AKWESASNE – (Seskehkó:wa/September 24, 2025) The Tribal Council has recently been made aware that tribal members approached guards at the NYPA facilities on Barnhart Island asking where they could hunt on the Island. This Notice is being issued to provide information and clarification to tribal members on this issue to the extent that tribal members are seeking to hunt (or trap, fish, boat or gather) under the pending Tribal-State Land Claim Settlement Agreement.
The issue of “Island Access” for hunting and trapping, fishing and boating and gathering is addressed in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that the parties to the Land Claim Settlement Agreement have signed and is now pending before Congress. We expect that it will be passed sometime, hopefully before the end of the year. Currently, there is no agreement between the Tribe and NYS and NYPA on any of these issues until the Settlement is finalized.
Specially with respect to Barnhart Island, certain areas defined in Section B. 1. a and b are open to “bowhunting” by tribal members subject to state regulation. But tribal members are not required to obtain a state license and violations of “Mohawk standards” will be enforced by the “Akwesasne Mohawks”.
Upon Congressional approval of the Settlement, the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Council will be working together to develop Akwesasne Mohawk Standards that will govern hunting, trapping and fishing activities of Akwesasne Mohawks on and around Barnhart Island.
It is also important to note that nothing in the Settlement Agreement shall alter or diminish any treaty, statutory, contractual or aboriginal hunting, fishing, trapping and/or gather rights of the Akwesasne Mohawks.
To stay up-to-date on Tribe, please visit our website: www.srmt-nsn.gov
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The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Council is the duly elected and federally recognized government of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe.