Bison to once again roam lands around Batoche, Sask., after deal inked

In a year's time, bison will once again roam the lands around Batoche, Sask., after an agreement between theMtis Nation-Saskatchewanand Parks Canada.

The MN-S signed a memorandum of understanding with the federal agency on Friday to transfer 24 bison from Grasslands National Park, in southwestern Saskatchewan,to the festival grounds at Batoche, about 80 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon, near the end of 2023.

The return of the bison holds "enormous cultural significance" to Mtis people, said the MN-S, which representsMtis citizens in Saskatchewan.

Hunting bison in the early daysof the fur trade "allowed Mtis people to develop land-based skills that are in practice today for many Mtis families and provide economic stability," the Mtis Nation-Saskatchewan said in a Friday news release.

Mtis Nationvice-president Michelle LeClair said the hope is for the herd to grow to 150 bison, which can beused for food and educational purposes.

"For us the value is going back to some of the traditional ways," she said at a signing ceremony Friday.

"Food security is a big one. Being able to process the bison, all of those kinds of things become part of that cultural value."

Young people will be able to learn hunting, harvesting and processing techniques fromelders once the bison are back on Batoche lands, theMtis Nation said.

Earlier this year,the MN-S and the federal government came to an agreement to transfer 690 hectares of Batoche Historic Site lands to the Mtis people of Saskatchewan.

Batoche,founded in 1872 bya Mtis merchant, has "deep cultural, spiritual and historic significance" forMtispeople in Saskatchewan, the federal government said in a statement announcing the agreement earlier this year.

The area was where,inMay 1885, Mtis leaders Louis Riel, Gabriel Dumont and a Mtis provisional government made their last stand againstarmed federal government forces.

Some bison from thegrowingherd in Grasslands National Park will be moved to a portion of the Batochelands that were transferred.

"In order to maintain herd health, every second year we translocate bison out of the park to maintain our target numbers of 500 to 650 bison individuals in the park," said Parks Canada superintendent Genevieve Jones.

The Grasslands herd, which was established in 2005, hasgrown to 400 to 500 bison,and can now help establish new herds, according to Parks Canada.