OTTAWA -- It took Chief Joseph Gosnell nearly three decades and $50-million to reach the historic treaty that gave the Nisga'a people self-governing status in northern British Columbia.

Today, he says, it was worth every penny and every year.

Mr. Gosnell said there will be "an uproar" among native leaders if the federal government follows through on Indian Affairs Minister Robert Nault's warning and walks away from as many as 30 negotiating tables.

"The Canadian people must recognize it takes time to do these things," he said. "If you force people into things, there will be an uproar."

Mr. Nault angered native leaders by suggesting earlier this week that the government is considering "walking away" from "unproductive" negotiations because they are too costly and time-consuming. Some of the claims have been at the table for more than 10 years.

The federal government spends $70-million a year on native-treaty-claims negotiations. Mr. Nault said he doesn't want to "build an industry for lawyers and consultants."

Mr. Gosnell said the Nisga'a has to repay $50-million in federal loans that it cost to negotiate its treaty.

"People must recognize that when you don't have required expertise, like lawyers and consultants, you have to purchase it. And they don't come cheap."

Starting in 1973, Mr. Gosnell, 66, oversaw the painstaking negotiations that led to the Nisga'a's treaty two years ago. Under the treaty, the 5,500 Nisga'a were the first native people in Canada to assume self-governing status. They also received an 2,000-square-kilometre territory in northwest British Columbia and $173-million.

The treaty is considered a model for future agreements.

NDP Indian Affairs critic and Winnipeg MP Pat Martin said Mr. Nault's threat could spark roadblocks and costly court battles. "I'm really shocked that they would unilaterally abandon the negotiation process," Mr. Martin said. "Negotiations may be tedious but it is the civilized way of dealing with an impasse. It's just provoking a negative backlash."

Only a handful of native communities have reached settlements with the federal government over land clams and self-government negotiations since Ottawa started a process to resolve claims in the early 1970s.

About 50 bands in British Columbia are negotiating their first treaties with the federal and provincial governments. There is a backlog of more than 550 claims in the specific claims process.

Specific claims occur when a band seeks to have the federal government fulfill terms of treaties already signed, as opposed to comprehensive claims which arise in areas where treaties have not been signed between Canada and native people.

The government wants to replace the current claims system with a permanent Land Claims Tribunal aimed at saving money and expediting disputes.

Lucian Blair, of the Indian Claims Commission, a tribunal that reviews native claims rejected by the federal government, said it typically takes between eight and 20 years to negotiate settlements.