Assessing Possible Cruise Ship Impacts on Huna Tlingit Ethnographic Resources in Glacier Bay

• Main Authors: Deur, Douglas, Thornton, Thomas
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: PDXScholar 2014
• Subjects: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Alaska); Tlingit Indians > Alaska > Social life and customs; Tlingit Indians > Alaska > Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve; Social and Cultural Anthropology; Sustainability; glacier; glaciers; tlingit; Alaska
• Online Access: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/anth_fac/102; https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/context/anth_fac/article/1099/viewcontent/Deur_Thornton_GLBA_Cruise_Ship_Impacts_on_Huna_Ethnographic_Resources_Final.pdf

This report provides a thematic summary of an ethnographic study addressing the effects of cruise ships within Glacier Bay proper on the people known as the Huna Tlingit. Occupying the heart of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Glacier Bay proper is considered to be the core homeland of Huna Tlingit. The Huna occupied the Bay prior to its most recent glaciation and, though they now live nearby in Hoonah and other communities, they have continued to use, occupy, and value the lands and waters within the Bay since the glaciers began to retreat over two centuries ago. Simultaneously, since the designation of Glacier Bay as a unit of the National Park Service, Glacier Bay proper has become the focal point of a thriving tourist industry, with most park visitors arriving in the Bay by cruise ship. In past consultation, Huna representatives have expressed to NPS staff that cruise ships have various adverse effects on lands, resources, and values that are of concern to Huna people. Also, in recent years, the NPS has identified locations within Glacier Bay proper that appear to be eligible for designation as “Traditional Cultural Properties†(TCPs), a type of property that is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places by virtue of its cultural and historical importance to the Huna Tlingit. In light of the presence of these TCPs, as well as a variety of other federal mandates, the NPS must assess the potential adverse effects of park operations on lands and resources of importance to Huna Tlingit— including park specific vessel quotas and operating requirements that set limits on the number and operation of cruise ships. Recognizing this, the NPS initiated the current study to systematically identify the scope and nature of the impacts of cruise ship traffic on lands and resources of importance to Huna people, to illuminate the cultural context of those impacts, and to recommend potential avenues for minimizing or mitigating any adverse effects. No fewer than 50 Huna Tlingit served as ...