Eastern Door Volume 6 Number 38

Volume 6 Number 38

October 24, 1997

Protest March at ADM site
By: Tom Dearhouse

As a result of the fall-out from Monday's community meeting, a small group of residents and motorists formed a second protest march against a grain distribution center connected with Archer Daniels Midland.

The group started up the hill at the Myiow residence, passed by the Council office on their way to the ADM site entrance behind Survival School, distributing material that questioned the Mohawk Council's motives for the ADM business and industrialization of Kahnawake in general.

According to the two page letter, every business to be proposed will come under some opposition for being an eyesore, a health risk, or a pollution risk that will eventually cause internal rebellion. This is slightly different than health and environment concerns of the school.

The alternative, the Mohawk Traditional Council suggests, is for Kahnawake to claim the Seigneury lands and use its industry and population as a tax base for funding.

At the start of the march, Stuart Myiow, Jr. said they would camp out until ADM removed themselves. Trucks and cars were parked around the entrance as the protesting group started a fire and passed coffee around to keep warm.

The march was peaceful the entire way. At the site talks were made with the ADM watchmen, Chief Davis Rice and consultant Pat Apikan looking on. What appeared to be a dividing line, an 'us against them' attitude was not the case, they said.

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A walk in the park
By: Tom Dearhouse

MCK participation as a partner in a fledgling aircraft maintenance company at Griffiss Business and Technology park in Rome, New York has a good chance of getting off the ground judging by the apparent good will, good business planning, and good potential discussed on Tuesday's gathering and in previous talks between the Romans and the Mohawks.

Grand Chief Joe Norton, along with 'point man' Frank Vieni of MCK have continued dialogue over the last few months with economic manager Mark F. Mojave of Griffiss Local Development Corporation (GLDC) and its chairman and board of directors. GLDC is leasing existing buildings on the former Griffiss Air Force Base (GAFB) and has plans that would see the Kahnawake Mohawks as 25 percent owners for their 4 million investment. All told the project needs an estimated 15 to 20 million to form Aviation Resources Incorporated (ARI). GLDC would ship in 4 million with other funds coming from NY state economic agencies.

Mojave said, "At this stage, the main task is getting to know one another and see what we can do to help each other." GLDC and Mojave consider the Mohawks' visit a return to their traditional territory and welcome that fact.

Grand Chief Norton told the business men it felt good in his heart to hear those words and see the actions leading up to the tour. He expressed confidence in the next six months where discussions could lead to a definite lease of the hangar building and then job creation and training to follow.

The company would repair and maintain various systems on small planes up to the larger 747s. The site would be a garage/repair shop with high tech mechanics for planes only.

The challenges for the Mohawk Council is to ensure the status of 25 percent ownership, to have a say in policy, and strive for worker incentives like tax-free salary and inexpensive housing, etc.

ARI estimates 300 total jobs in the first two years, up to 1000 total jobs in the next three to five years. Despite local worries that only Mohawks will get jobs (actually 25 percent based on investment), GLDC and workers at Rome Laboratory, a current tenant at the park, feel there will be enough work to go around.

Donald Campbell, Director of Airfield Operations, led the tour group and drew upon his expertise and experience as a former air man with the B-52 bomber and tanker wing. Now a civilian, Campbell is still affiliated with the base, and stands, like other former servicemen employed at the base, for his pride in his service time and the type and quality of work that got done in the base's heyday.

He showed the machine shop containing drill presses, lathes, saws and die-casting equipment. The shop workers made not only airplane parts but other pieces of all kinds, a sort of maintenance on the maintenance equipment.

Two technicians in the electronics shop said when the military was around, there was work 24 hours a day. There is still work for them checking batteries, generators and other equipment, but the current task of being a test facility means they stay small. They reminisced that they didn't and still don't have an AP license, a type of certification, but their work was checked by their supervisor and the work is okayed. They could get the job done and gained considerable hands-on knowledge that way.

Arthur Adams' job title is Production Controller, a liaison between technician and the engineers. Also a former Air Force serviceman, he has 25 years seniority at the base, the majority spent in the hangar being toured. Accompanying the group, he was very open to answer our questions and spoke proudly of the air base history.

