From: on behalf of Panel Registry Subject: FW: TNG registration of ...

opportunities in the near future in a eco‐friendly manner but the lack of capital and manpower
mak e progre ss very slow.
The heavy dependence of the Xeni Gwet’in on the public sector is both an advantage and
disadvantage in the face of climate change. Core public transfers to date have been relatively stable
and are likely to stay that way as long as the Xeni Gwet’in are governed by the Indian Act. This
means that the Xeni Gwet’in are somewhat insulated from the vagaries of the economy and the
effects that climate change may have on the economy. However, the dependence on public
transfers also limits the Xeni Gwet’in to a fairly low level of income, employment and investment. It
also
limits the level of community autonomy and the ability to pursue what it sees as its best
interests in terms of a response to climate change.
There are three potential growth sectors that the Xeni Gwet’in are interested in pursuing in the
future including: nature‐based aboriginal tourism, eco‐forestry & value‐added wood products and
natural/organic agriculture. Nature‐based aboriginal tourism development is the key focus at the
moment and involves plans for investments in guided tours, ceremonial meals and a destination
resort. 82 Eco‐forestry has also begun to be explored with the intention of focusing on small‐scale
ecosystem‐based conservation forestry83. Agriculture has not been closely examined but the
intention
is to build on the Xeni Gwet’in ranching heritage and explore new opportunities for niche
cultivation.
Climate
change will have a mixed impact on all three of these economic sectors.
Nature­base Aboriginal Tourism
Wild fire poses a risk to business property and livestock, the temporary loss of wildlife for hunting
and viewing, the loss of viewscapes, and the interruption of business operations. Warmer summers
also may result in more frequent open camp fires bans for campers. And warmer waters pose a risk
to fish stocks and therefore fishing tourism as well as the proposed cat‐skiing operation proposed.
On the other hand, wild fires could improve habitat for certain wildlife and thereby improve
opportunities
for hunting and wildlife viewing. And milder springs and falls could expand should
seasons
to make tourism more viable in the area.
Eco­Forestry & Value­added
The impacts of climate change on forests have been discussed in section 5.2. Suffice to say that
climate change could result in the destruction of significant amounts of merchantable and non‐
merchantable timber through wild fires and new pests, which could greatly reduce the potential for
forest harvests. However, climate change could also result in the new botanical opportunities
(mushrooms, berries etc) and it could, in the long‐run transform a large portion of the XGCA forest
into Douglas‐fir stands, which are typically more merchantable and of higher value than the current
lodgepole pine dominated forests. The proposed Silva ecosystem‐based forestry approach
proposes an annual volume cut of 783m
throughout the regio
3 distributed by selective and small batch cutting
throughout the “eco‐forestry zones of the region84, which would leave the forest ecosystem
essentially intact. As it is, the proposed approach does not account for the extensive fire risk
occurring n as a result of the beetle kill infestation nor the potential transition
82 Ecolibrio (2009).
83 Hammond and others (2004).
84 Hammond and others (2004).
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