Jim Pomfret, Georgia Department of Transportation

1. Consultation With Non-
Resident Tribes
Georgia Department of
Transportation
Jim Pomfret, Tribal Liaison

2. Federally-Recognized Tribes Affiliated with Georgia
 GDOT/FHWA Consults with 18 Federally-Recognized Tribal
Governments consisting of different towns and
bands, associated with the
Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and
Shawnee Indians.
 All are culturally affiliated with Georgia and consider all
or parts of it their ancestral homeland.
 Due to Historic Land Sessions (1733-1836) and Forced
Removal in 1836, all 18 tribes are now non-resident.
 Tribes are currently located in FL, NC, AL, LA, TX, and OK
 Tribes are located 150-800 miles from Atlanta

3. Atlanta to Bloomsburg750 mi

4. Brief History of Tribal Consultation at GDOT/FHWA
 1992-1999 – Tribal consultation policy was “reactive” only done
where there was a perceived controversy or if a concern was raised by
a tribe.
 In 1999 the 106 regulations were amended to specifically require
tribal consultation throughout the 106 process.
 Early 2000’s – Tribal consultation became a more proactive
policy, where tribes were now involved in every step of the 106
process. Baseline relationships were established and each tribe was
consulted regarding needs and concerns in relation to the 106 process.
 Tribes were treated as necessary and equal partners, integral
to our success
Relationships became stronger; building trust and respect
 Basic consultation protocols developed with each tribe

5. Consultation 2010 - Present
 Wanted to build on the strong foundation that was set in the 2000’s
 Main Goal - Despite having good relationships with most THPOs and
HPOs, we had never had face-to-face meetings with many of them, not
never as a group. Wanted to explore the possibility of holding a Tribal
Summit (ala PennDOT 2003).
 Other primary goals were to:
 explore ways to help shrink the distance gap
 increase participation in mitigation
 fine tune existing protocols

6. 2011 Inter-Tribal Consultation Meeting at TBAG
 Helped achieve goal of meeting face to face with all tribal partners in an effort
to further strengthen relationships.
 GDOT/FHWA funded up to two people from each tribe to attend the day long
meeting on the Monday of TBAG as well as the entire TBAG meeting.
 Meeting Agenda was developed by the entire group, including discussion
topics and individual presentations.
 Agenda included topics such as: Meaningful Consultation, Involving Tribes
Earlier, Collection, Tribal Knowledge of Important Places, CSD, Public
Outreach, Plant Gathering, etc.
 Day long round-table format with catered breaks and lunch.
 Resulted in 10 action items for follow up (still working on 1 or 2).

10. Distance Gap
Webinars
GoToMeeting
Public Outreach: Leake Trial Project
Important Project Issues
Provides a forum for holding
Intertribal meetings and
Sharing information with live
feedback.
To date this has proved to be a very
effective consultation tool. Much
more dynamic and instantaneous
than email or snail mail.
Worked through some interesting comments such as “what do we want to call
ourselves” prehistoric vs. pre-contact, etc.

11. Distance Gap
Video
Provides information to the tribes quickly and
can be more informative than email and snail
mail.
Young Harris Petroglyph
- found during Phase I archaeological survey.
While consultant was still in the field, was able to
get a site tour video to the tribes within 48 hours
of the discovery. Placed on secure YouTube site
and link emailed to all tribes. Followed up with
intertribal webinar.
- Received great feedback from the tribes. Very
appreciative of the video.

13. Mitigation
 Invited all tribes to actively participate in the Data Recovery of an Archaic
period archaeological site.
 Tribes were offered the ability to visit the site and participate in
excavation and also lab activities (artifact processing, analysis, etc.).
 The Muscogee (Creek) Nation sent three members from their Historic
Preservation Office, including THPO.
 The Muscogee (Creek) Nation spent three days at the site, observing,
actively participating, and discussing the site with archaeologists and
geomorphologists.
 The visit created an opportunity for a two-way sharing of knowledge that
was greatly appreciated by both sides; scientific field methods from the
archaeologists (dirt!) and tribal knowledge from the MCN.

17. Future Goals
 Pursue Tribal Consultation Protocol Agreements with all 18 tribes (17 to
go!) As of now most agreements are informal (email, verbal, etc.)
 Increase participation in mitigation. Involve high school or college age
tribal members. Paid internships?
 Explore ways to provide access to Native Plants for tribes.
TBAG 20??