The local Rome newspaper, the Daily Sentinel, was not allowed on the hangar site, separated by a fence from the rest of the park. They were seeking more facts on the whole story particularly the job and housing situations, and examining the political climate including Mohawk/Oneida and New York State relationships.

Park takes flight

GAFB was built in 1942 as a result of WW II, it had a B-52 bomber wing from 1958-1993, and was active up until three years ago when costs and military downsizing forced a closure.

The AFB was really a mini village in its prime, having dormitories, health and fitness center, a chapel, theater, fire station, bowling alley, barbershop, shoppette, beside the necessary items to run an air force base.

Upon closure, Rome went from a population of 47,000 to about 38,000 - approximately 5,000 military and civilian personnel were out of work. Air base workers also were drawn from the city of Utica (pop. 64,000) to the east.

Amidst the announcement the base would close, two things happened. In 1994, the Oneida Nation opened a hotel and casino near Verona, twenty minutes from Rome. The Oneida Nation filled a gap in the economy to become the leading employer in the area, providing 2,500 jobs.

The second thing is GLDC had the foresight to plan for the base closure and put something in its place, and the Griffiss Business and Technology park was born.

According to the airfield director, the cost of replication of all buildings and runways would be one billion dollars.

The NY Air National Guard still use the base, while business tenants include Rome Laboratories, a test facility' Orion Bus Industries, a production facility; Apex Manufacturing, a maker of vehicle parts; and TelTec, a communications equipment manufacturer, just to name a few.

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Editorial

Is the Kahnawake Survival School at risk?
By: Kenneth Deer, The Eastern Door

The current controversy over the ADM project and the opposition to it by the Kahnawake Survival School has raised the issue of the environment surrounding the school.

The concerns by KSS students, staff and parents over the environment, safety and health issues of the ADM project and their enthusiasm in bringing these issues to light is admirable. However, even if the ADM project is stopped, there could still be serious environmental dangers to our students.

The Department of Indian Affairs paid for a detailed site characterization, performed by a company called Soprin ADS, as part of the Crown's responsibility for the land. Portions of the 16 acres of land to be leased for ADM silos, were found to be contaminated with lead, ostensibly from the Nova lead recycling plant next door. The top eight inches of the soil had to be removed from approximately three acres of land. This oil was deposited outside Kahnawake in a specialized dump for contaminated materials. The removal cost was paid for by the Department of Indian Affairs.

The testing used to determine the lead content of that particular piece of land was not performed on the KSS grounds, which is closer to the Nova plant.

The number one concern that should be raised, regardless of the ADM project, is about the potential contamination of the land of the Survival School. There are no recent studies done to measure the accumulated residue from the Nova plant.

If the Department of Indian Affairs can do a study, at a cost of $40,000, for a company like ADM and then cover clean up costs as well, they should be able to do a study to protect our future generations.

A study should be immediately struck to investigate the land and air quality in and around the Survival School. If no contaminants are found in dangerous amounts, then there is no cause for alarm.

However, if it is determined that the health of our students and staff are at risk, then immediate action should be taken.

The first objective should be to stop the contamination by the plants on the borders of our community. If that can't be done than serious consideration should be given to moving the school.

The decision to move the school will not be an easy one to make. The Kahnawake Survival School is more than just a school. It is a symbol of what this community can accomplish when it decides to do something. In one of the most shining examples of community action, Kahnawake created the school in 1978 with no money, no staff, no books, no curriculum and no building. With the cooperation of community members, service clubs, and countless volunteers, a school was opened in defiance of the Quebec government and Bill 101.

The first temporary buildings for the school were located at the present site of the Golden Age Club. A year later, the school began to move to the present site of the old Bordeau farm, land that had been expropriated by the Seaway. The school was put at the borders of the community to prevent any further encroachment.

Many community members and students feel very strongly about the current site of the school. This writer also has similar feelings. But if it is proved that the health and safety of the students and staff of the Survival School are at risk, then it is more prudent to move the school to a safer environment somewhere else in the community.

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