Vera J. Francis is a Native American educator, environmental activist, and community planner for the Passamaquoddy people. She resides in

Perry, Maine Perry is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States, on the Canada–United States border. At the 2020 census, the town had a population of 802. History Once part of Plantation T1 TS, the area was settled in 1758 by John Frost, who b ...

within the Passamaquoddy Pleasant Point Reservation (Sipayik). Francis writes and speaks frequently about environmental issues and tribal politics in newspapers, at conferences and on websites. As part of the non-profit N'tutlankeyutmonen N'kihtaqmikon, Francis has advocated for the environmental preservation of Pleasant Point-Passamaquoddy ancestral territory. Because Passamaquoddy ancestral homeland is now divided by the

Canada–United States border The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...

along the St. Croix River, Francis has been involved with legal proceedings concerning both countries' governments, including litigation between the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

, members of the Passamaquoddy-Pleasant Point (Sipayik) Reservation, and Liquefied Natural Gas company Quoddy Bay LNG.

Quoddy Bay LNG and N'tutlankeyutmonen N'kihtaqmikon

In June 2005, Oklahoma Company Quoddy Bay LNG L.L.C. received ground lease approval to be used for the construction of a liquefied natural gas processing and transfer terminal. This lease was acquired through land use approval by the U.S.

, despite prior legal agreements explicitly granting internal control to the Passamaquoddy tribes, per the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980. The terminal was to be built on Passamaquoddy tribal land held in trust between the BIA and the Passamaquoddy. Though initial approval was facilitated by the BIA, a final vote by tribal members was necessary to approve the lease. Five months later, Francis' advocacy group Ntulankeyutmonen Nkitahkomikon (NN) entered legal proceedings with Quoddy Bay LNG, citing that despite tribal voting, the lease agreement was improperly approved between the BIA and the Passamaquoddy based on previous land rights. NN has continued to make the claim that Pleasant Point Reservation and surrounding Passamaquoddy territory be used to generate an environmentally sound economy. Following three years of legal debate between NN and Quoddy Bay LNG, the United States

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the United States federal agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas in interstate commerce and regulates the transportation of oil by pipeline in ...

dismissed Quoddy Bay's application for the LNG terminal after the company failed to provide sufficient environmental research. FERC's October 2008 decision to dismiss the application without prejudice granted the potential for Quoddy Bay LNG to resubmit materials for FERC approval at a later date, thus delaying the project independently from tribal intervention. Because the issue of Passamaquoddy tribal land ownership remained outstanding, legal proceedings continued. The Maine Federal District Court established after lengthy legal proceedings that the Quoddy Bay case undergo administrative appeal through the Interior Board of Indian Appeals. With proper jurisdiction, IBIA judge Deborah G. Luther ruled the original lease agreement invalid, recognizing that the BIA had violated its own rules against lease of tribal land. On June 9, 2009, the Passamaquoddy tribal council voted unanimously to end its lease with Quoddy Bay LNG. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission notes that Quoddy Bay LNG has not refiled for environmental approval, thus ending any iteration of the project.

Publications

Defending the Rights of the Passamaquoddy.
Speech. 2008 ''New Brunswick Social Forum''. New Brunswick, Canada. Archive.org. The Internet Archive, 14 Nov. 2008. 1 Apr. 2013.
LNG Opinion.
''Yahoo! Groups''. Yahoo!, 29 Aug. 2004. 01 Apr. 2013.
Passamaquoddy Group Demands Delay of Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal and More Information...
''

Cultural Survival Quarterly Cultural Survival (founded 1972) is a nonprofit group based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, which is dedicated to defending the human rights of indigenous peoples. History Cultural Survival was founded by anthropologist David Maybur ...

'' 28.4 (2004): n. pag. Cultural Survival. Cultural Survival.org, 7 May 2010. Web. 1 Apr. 2013.

References

External links

Vera Francis-Receipt of NCRM 2010 People's Choice AwardNews From Indian Country-Native News Update May 5, 2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Vera Living people 21st-century American journalists 21st-century American writers 21st-century Native Americans 21st-century Native American women Native American people from Maine Native American journalists Native American writers Year of birth missing (living people)