Quileute Tribe Wants To Expand Their Land

Most of the time we don't post on news articles, but this one I had to do. I think that we need to do what we can as Twilight fans to help them. Leave your ideas in the comment section to see what we can come up with!---Ashes

The Quileute tribe wants to move its village to higher ground because of concerns over a possible tsunami from earthquakes around the Pacific Ocean.

Here is some info --


"The number one priority is moving our children — the schoolchildren — up to higher ground," says tribal chairwoman Bonita Cleveland. "Our school is right on the ocean."

Also near the water — and thus, potentially at risk — is the tribal senior center, several churches and the tribal headquarters.

But there's a big problem with moving them. As Cleveland points out, the tribal village is already built right up to the edge of the tiny reservation. On the other side of the line is majestic Olympic National Park.

"Back in the day, our ancestors moved along this land freely," Cleveland says. "They moved up and down this coast. Today, we can't do that."

Only Congress can adjust the boundaries of a national park. And it's done that before — in December, lawmakers gave the nearby Hoh Indian Tribe a sliver of Olympic park land. That tribe is now planning its move out of the tsunami zone.

But the Quileutes are asking for much more land: about 785 acres of the national park, some of it designated wilderness. And to help its cause, the tribe is seeking to enlist an unusual ally: the huge fan base of the Twilight vampire saga.

"Helping the Quileute Tribe move their facilities 800 feet up and out of the tsunami zone is the primary purpose of this legislation," she said. "However, it will ensure visitors access to Second Beach, Rialto Beach, and preserve thousands of acres of Olympic National Park as wilderness."

There's no organized opposition to the move, so the tribe's main challenge now is to keep the attention of the busy Congress long enough to get its bill passed. Then the next hurdle will be to find the money to relocate to higher ground on the Olympic Peninsula




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