U.S. v. State of Washington

Page 618

135 F.3d 618

28 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,619, 98 Cal. Daily Op.

Serv. 717,

98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 1087

UNITED STATES of America; Muckleshoot Tribe; Nooksack;

Upper Skagit; Squaxin Island; Lummi Indian Tribe; Makah

Tribe; Tulalip Tribe; Swinomish Indian Tribal Community;

Quileute Indian Tribe; Puyallup Tribe; Hoh Indian Tribe;

Suquamish Tribe; Quinault Indian Nation; Confederated

Tribes & Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation; Nisqually

Indian Tribe; Jamestown Tribe; Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe;

Port Gamble Bands; Skokoish Tribe; Sauk-Suiattle Tribe;

Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, Defendant-Appellant.

UNITED STATES of America; Muckleshoot Tribe; Nooksack;

Upper Skagit; Squaxin Island; Lummi Indian Tribe; Makah

Tribe; Tulalip Tribe; Swinomish Indian Tribal Community;

Puyallup Tribe; Quileute Indian Tribe; Suquamish Tribe;

Hoh Indian Tribe; Quinault Indian Nation; Confederated

Tribes & Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation; Nisqually

Indian Tribe; Jamestown Tribe; Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe;

Port Gamble Bands; Skokoish Tribe; Sauk-Suiattle Tribe;

Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, et al., Defendants, and 26 Upland and Tideland Private Property Owners, (Dan

Buehler, Robert L. Davis, Bruce I. Fielding, Arthur J.

Gerdes, Joe Hoots, Keith C. Huetson, Commander J.C. James,

Richard Sayre Koch, Elaine C. Lefler, Joan Lemonds-Roush,

John S. Lewis, Steven L. Luke, Edward R. McMillan, Robert F.

Newman, Mark A. Nysether, Arthur I. Price, Ray D. Randall,

Cynthia Ramussen, Robert G. Shanks, Axel Strakeljahn, Leana

Tracy, Stuart W. Turner, George B. Usnick, Lee S. Vincent,

Joan Walker and William E. Whitney, Jr.),

Defendants-intervenors-Appellants.

UNITED STATES of America, et al.,; Muckleshoot Tribe;

Nooksack; Upper Skagit; Squaxin Island; Lummi Indian

Tribe; Makah Tribe; Tulalip Tribe; Swinomish Indian

Tribal Community; Puyallup Tribe; Quileute Indian Tribe;

Suquamish Tribe; Hoh Indian Tribe; Quinault Indian Nation;

Confederated Tribes & Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation;

Nisqually Indian Tribe; Jamestown Tribe; Lower Elwha

Klallam tribe; Port Gamble Bands; Skokoish Tribe;

Sauk-Suiattle tribe; Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, et al., Defendants, and James Hadley; James Carter; Ann Carter; Charmond Adkins;

Larry Alexander; Shirlee Alexander; Grace Boyd; Pierce

Davis; Rosemary Duncan; May Davis; James C. Johnston;

Sarah Johnston; W.K. Kirch; Jo Ann Kirch; David Mitchell;

Louis Nawrot, Jr.; Boon Ho Woo; Harold Bauer; Billie

Bauer; William Chase; Frances Fellows; George Grader;

Earl Hunsperger; Millicent Hunsperger; Edward Krenz;

Eleanor Krenz; H.J. Merrick; Moss Gordon; Margaret Moss;

Sewall Reynolds; Emma Reynolds; John Riach; Alva Hazel

Robb; Irene Smith; Providence Worley,

Defendants-Intervenors- Appellants.

UNITED STATES of America, et al., Plaintiff,

and

Lummi Tribe; Muckleshoot Tribe; Nooksack; Upper Skagit;

Squaxin Island; Makah Tribe; Swinomish Indian Tribal

Community; Tulalip Tribe; Puyallup Tribe; Quileute Indian

Tribe; Hoh Indian Tribe; Suquamish Tribe; Nisqually

Indian Tribe; Jamestown Tribe; Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe;

Port Gamble Bands; Skokoish Tribe; Sauk-Suiattle Tribe;

Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Intervenors- Appellants,

and

Quinault Indian Nation; Confederated Tribes & Bands of The

Yakima Indian Nation, Plaintiffs-Intervenors, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, et al., Defendants-Appellees.

UNITED STATES of America, et al., Plaintiff-Appellant,

and

Muckleshoot Tribe; Nooksack; Upper Skagit; Squaxin

Island; Lummi Indian Tribe; Makah Tribe; Tulalip Tribe;

Swinomish Indian Tribal Community; Puyallup Tribe;

Quileute Indian Tribe; Hoh Indian Tribe; Suquamish Tribe;

Quinault Indian Nation; Confederated Tribes & Bands of the

Yakima Indian Nation; Nisqually Indian Tribe; Jamestown

Tribe; Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe; Port Gamble Bands;

Skokoish Tribe; Sauk-Suiattle Tribe; Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Intervenors, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, et al., Defendant-Appellee.

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiffs-Appellees,

and

Lummi Indian Tribe; Muckleshoot Tribe; Nooksack; Upper

Skagit; Squaxin Island; Makah Tribe; Swinomish Indian

Tribal Community; Tulalip Tribe; Puyallup Tribe; Quileute

Indian Tribe; Hoh Indian Tribe; Suquamish Tribe; Quinault

Indian Nation; Confederated Tribes & Bands of the Yakima

Indian Nation; Nisqually Indian Tribe; Jamestown Tribe;

Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe; Port Gamble Bands; Skokoish

Tribe; Sauk-Suiattle Tribe; Stillaguamish Tribe, Plaintiffs-Intervenors- Appellees, v. STATE OF WASHINGTON, et al., Defendant, and Puget Sound Shellfish Growers, Defendants-Intervenors- Appellants.

