Native foods

Tribes try to preserve their food heritage

By Culinate staff

March 5, 2009

A group of Native American tribes in eastern Oregon and Washington are building their land-management strategy around traditional foods — in this case, salmon, wild game, roots, berries, and water. Good idea, right? Except that preserving the habitats and health of these food sources doesn’t always match other tribal goals, such as generating energy from wind farms (constructing and maintaining the turbines can affect habitat for game, roots, and berries). And trying to restore waterways to health (and thus salmon runs) can clash with agricultural uses for that water. Bummer.