Chief says it's not enough
Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Kakisa (Mar 09/01) - A fuel subsidy for commercial fishers will hardly make a dent in the inflated costs they face, according to Ka'a'gee Tu First Nation chief Lloyd Chicot.
The Government of the Northwest Territories announced Friday that commercial fishers are now eligible for a $150 yearly subsidy as long as they have sold at least $500 worth of fish in the past year.
"Commercial fishermen, like trappers, are bearing the burden of increased fuel costs," Resources and Economic Development Minister Joseph Handley stated in a press release. "This subsidy will help them cover some of these costs."
Chicot described the $150 as a "drop in the bucket" for the five commercial fishers in Kakisa.
"For the travel that these guys do here to go fishing, that's less than a barrel of gas," Chicot noted. "Some of them go through four to eight barrels of gas to go to Tathlina (Lake) and back until they catch their quota."
Most of those fishers also trap during the winter. RWED deputy minister Robert McLeod said the same criteria also exist for trappers; those who sell at least $500 worth of furs over the past year are eligible for the $150 subsidy.
Those who partake in both activities are entitled to subsidies for each pursuit for a total of $300, McLeod added.
