Stevens Village tribal council purchases land for bison ranch
FAIRBANKS - The Stevens Village Tribal Council is planning to raise bison on 2,080 acres of land near Delta Junction.
The council bought the land with the help of a $775,000 loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The loan was issued through the federal agency's Indian Tribal Land Acquisition Program.
Stevens Village residents plan to start fencing the property this spring. The tribal council is shopping around for plains bison, said Dewey Schwalenberg, the council's natural resource director.
Plans call for starting with about 15 plains bison on 700 acres. The ultimate goal is 200 free-roaming bison on the entire property.
The project is not connected to a proposal to reintroduce wood bison to the Yukon Flats area. The animals will be used for meat in Stevens Village, and, as the herd grows, could be distributed to other Native communities, Schwalenberg said.
The bison likely will be purchased initially from the Delta area or Matanuska-Susitna area, but the tribal council might later consider bringing in animals from the Lower 48 if it can get a better deal, Schwalenberg said.
Randy Mayo, first chief for the tribal council, said the bison project is a step toward financial independence for the upper Yukon River community of about 85 people.
"We realize that we can't just live off the government," Mayo said. "We need to be self-sufficient and develop an economic base."
The purchase means a significant new asset for Stevens Village, a community that is heavily dependent on subsistence activities.
A bison in Alaska is worth $1,000 to $1,500, said Schwalenberg. In addition, he said, the project will provide at least two full-time jobs for Stevens Village residents and about a dozen seasonal positions.
Stevens Village resident Steve Hjelm will move into a house already located on the property and serve as the onsite manager of the range, said his brother, Peter Hjelm, the tribal council's financial officer.