AILSA CHANG, HOST:
The emerald ash borer is an invasive pest that's killing ash trees across North America, and it's threatening the practice of basketmaking for Indigenous tribes that rely on the wood. North Country Public Radio's Ana Williams-Bergen reports.
(SOUNDBITE OF AXES THUNKING)
ANA WILLIAMS-BERGEN, BYLINE: It's a clear and sunny day at the Akwesasne Mohawk Reservation. People are gathered to watch men pound ash logs with the butts of their axes. Tyler Curleyhead wears thick work gloves as he pounds.
TYLER CURLEYHEAD: Yep. Start at the small end, and I make my way down to the big end, about inch and a half, 2 inches wide. You get the white layers there.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: Akwesasne Mohawks have been pounding logs like this for generations. It makes the fibers peel right up in long, thin strips called splint, the main material for weaving baskets. Work baskets are durable, made for practical use. People also make fancy baskets that are more delicate, often featuring bright colors and intricate designs.
Like many traditional practices, basketmaking became a lot less common in the era of residential schools and assimilation. But some Akwesasne elders still remember when log pounding was a big part of community life.
TEKAHIOKEN: Usually on Saturday mornings, it would start. You'd hear that pounding - pum-pum (ph).
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: That's Tekahioken. He's touched to see more people making baskets again.
TEKAHIOKEN: You might as well say it's a sacred lost art. And you don't want that kind of stuff to disappear, just like our language. It's keeping our culture alive.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: But there's an issue - the emerald ash borer, an invasive species first detected here in 2016. Jessica Rasphita works for the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe's Environment Division.
JESSICA RASPITHA: The larvae bore underneath the bark, and they eat the vascular tissues of the tree, which is the same part of the tree that we use to create splint. It's killing the wood.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: Ash trees are used in basketmaking by tribes across the Northeast. And emerald ash borer is even more widespread. It's been detected in 36 states and five Canadian provinces. Most trees die within two to four years of infestation, and the USDA blames the borer for the death and decline of tens of millions of trees. Indigenous groups have been fighting to access and protect their environmental resources since colonization. But as the pace of environmental change quickens, Raspitha says, the stakes are growing.
RASPITHA: 'Cause a lot of our traditional practices are tied so deeply and historically to our natural resources - and so when one of those resources is under threat, the cultural practice itself is also under threat.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: Angello Johnson is a sixth-generation basketmaker. He's using an axe inherited from the great uncle who taught him to pound logs as a kid.
ANGELLO JOHNSON: It's just so heartbreaking. And this craft, I really love so much. And to see it threatened - you know, it may not be here for the next generation - just really struck a chord in me.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: The Saint Regis Mohawk tribe is a leader in efforts to combat emerald ash borer. They inject trees with insecticide, release predatory wasps and save seeds for replanting. This summer, they did something they've never done before. They cut down 50 basket-grade trees to harvest the splint before borers infested them. But they also need to carry on the knowledge of this craft. Johnson says, it's his mission to teach basketmaking to Akwesasne's youth.
JOHNSON: They just can't wait to get home and show their parents, grandparents. Just to make that connection, you know, from generation to generation is just an amazing thing.
WILLIAMS-BERGEN: That connection relies on a resource that's becoming scarce as the emerald ash borer spreads. He hopes the tribe can keep the borer at bay long enough to pass the craft on to the next generation. For NPR News, I'm Ana Williams-Bergen in Northern New York.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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