Nos. 96-35014, 96-35082, 96-35142, 96-35196, 96-35200 and 96-35223.

United States Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit.

Argued and Submitted May 5, 1997.

Decided Jan. 28, 1998.

Beezer, Circuit Judge, concurred and filed opinion.

Phillip E. Katzen (Argued), and Allen H. Sanders, Columbia Legal Services, Seattle, Washington, for plaintiff-appellee cross-appellant Jamestown, Lower Elwha and Port Gamble Bands of S'Klallams, Nisqually, Nooksack, Sauk-Suiattle, Skokomish, Squaxin Island, Stillaguamish and Upper Skagit Tribes, Indian Tribes.

Evelyn S. Ying (Argued), Ann C. Juliano, Martin W. Matzen, Peter C. Monson, Attorneys, United States Department of Justice, Environment & Natural Resources Division, Washington, DC, for appellee/cross-appellant United States.

Jay D. Geck (Argued), Fronda Woods, and Robert C. Hargreaves, Assistant Attorneys General, John W. Hough, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Attorney General's Office, State of Washington, Olympia, Washington, for defendants-appellants cross-appellees.

James M. Johnson (Argued), Olympia, Washington, for intervenor defendant-appellant, 26 Tideland and Upland Private Property Owners ("UPOW").

Howard M. Goodfriend (Argued), and Malcolm L. Edwards, Edwards, Sieh, Hathaway, Smith & Goodfriend, Seattle, Washington, for Private Owners.

Michael Himes (Argued), and Albert Gidari, Jr., Perkins Coie, Seattle, Washington, for intervenors defendants-appellants, Puget Sound Shellfish Growers.

Eric Richter, Skeel Henke, Evenson & Roberts, Seattle, Washington, for intervenor defendant-appellant Adkins, et. al.

Mason D. Morisset, Seattle, Washington, for Tulalip Tribes.

Riyaz A. Kanji, Williams and Connolly, Washington, DC, for plaintiffs-appellees cross-appellants Jamestown, Lower Elwha and Port Gamble Bands of S'Klallams, Nisqually, Nooksack, Sauk-Suiattle, Skokomish, Squaxin Island, Stillaguamish and Upper Skagit Tribes, Indian Tribes.

John Sledd, and Mary Linda Pearson, Suquamish, Washington, for Suquamish Tribe.

Daniel A. Raas and Harry L. Johnsen, Bellingham, Washington, for Lummi Tribe.

Richard Berley, John Arum, Mark Slonim, Seattle, Washington, for Makah Tribe.

Bill Tobin and Christina Berg, Seattle, Washington, for Nisqually Tribe.

Annette M. Klapstein, John Howard Bell, and Debra S. O'Gara, Tacoma, Washington, for Puyallup Tribe.

Kevin R. Lyon and Ronald Whitener, Olympia, Washington, for Squaxin Island Tribe.

Robert L. Otsea, Seattle, Washington, for Muckleshoot Tribe.

Kathryn Nelson and Amy C. Lewis, Tacoma, Washington, co-counsel for Port Gamble, Lower Elwha and Jamestown Bands of S'Klallams and Skokomish Tribe.

Leslie Barnhart, Port Angeles, Washington, Lori Salzarulo and Ruth Kennedy, Seattle, Washington, for Quileute Tribe.

Nettie Alvarez and Richard Ralston, Seattle, Washington, for Hoh Tribe.

Jeffrey Jon Bode, Bellingham, Washington, co-counsel for Nooksack Tribe.

Edward G. Maloney, Sedro Woolley, Washington, co-counsel for Skagit Tribe.

Harold Chesnin, Seattle, Washington, co-counsel for Upper Skagit Tribe.

Allan E. Olson, La Conner, Washington, for Swinomish Indian Community.

Daniel W. Wyckoff, Olympia, Washington, Tom D. Tobin, Winner, South Dakota, for amicus curiae Inner Sound Crab Association and Washington Dungeness Crab Fishermen's Association.

Stephanie L. Striffler, Assistant Attorney General, Salem, Oregon, for amicus curiae State of Oregon.

Nancie Marzulla, Washington, DC, for amicus curiae Defenders of Property Rights.

Robin Rivett, Sacramento, California, John M. Groen, Bellvue, Washington, amicus curiae Pacific Legal Foundation.

Toby Thaler, Seattle, Washington, for amicus curiae Washington Environmental Council.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington; Edward Rafeedie, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-89-00003-ER.

Before: LAY, ^* BEEZER and TROTT, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge TROTT; Concurrence by Judge BEEZER.

TROTT, Circuit Judge:

I. OVERVIEW

The State of Washington, groups of private tideland property owners ("Private Owners"), and commercial shellfish growers ("Growers") (collectively, "Appellants") appeal the district court's judgment following two bench trials in an action brought by numerous Indian Tribes ¹ (the "Tribes") and the United States (on the Tribes' behalf) seeking a declaration of rights to shellfish under the Stevens Treaties ("Treaties"). The United States and the Tribes cross-appeal the district court's order implementing the Tribes' rights.

In 1855, the United States negotiated five Treaties with the Tribes in the Western Washington Territory. The Tribes ceded their aboriginal lands to the United States for settlement, receiving in exchange exclusive title to defined lands, free medical care, schools, occupational training, and annuity payments. The Treaties also reserved to the Tribes the "right of taking fish, at all usual and accustomed grounds and stations ... in common with all citizens of the Territory...." In a series of decisions beginning in 1974, federal courts, including the Ninth Circuit and the Supreme Court, held that this treaty language entitles the Tribes to take fifty percent of the salmon and other free-swimming fish in the waters controlled by Washington State. The Tribes' rights to shellfish under the Treaties, however, are limited by the...