Political and social ecology of contemporary Makah subsistence hunting, fishing and shellfish collecting practices (Washington)

This dissertation documents and analyzes the subsistence hunting, fishing, and shellfishing practices of the Makah Indian Tribe during 1997–1999. Ethnographic and survey data are employed to analyze contemporary uses of fish, shellfish, land mammals, marine mammals and birds. A random-sample survey of 15% of reservation households provides quantitative data for more than 51 different animal resource types, representing over 80 species. Results indicate that 99% of reservation households participated in subsistence activities in some manner during the survey year. The quantitative analysis includes an examination of per capita harvesting and consumption by resource, subsistence consumption as a proportion of the diet, and a comparison of contemporary species diversity to evidence of ancient and historical subsistence. The dissertation also examines contemporary subsistence in political, economic, and sociocultural contexts. An historical political ecology of tribal resource access (with special attention to fishing, sealing, and whaling) suggests that government policies which affect resource access should be considered as much as ecological factors in order to understand subsistence dynamics. A preliminary examination of economic issues indicates the role of subsistence foods in the local economy. Estimated replacement costs and contingent valuation provide information for assessing the economic value of subsistence, including a reassessment of the subsistence settlement resulting from 1991 oil spill. Sociocultural factors examined include the values, knowledge, and practices associated with the community's ongoing relationship with the local resource base. An in-depth analysis of sharing practices indicates that these play a key role in the distribution of subsistence goods and the maintenance of community social ties. The dissertation shows that subsistence activities are a pervasive and vital aspect of contemporary life in Neah Bay. They contribute to the social, cultural, economic, nutritional, and spiritual sustenance of the community as part of the long-term relationship between the tribe and its lands and waters.