A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
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It is getting close to that time of the year again when walleye go up into the tributaries of the larger rivers in order to spawn so that they complete the next cycle of their life. Without the spawning, we would not be able to enjoy the fishing and eating of this type of fish. I am a diehard walleye lover. I love catching them, and even better, I love to eat walleye (as long as someone else cleans them…). For all of my life, and even longer than that actually, members of my family have been f...
When I boarded a plane bound for Buenos Aires last month, I had no idea what was in store for me in the wilds of Argentina. As President and Co-Founder of the Four Bridges Traveling Permaculture Institute, I embarked on a mission to explore opportunities to develop an eco-tourism segment for our non-profit organization. While it is winter in the Northern Hemisphere, the summer sky is sizzling in Buenos Aires. I stepped off the plane in full winter gear to sweltering 100 degree temperatures. Afte... Full story
Fruits and vegetables with the most pesticides can be avoided. Buy them when they are in season from your local farmers and community supported agricultural groups (CSA) and request organic, heirloom, non-genetically modified food. You can also grow your own food anytime with your own gardens, kitchen container gardens, all season greenhouses, and local garden clubs. Contact your local plant nurseries and garden centers for more information. Many garden clubs offer group-buying discounts; group gardening workshops, and coupons. Each year... Full story
NEW Gardening Column for Veggie & Flower lovers Getting to be that time of year when we can’t wait to get outside and plant something. This new column will feature your planting tips, ideas, experiences, anything to do with gardening to share with our readers. Email to [email protected] or bring to our office in the Communications Building (Indian Time/CKON) in Kana:takon. Now is the time to get your gardening supplies ready for spring. The snow is still on the ground, but we can start g... Full story
SproutRobot.com is one of the websites I use to help me plan my gardens in Akwesasne. It takes the guesswork out of gardening because I just enter my zip code and the website gives me a list of what to plant, how to start seedlings, how to garden, and I can choose to use my own seeds or purchase seeds from the website. The instructions for how to start tomatoes from seeds is helpful with detailed pictures. Some of the groceries that we can plant anytime in Akwesasne for our indoor kitchen...
While pondering the warm,windy weather, warm, windy and ice coated driveways I decided to look at alternatives to get rid of the ice buildup. One article was from a guy in Sweden, who uses the branches from the ground to put under his tires when he got stuck. He then uses sea salt to put on top of the ice, he tried other types of salt but had many problems associated with the salt. He also stated that sea salt mixed with sand melted the ice quickly. Another way to get rid of the ice is the old fashion way of using ice chipper not a shovel. Ice... Full story
WHY PEOPLE LITTER: • People are too lazy to dispose of trash properly • People are more likely to throw litter on top of litter than drop litter in neat surroundings • Don’t Care • Others will pick it up • Not aware they are littering SMOKERS AND LITTERING: • Many smokers do not believe that littering their cigarette butts has an environmental impact or is inappropriate behavior. • Many smokers blame their littering behavior on a lack of well-placed bins for cigarette butts. • Over 80% of smokers said they would bin their butts if suitable... Full story
Object - Decomposition Time Styrofoam container more 1 million years Plastic jug 1 million years Aluminum can 200-500 years Disposable diaper 550 years Tinned can 90 years Leather shoe 45 years Wool sock 1 year Paper bag 1 month Banana peel 3-4 weeks Ways to cut down on waste: Use cloth napkins instead of paper Use sealable storage containers rather than plastic wrap Reuse cardboard boxes, plastic bags and paper sacks (Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources) Junk mail wastes huge amounts of paper and adds to potential litter. Here are some ways...
HOLIDAY DECORATIONS Decorating for the winter holidays is fun but can lead to tragedy if you don’t practice fire safety. Following a few simple fire safety tips can keep electric lights, candles, and the ever popular Christmas tree from creating a tragedy. • Don’t place your live Christmas tree close to a heat source, including a fireplace or heat vent. • Keep the tree stand filled with water at all times. • Never put tree branches or needles in a fireplace or wood-burning stove. • Inspect holiday lights for frayed wires, bare spots, gaps...
Within the past couple of years MCA’s Department of the Environment and Health Department (Environmental Health Office) have been involved in a project where different areas of Akwesasne were sampled for black-legged ticks (Ioxedes scapularis). Black-legged ticks (formerly known as deer ticks) are carriers of a bacteria called Borrelia burgdorferi. This corkscrew-shaped bacteria causes a disease called Lyme Disease. Ticks are closely related to spiders. Black-legged ticks are generally very s...
Whatever the intentions may be, whether it is to have a closer encounter with wildlife, to help animals in the winter, or to increase the number of available game animals, numerous problems arise when we feed wildlife. Feeding wildlife interferes with a natural healthy balance between wildlife populations and their habitat. For this reason, and for many others identified on this page, wildlife biologists suggest to “just say no” to feeding wildlife. WHY FEEDING WILDLIFE DOES MORE HARM THAN GOOD Wildlife feeding threatens human and animal saf...
Every year, Americans throw away 50 billion food and drink cans, 27 billion glass bottles and jars, and 65 million plastic and metal jar and can covers. More than 30% of our waste is packaging materials. Where does it all go? Some 85% of our garbage is sent to a dump, or landfill, where it can take from 100 to 400 years for things like cloth and aluminum to decompose. Glass has been found in perfect condition after 4,000 years in the earth! We are quickly running out of space. It’s time to learn the three R’s of the environment: reduce, reu...
