SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Eighteen caribou seized by wildlife officers in January are still sitting in cold storage at the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) compound in Yellowknife, as the six aboriginal hunters who shot them chose not to take the meat back.

A justice of the peace ruled Feb. 17 the hunters had until 4 p.m. Feb. 19 to pick up the caribou, after which the remaining meat would be offered to elders in Ndilo and Dettah with the distribution method left up to the territorial government.

Environment and Natural Resources Minister Michael Miltenberger said he wasn't adverse to speaking with Ndilo Chief Ted Tsetta and Dettah Chief Ed Sangris about distributing the meat, but said they made it clear in court they didn't want the meat.

"If the chiefs want to be involved, we can work with them. The key is getting the meat out to the elders and to whoever else wants it. It's been quite a while since the animals were shot," he said.

When asked about how the department would proceed with distribution, Miltenberger said wildlife officers knew the communities well and would work with them.

"We know who the elders are. It's very easy to knock on the doors and say, 'here's a nice piece of caribou meat, do you want some?'" he said. "We're going to use our discretion. If there's a signal from the chiefs they want to identify certain households, of course we'd be happy to do that."

During the court proceedings Austin Marshall, the lawyer representing the hunters, said his clients didn't want the meat back but hoped ENR would approach the chiefs of Ndilo and Dettah out of respect before going directly to the elders.

On Monday, Sangris said no one from the department had contacted him. He said he didn't think anyone from his community would take the meat because they were concerned the meat could have been contaminated while it was in ENR's possession.

"None of the hunters want it back, I asked the elders and they don't want it," he said. "If (ENR) calls, I'll tell them to send it to Fort Smith (Miltenberger's riding)."

Sangris said he's already spoken to his lawyers about seeking damages in court for the lost meat.

"I'll give them another week and then we'll take some action," he said.

Judy McLinton, a spokeswoman for ENR, said the department wouldn't be consulting with the chiefs.

McLinton said the department was still working on the method of distribution and had a list of people who had requested meat. She said she anticipated distribution to begin later this week.

"They'll be going to the elders' facilities; they'll go through the list. Any meat that is left after that can be offered to the next step, charitable organizations in Yellowknife," she said.

Miltenberger said if people in Ndilo and Dettah didn't want the caribou, there were other options.

"We know there's a lot of people that want meat," said Miltenberger. "The meat won't go to waste."

Meanwhile, monitoring in the no-hunting zone outside Yellowknife continues. Since Jan. 1, when the emergency ban on hunting Bathurst caribou went into effect, wildlife officers have seized 18 caribou from hunters and found four dead caribou in the no-hunting zone. But they haven't issued any warnings since Jan. 28.

Yesterday, Miltenberger told MLAs he may consider allowing a limited hunt in the 120-square km no-hunting zone, but gave no specific date.

McLinton said renewable resource officers staff the Ross Lake checkpoint station on the Tibbitt-to-Contwoyto winter road 24 hours a day, with officers patrolling two to three times a week. Two officers work during the week, three on weekends.

Sangris said he stands behind his people's right to hunt caribou. He said he goes to the no-hunting zone every weekend and sees people hunting.

"They're out there," he said.