Dave Sullivan
Northern News Services

Fort Smith (Nov 19/01) - Salt River First Nation's 728 residents will get $83.18 million if the majority vote for a land claim settlement initialed Nov. 15.

- $83.16 million will be paid out over five years - Each SRFN member will receive a $3,000 cash payment early next year. - $73.3 million is earmarked for a trust fund. Up to $15 million of that can be used for business loans. Other amounts are specified for infrastructure, education and survey work. - $4 million will repay money loaned by the federal government for negotiations

In addition to cash, land which is part of the deal will make one of the world's largest parks a little smaller. Just under 14 square kilometres in four parts of Wood Buffalo National Park will be handed over to Salt River First Nation. That's .03 per cent its total size. Last May, 1,000 hectares of the park was given to the aboriginals of nearby Fort Fitzgerald in Alta., as part of a similar land claim settlement.

Economic development officer Richard Power says Fort Smith has already experienced a mini-boom from that $30 million cash settlement, with the construction of many new houses. The latest agreement with Salt River is "a real shot in the arm, especially if they can get it before Christmas," he said.

About 30 housing lots near downtown Fort Smith will also be turned over as part of the Salt River settlement, in addition to several larger lots on Fort Smith's outskirts. Many SRFN members live in the town. Land throughout 20 other NWT locations is also part of the proposal.

Negotiated in earnest since Salt River First Nation leaders submitted a claim in 1999, the settlement will be voted on by members Dec. 17-19. The claim was based on 1899's Treaty 8.

In 1992 the federal government accepted that it had to negotiate with SRFN, but talks had floundered by 1996.

In a newsletter, Chief Jim Schaefer urges members to accept the deal, saying it will "give our band the land, resources and opportunities that we are currently lacking."

Salt River finance clerk Tanya Tourangeau said "there's a lot of excitement in the community." Shaefer and others did not return phone calls.

SRFN members who don't agree with the settlement can attempt on their own to negotiate the use - but not ownership - of 160 acres of land, the amount Treaty 8 promised to each aboriginal.