This has been a debate for a long time. I don’t do plastic. I usually opt for paper, but really paper is no better. I sometimes don’t take either one and just carry my stuff out of the store, but some people don’t like that. My son was actually told by one clerk that he had to take a plastic bag. She said, “No you have to take a bag!” He was like, “No, I don’t. I don’t want a bag.” I was so proud! It drives me crazy when someone goes into the store and buys one item, say a pack of gum, and they put it in a bag. So if no plastic and no paper, wh...
Before the Europeans came over to Turtle Island, indigenous Nations used to inhabit all the lands along the Susquehanna River. On October 14, 2011, Thatotaho-Sid Hill, Chief Jake Edwards from the Onondaga Nation, David Arquette, Director of HETF, and Ann Dapice from the Lenape Nation visited the confluence of the Susquehanna River, where the North branch, West branch and South Branch all come together near the town of Sunbury, south of Lewisburg. There standing on the ridge overlooking the...
A woman tells of her ex-husband, who became hooked on painkillers and muscle relaxants for years. “He could not hold a job, and we lost our house, our credit, and our friends. We tried counseling and drug treatment centers, both in-patient and out-patient, but nothing worked.” The man continued his addiction, becoming creative in finding doctors from out of state and even out of the country who would ship him pills. Finally, for her own sanity and the safety of their two children, the woman lef...
CLEAN UP: 1. Choose a well-ventilated area to clean the battery leakage so you aren’t harmed by inhaling any fumes. A garage with the door open, a room with several open windows, or outside on a picnic table are all places to clean up a battery leakage. 2 Put on your rubber gloves and protective eyewear. 3. Determine whether the batteries that have leaked are alkaline or acid. Use vinegar or lemon juice to clean an alkaline battery leakage; use baking soda to clean an acid battery leakage. 4 U...
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colourless and odourless gas — a “silent killer”. Dangerous CO levels result when oil, kerosene, gasoline, diesel, propane, natural gas, or wood burns without enough oxygen. WHERE IS CO FOUND? CO is found in combustion fumes, such as those produced by cars and trucks, small gasoline engines, stoves, lanterns, burning charcoal and wood, and gas ranges and heating systems. CO from these sources can build up in enclosed or semi-enclosed spaces. People and animals in these spaces can be poisoned by breathing it. SYMPT...
New owners of fireplaces and wood stoves often store wood wherever it is convenient, whether outside of the house, on the deck, or under a tarpaulin. While buying a fireplace is certainly an exercise in personal preference, and even starting a fire is subject to some degree of individual choice, firewood storage offers less room for personal choice if you want to eliminate or prevent some of the negative effects of improperly stored firewood. First, the wood must be properly dried or “seasoned.” Adequately seasoned wood has a moisture con...
MASSENA — Chemicals used at the General Motors Powertrain plant decades ago continue to exist in high levels among St. Regis Mohawk Reservation youths today, according to research completed at the University at Albany. But there is no link between the persistence of the chemicals and the 12-acre landfill at the GM site, thrown into the spotlight following last month’s illegal excavation, according to Anne E. Kelly, a project manager with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Believed to cause cancer and other serious illnesses, pol...
Birds, feathered winged animals that fill the outdoors with song. Akwesasne has a great diversity of birds. Birds in Akwesasne can be just passing through for migration, living here seasonally or all year long! But some of these birds are endangered. Endangered means they are close to becoming extinct or extirpated. Extirpated means the species no longer exists in a certain province or state. Extinct means the species no longer exists anywhere! Akwesasne’s List of Endangered Birds Roseate T...
Reducing pollutants in our homes can be as simple as purchasing a few houseplants. Plants provide a natural, cost effective way to clean indoor air and combat “sick-building syndrome”. For example, in a 24-hour period, a spider plant can remove 80% of formaldehyde pollutants from an enclosed room. Virtually all plants are powerful air cleaners. Carbon dioxide enters the leaves, through complex chemical reactions the process of photosynthesis takes place, and oxygen is released into the air. The...
Continued from last week On Sunday August 14th, 2011 the entire group packed up camp, and began their journey to the Cranberry Lake Biological station (CLBS), but not before stopping in St. Regis Falls, NY for some Sweet grass picking, led by Dean George. As the night went on, everyone got settled in to their new home for the rest of the week. Although the night brought nothing but clouds and rain, it didn’t stop the group from their first presentation which was held at the cafeteria of the C...
It was another successful year for the Native Earth Environmental Youth Camp sponsored by SUNY Environment Science and Forestry, Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force, and Mohawk Council of Akwesasne Environment. The two week long excursion was funded by the National Science Foundation and directed by Dr. Robin Kimmerer, a Native American of the Citizen Band Potawatomi assisted by SUNY-ESF intern, Meredith Kane, MCA’s Bob Stevenson, and HETF’s Dave Arquette and Noah Point. The Youth Camp is...
This summer has had periods of very hot weather and also some days/nights with very high winds. The high winds caused havoc in some major cities and towns and in Akwesasne. The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne’s Environmental Department was tasked with going out into the three districts and checking the tree damage. The priority was our elders. Margaret George and her summer students went from district to district and compiled a list. Bids were requested and Cook’s Tree and Trim was the suc...
As a result of the construction of the Tsisnáihne Waterline and the fact that some habitat disturbance was unavoidable, there is a component of the waterline construction that calls for habitat improvement projects as part of the environmental mitigation within the environmental assessment process. People riding in the Tsisnáihne District on Wade Lafrance Memorial Road may have noticed some short chain link fences with green posts and green flashing on the top. This is a turtle fence that was c...
