Reclaiming Ohi:yo'- Restoring the Altered Landscape of the Beautiful River Main Menu Welcoming Front page for this Digital Exhibit. The Seneca Nation of Indians We call ourselves Onödowá'ga:' (oh-non-doh-wah!-gawh!), which means "People of the Great Hill". We are one of six other nations that collectively call ourselves Hodinöhsö:ní (hoh-dee-nonh-sonh-neeh!), meaning "People of the Longhouse". Ohi:yo' Ohi:yo', our Beautiful River, has always been our home and source of nourishment. The Kinzua Dam Project Our elders fought for our land and sovereignty in the 1950s and 1960s. They fought to stop the construction of Kinzua Dam. The Allegheny Reservoir The reservoir has altered the landscape, ecosystem, and our interactions with Ohi:yo. The Allegheny Reservoir: A Visual Depiction of Water Levels At times of water storage the water depth of the river channel is approximately 26 feet, with as little as 6 to 8 feet of water during the winter months. The Significance of Kinzua to our Seneca People The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in collaboration with the U.S. federal government built Kinzua Dam between 1960 and 1965. Kinzua Era Timelines This page provides two different temporal representations of the Kinzua Era (1956-1966). Kinzua Dam's Environmental Impacts The creation of Kinzua Dam has had lasting environmental impacts on our land and water. Learn more here. Ohi:yo' Restoration and Resiliency Projects Members of the Seneca Nation's Watershed Resources Working Group are involved in various restoration and resiliency projects for our Ohi:yo'. The Seneca Nation's Fish and Wildlife Department in particular engages in projects related to building artificial habitat, repopulating our river's Walleye population, and building trenches to help land locked fish. Seneca Nation Fish and Wildlife Department The Nation's Fish and Wildlife Department engages in restoration and resiliency projects related to Ohi:yo'. Fighting for the Water: Fracking Wastewater in Ohi:yo' In 2016 the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) began deliberating a 1,000-barrel/day of unconventional gas drilling wastewater (Frack Wastewater) disposal facility in Potter County proposed by Epiphany Allegheny LLC. In response to the news of these fracking plans, our Seneca people again fought for our people, our communities, and our Ohi:yo'. A Legacy of Resilience We will continue on. Access and Use Rights For our full statement on rights and use of our exhibit contents see this page. About this Exhibit This page contains information about our intra-Nation departmental collaborations and exhibit acknowledgements. This exhibit was published by the Seneca-Iroquois National Museum, 2018.

Additional Resources

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The following are additional resources that can provide more in-depth information that is perhaps not included within our exhibit. 

Blue-Green Algal Blooms

USGS. 2018. Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs). Online at: https://www.usgs.gov/centers/oki-water/science/harmful-algal-blooms

EPA. 2015a. Nutrient Policy and Data/ Control and Treatment [of cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms]. Accessed online at: http://www2.epa.gov/nutrient-policy-data/control-and-treatment

Visser, P.M., J.M.H. Verspagen, G. Sandrini, L.J. Stal, H.C.P. Matthijs, T.W. DAVIS, H.W. Paerl, and J. Huisman. 2016. How rising CO2 and global warming may stimulate harmful cyanobacterial blooms. Harmful Algae 54:145-159 (DOI:10.1016/j.hal.2015.12.006).

Song, H., L.X. Coggins, E.S.Reichwaldt, and A. Ghadouani. 2015. The Importance of Lake Sediments as a Pathway for Microcystin Dynamics in Shallow Eutrophic Lakes. Toxins 7:900-918.

United States Department of Agriculture. 2007. Allegheny National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan.

NYSDEC. 2016a. Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). Online at: http://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/77118.html

Environmental Impacts 

NYSDEC. 2017. Impacts of Climate Change in New York. Online at: http://www.dec.ny.gov/energy/94702.html

Soil Survey Staff, Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Web Soil Survey. Available online at the following link: https://websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov/.

GIS Dept. Story Map, Available online at: Today's Allegany Territory Overlayed by 1960's pre-Kinzua Dam Aerial Imagery.

GIS Dept. Story Map, Seneca Nation of Indians-WRWG Application, Available online at: https://gisportal.sni.org/portal/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=f5f94a7ec60a49e19c6692f5a871abca​

Invasive Species

NRCS. 2007. Managing Japanese Knotweed, Factsheet #4. Online at: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_017951.pdf

NYSDEC. 2014. 6NYCRR Part 575, Prohibited and Regulated Invasive Species. Online at: http://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/lands_forests_pdf/islist.pdf

Seneca Nation of Indians. 1999. Cultural Plants and Trees – A study of the proposed US Route 219 Corridor.

Restoration and Resiliency Projects 

Seneca Nation. 2017a. Seneca Nation of Indians Fish Hatchery. Online at: http://www.senecaconservation.com/senecaconservation.com/Fish_Hatchery.html

Fracking along Ohi:yo' Headwaters

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Mar 18, 2018. At Allegheny River's headwaters, treatment plant for fracking wastewater stirs debate. Online at: http://www.post-gazette.com/powersource/companies/2018/03/18/Seneca-Nation-Allegheny-River-shale-gas-fracking-drilling-wastewater-epiphany-pittsburgh-potter/stories/201803080213

Buffalo's NPR News Station WBFO 88.7. Mar 22, 2018. Discharge plan could harm the Allegheny River and the life it supports. Online at: ​http://news.wbfo.org/post/discharge-plan-could-harm-allegheny-river-and-life-it-supports

The Niagara Reporter. Jan 26, 2018. Proposal to dump Pegula Frackwater in Allegheny River upstream of NY's southern tier advances. Online at: http://niagarafallsreporter.com/proposal-dump--frackwater-allegheny-river-upstream-new-york-states-southern-tier-advances/

Olean Times Herald. Jan 27, 2018. Senecas call for denial of proposed wastewater treatment facility in Potter Co. Online at: http://www.oleantimesherald.com/news/senecas-call-for-denial-of-proposed-wastewater-treatment-facility-in/article_44ebde3c-0318-11e8-8fbf-af2b6b37bc9d.html

Environmental Health News. Mar 30, 2018. Seneca Nation takes on Pittsburgh startup to defend the Allegheny River. Online at: https://www.ehn.org/new-york-tribe-takes-on-pittsburgh-startup-to-defend-the-allegheny-river-2554105551.html