovereignty and allow us to hold all users – whether upstream or downstream – accountable for contaminating our waters.
My káalixaalia told me that we, as Biiluuke, were given four
medicines that would always heal and sustain us as we move through this world:
the tobacco planting ceremony, sweat lodge, sun dance and rock medicines. Each
of these four medicines involves the use and respect of water. I want to do
everything I can to ensure that our children always have access to the same
quality of water that our ancestors had.
When we restore the health of our medicine waters, we restore
the health of ourselves.
This essay
was produced through the Agents of Change in Environmental Justice fellowship.
Agents of Change empowers emerging leaders from historically excluded
backgrounds in science and academia to reimagine solutions for a just and
healthy planet.
Essay
Notes
*Apsáalooke/Crow:
This term is used to refer to us as a Tribal Nation. Crow is actually a
mistranslation used when the federal government came along and gave us English
names. There is so much more to the name Apsáalooke but that is for another
discussion. You will see Apsáalooke, Crow, and Biiluuke used interchangeably
from my perspective.
**Biiluuke/Our
Side: We use this word to refer to ourselves, our worldviews, and our language
as Our Side. That is why you will see Biiluuke instead of Apsáalooke.
Vocabulary:
Apsáalooke/Crow
Káalixaalia/great-grandmother
Biiluuke/Our Side/Crow
Uuwaatisaash/Big Metal
Iisaxpúatahchee Sahpua/Seven Sacred Bighorn Rams
Iisaxpúatahcheewilichke/Big Horn Lake
Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe/Big Horn River
Iisaxpúatahcheeaashe Aliakaate/Little Bighorn River
Iichiinmáatchilash/Fortunate with Horses
Iisaxpúatahchee Isawaxaawúua/Big Horn Mountains
Iikooshtakáatbaatchaache/Mighty Few District
Buluksée/Water Creatures
Apsáalookbia/Crow Woman
Immaachikittúua/What We Respect
Bimmaxxpée/Medicine Water
About the author:
JoRee LaFrance - also known as Iichiinmáatchileesh/Fortunate with Horses – comes from the Apsáalooke Nation, located in southeastern Montana. She holds a B.A. in earth sciences and Native American studies from Dartmouth College and is now a doctoral student in the Department of Environmental Science at the University of Arizona studying the Little Bighorn River watershed.