Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

Grise Fiord (Feb 21/00) - Sport hunting is big business in many Nunavut communities and it is one that spreads the wealth around.

Such is the situation in Grise Fiord where the annual arrival of sport hunters means that many residents, through the Iviq Hunters and Trappers Association and its business Qutsitumiut Outfitting, earn a tidy income.

"The primary objective of this is to really benefit the community," said Marty Kulugutuq, the chair and the president of the outfitting company.

Also the HTA's secretary-treasurer, it's up to Kulugutuq to oversee the five-person committee that owns and operates the hamlet-based business.

That means that he is responsible, as head of the committee, for ensuring the sport hunters arrive and are properly outfitted prior to their departure.

That's where the lucrative benefits for community members come in.

Women are hired to sew complete sets of caribou clothing, at $1,500 per outfit, while men guide the hunt.

Fuel, food and souvenirs are purchased by both the hunters and the guides.

And the local hotel also realizes at least a few nights of business before and after the hunt takes place.

"We do all the necessary stuff from accommodation to scheduling where the hunters meet and where they'll go," said Kulugutuq.

"Everything is local. We're trying as much as possible to spread the money around. Whether there's a polar bear or not, there's going to be some money added to their pocket," he added.

How much money however, is a discussion that Kulugutuq avoids.

Sport hunting is an extremely competitive business, and because Qutsitumiut Outfitting relies heavily upon their contract with Wyoming-based partner Trophy Connection, he said it could potentially harm their profitable position by handing out financial information.

"It's quite substantial, but I'm very hesitant to reveal numbers," he said.

"It's good revenue for this community. Let's put it this way -- we never operate at a loss ... and we make donations at special events."

Kulugutuq was also quick to dispel a myth many Nunavummiut have about the sport hunters who come primarily from the United States, but who also come from Europe and South America.

"The perception is that all of our clients are rich people, but people actually save for many years just to go polar bear hunting," he said.

"They'll use up all of their savings to do it. It's not just multi-millionaires, they're just regular Joes."

The Iviq HTA decides at their annual general meeting in October how many tags to set aside for the sport hunters. As of 1997, it became legal for Americans, under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, to take their polar bear skins home.