Under the Earthlodge: Extraction of the MHA Nation

Since 2008, oil and gas extraction on Ft. Berthold Indian Reservation, North Dakota, has brought economic benefit for some, but not without externalized costs, for the Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Nation. Extraction industry practices create stress, which can translate to poor health outcomes. The modern extraction ethic propagated by the normalization of extraction industry practices conflicts with the land ethic implicit in traditional cultural values associated with sacred places. This research explores how the "benefits" of extraction industry practices (wealth, pride) negatively impact sociocultural and self-reported stress as cultural values (reciprocity, trust) are disrupted. This research uses qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze, interview and survey data. In this sample population, stress correlates strongly with Land Ethic dissonance and Extraction Industry Practices satisfaction indices and suggests the need for more culturally relative study of tribal member stress. Policy interventions fostering community participation in planning, decision-making and evaluation are proposed.