Iqaluit (Mar 27/06) - The Nunavut fishery reeled in some swell news last Thursday - the territory will receive all the turbot quota increase set for northern Baffin waters.

Handing Nunavut the 2,500 tonnes of turbot quota for Area OA - a section of sea hugging Baffin from Qikiqtarjuaq up to Ellesmere - puts the territory in control of 68 per cent of the adjacent turbot quota - eight per cent more than before.

The decision, made by Federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Loyola Hearn, made Nunavut’s fishing interests happy.

“I was dancing all day yesterday,” said Baffin Fisheries Coalition president Ben Kovic. “This is what we wanted. Nunavut taking the whole allocation.”

Those at Cumberland Sound Fisheries in Pangnirtung, Masiliit in Qikiqtarjuaq and the Qikiqtaluk Corporation all said the same.

The question now is, which Nunavut companies will get the quota?

“We are ready for more quota, definitely,” said Sam Nuqingaq, secretary treasurer of Masiliit.

Cumberland Sound Fisheries is saying the same thing.

“We are excited and are ready to apply,” said secretary treasurer Roger Alivaktuk.

BFC is on the same boat.

“We are a fishing company and we don’t want to see it just go by,” said Kovic.

Vice-president of QC, Peter Kanenak, is the same.

“In a letter from the (Nunavut Wildlife Management Board) to all stakeholders, they encouraged all fishers to apply for any additional increase. So in that sense, we are interested in applying for that,” he said.

Minister of Economic Development, Olayuk Akesuk, is thrilled with the announcement. “This is great news. We are very excited and have been working for a long time in educating DFO and other provinces on the need for us to get 100 per cent of this quota,” said Akesuk from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Friday.