Mission:

The mission of the Nvn-nvst-'aa~-ta (Natural Resources) Department is to preserve and protect the natural and cultural resources of both the Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation and Tolowa aboriginal territory. The Department honors this mission through a number of programs and services, all working towards the goal of promoting culturally appropriate stewardship of Tribal lands, water, air and resources.

Overview:

The Nvn-nvst-'aa~-ta Department houses the primary scientific data collectors and technical advisors for issues and management decisions pertaining to tribal resources within the aboriginal territory. This includes, but is not limited to, water quality, solid waste, recycling, fisheries, habitat, wildlife, marine, cultural resource protection and repatriation, as well as emergency management. While many of these resource responsibility areas are housed within individual Divisions (listed below), the accomplishments of this Department are due to the willingness and ability of all NR staff to work in all Division areas.

Goals:

The mission of the Nvn-nvst-'aa~-ta (Natural Resources) Department is to preserve and protect the natural and cultural resources of both the Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation and Tolowa aboriginal territory. The Department honors this mission through management of projects and provision of services by the:

•  Stlh-xat-dvn (Habitat and Wildlife Division),
•  Lhuk-dvn (Fisheries Division), 
• Si~s-xaa-dvn (Marine Division), 
• Tribal Heritage Preservation Office Division (THPO)
• Emergency Management Division
• Nvn-nvst-'aa~-ta (Natural Resources Department) administrative staff. 

Together, our staff work daily towards the goal of promoting culturally appropriate stewardship of Tribal lands, water, air and resources, including administration of the TDN Title 16: Harvest Title. Department staff work under the guidance of TDN Strategic Plan goals 2, 4, 5 and 6 (listed below):

• Goal 2: Engage with the larger community to build relationships and create a strong tribal community; 

• Goal 4: Ensure a healthy and balanced environment that sustains Dee-ni' lifeways and the earth;

• Goal 5: Reclaim and revitalize Tolowa Dee-ni' Identity by supporting traditional lifeway, community and our language; 

• Goal 6: Support overall wellness grounded in our traditional philosophy and identity.

Strategic goals are used to inform a five-year Tribal Environmental Plan (TEP), which provides a vision and direction to the Natural Resources Department for program, service, and function delivery across the Department for the next five (5) years. Through an extensive planning process that included input from Tribal citizens, Natural Resources Department staff and Tribal Council identified priorities for building capacity to address Tribal needs.

The TEP is developed with support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tribal Region 9. The EPA manages federal environmental programs in Indian Country, unless and until tribes have assumed regulatory and program management authorities to do so. EPA will assist interested tribal governments in assuming regulatory and program management responsibilities for those programs that have delegable responsibilities, and thus work closely with Department staff to build environmental program capacity in areas prioritized by the TEP. The TEP is reviewed and approved by Tribal Council and the Environmental Protection Agency (specific to those responsibility areas that intersect with EPA’s own). Annual work plans for each program and individual staff are developed using the Council-approved TEP.

Plans and documents:

• TDN Tribal Environmental Plan (current)
• TDN Tribal Code Title 16- Harvest Title
• Harvest Application