Maria Canton
Northern News Services

Cambridge Bay (Apr 24/00) - The Cambridge Bay Hunters and Trappers Organization is trying to have a decade-old ban lifted on net fishing in Greiner Lake.

At the recent HTO annual general meeting, a motion was passed to ask the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to lift the ban.

"We (the HTO) and the community want the ban lifted for people who can't travel too far outside of town to fish anymore," said HTO president Johnny Lyall.

"But only lifted for widows and elders and only for fishing char."

Greiner Lake -- a freshwater lake located about three-and-a-half kilometres outside the community -- is home to arctic char, trout and whitefish.

The HTO had the net fishing ban imposed a decade ago over concerns that the char stocks were being depleted by over-fishing.

"The char were getting fished out of the lake and too small, so we asked Fisheries and Oceans for a seven-year ban on net-fishing char," said Lyall.

"It's over seven years now and they've been studying it for three years."

Should the ban be lifted, Lyall says fishers would report their catches to the HTO in order to keep track of the char stocks.

He also said if the net is placed in the right spot, a fisher could net up to 10 fish a day.

The request is currently under review.