Foreword to The Value of Lakes Around the Secwepemc Territory

I am pleased to provide a brief forward to the book, The Value of Lakes Around the Secwepemc Territory, by Peter Tsigaris and his graduate students. Firstly, I am not an economist, nor am I knowledgeable about the field of environmental economics.  I do, however, have some experience, from a First Nations perspective, on the importance of having a way of valuing natural resources within First Nations territories that is understood and agreed on by First Nations and various levels of government.

The book examines and valuates several lakes in the Kamloops area, using an internationally established valuation system to provide a basis from which both the public and government policymakers can logically approach the challenge of maintaining or improving the ecological benefits of these resources. The selection of the benefit transfer valuation method is appropriate for the research, and the assumptions utilized in this method are clear. I believe most people are familiar with the notion of cost/benefit in making personal decisions and also understand government agencies using a similar approach for developing public policy. I agree with Peter that “even using the most conservative valuation, lakes constitute a very large and important part of our total wealth.” The valuations of the lakes in this book give greater meaning to the common view that lakes are valuable assets.

The attention given to Indigenous views in this book, concurrent with the recent recognition of First Nations rights by federal and provincial jurisdictions, is a welcome addition. As issues related to the negotiation of First Nations titles and rights gain prominence in public and inter-governmental discourse, the requirement for assessing the value of natural resources within First Nations’ traditional territories becomes increasingly relevant.  The valuation methodology applied in this book can contribute to negotiations related to natural resource benefit sharing and redress. The methodology can quantify restitution and compensation when implementing Article 28 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) which states, “Indigenous peoples have the right to redress, by means that can include restitution or, when this is not possible, just, fair and equitable compensation, for the lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally owned or otherwise occupied or used, and which have been confiscated, taken, occupied, used or damaged without their free, prior and informed consent.”

Considering the pressures to develop areas in and around lakes, the subject matter and research methodology of this book are particularly timely. The placing of a monetary value on lakes that includes the value of ecosystem services clearly shows that lakes provide more economic value than adjacent real property. The research completed and data produced for this book provide useful tools in lakes-related planning in the future.

Dr. Nathan Matthew
Former Chancellor of Thompson Rivers University and currently Chancellor Emeritus