Chief Charlie Williams and the Gwawaenuk community are is working on an extensive program of revitalization and has the village site of Hopetown, B.C., on Watson Island, coming back to life, “We began August 20, 2010, with a team of archaeologists and experienced assistance, with the main purpose of starting to dig in sensitive areas containing human remains, then remediation of sites containing fuel tanks,” says Chief Williams.
The project purpose is to remediate or clean over 3,000 m3 of diesel contaminated soil from Heg’ums the Gwawaenuk traditional and current main village site. Being the main village it is also a 4000 year old archaeology site. It’s a large team of archaeologists and labourers working under Gwawaenuk, Hartley Odwak’s Sources Archaeological, Heritage Consultants, Hazco contamination Services, SLR Environmental Services and KWL Engineering.
The project got legs once the remediation of defunct fuel storage facilities was approved and funded by INAC’s Contamination Site Management Program administered by Brad Reshetylo. The ultimate purpose is to revitalize the a community and begin the process of eventually re-building so people can return home year-round that was in a relatively moribund state of existence. The Hopetown project has hired Senior Sustainable Community Planner, a planner in Cari St. Pierre who has a close association with the Gwawaenuk of Hopetown since 2004.
The chief says, “The project came about after two years of community meetings long before the men and equipment began to assemble, and we had the usual minor glitches to deal with. There was a muddle of things including a decrepit electrical generation system, a lot of 45 gallon fuel drums, and a major clean-up of the village site.” Essentially the Gwawaenuk people of Hopetown are dealing with a six-acre village site on Indian Reserve property that was their home due east of Port Hardy since time immemorial.
The project is assisted on the environmental responsibilities by HAZCO Environmental and that company hired nine has hired 13 of the approximate 32 workers directly from the Gwawaenuk Tribe and neighbouring Tribes of Guildford, Alert Bay and Kingcome to complete the project. Many of these people are working for Sources and have previous local archaeology experience so they can people from the First Nations to assist in the remediation of a 4,000 year old site of human habitation. , and First Nations are also on hand to supply first aid personnel. The process is geared toward completion by October 31, 2010.
As part of the community 10 year comprehensive and strategic plan “Then we move to the community, infrastructure, housing and economic development planning phase, and that will take the next four to seven years to complete,” , says Chief Williams. The chief notes, “Hopetown was kept alive by Henry and Julia Speck, an elder of Gwawaenuk elders who never gave up the site. Because of Henry and Julia we are able to be in Hopetown doing the right thing by our nation.”
Part of the community revitalization is a move towards 24hour power and eventually green renewable The community will be revitalized by new technology in green energy to supply cleaner energy to for new housing and community facilities. Project Manager and Senior Planner St. Pierre says, “This energy system is will be a hybrid green energy system suitable to applicable to remote areas, supplied by Energy Alternatives.”
Cari notes that the project includes remediation of the village an important creek in Heg’ums on Watson Island, “bringing the creek back to Salmon-bearing standards is another . That is an exciting outcome of the remediation project for the community.” prospect in its own right.”