Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

NNSL (May 18/98) - Johnny Qammaniq knows first hand how bad sewage can smell.

"I used to work as a helper on a sewage truck and I never used to like getting splashed by sewage. I like getting rid of all the smells," says Qammaniq.

That's just one of the reasons why he jumped at the opportunity to become the sales manager of the newly formed Iqaluit business, Nunavut Bio-Products.

"I notify people what we've got for sale and sales for the other settlements, I look after the orders. Anybody wants to make sales, they contact me."

Qammaniq says they market a number of environmentally sound products including non-toxic household products like dish soap, garbage bags, toilet paper and perhaps most importantly, a product that eliminates the odour of sewage.

"When the snow is all gone and it's warmer and there is no ice on the sewage lagoon and you put this in and get rid of the smell," says Qammaniq.

"People say they never thought about it but we thought it would be nice to get rid of all the smells."

Qammaniq says he tested the product a few weeks ago by pouring it into raw sewage from a truck.

"The smell was completely gone and it's good for the environment."

Originally from Hall Beach, Qammaniq says he was offered the position because he is fluent in three languages.

"They first asked me if I'm interested in that job. It's owned by two people who are taxi drivers and I said sure I'm interested. They need to have a translator and because I speak in Greenlandic, if they're doing sewage lagoons in Greenland, I can translate. That's why they asked me," says Qammanig who also speaks Inuktitut and english.

Part of his new job will possibly involve travel to other settlements.

"If they want me to show them how to help with the sewage lagoons, I would travel in the summer and show them everything from their houses to the sewage trucks," says Qammaniq who adds that the hardest part of his job is waiting for the clientele of the newly formed business to build.

"We don't have many customers, that's the hard part. We just got started so there's no customers," although he adds that the hamlet of Grise Fiord is interested in acquiring the sewage lagoon product.

Qammaniq hopes that the products will catch on in Nunavut as the date of division comes closer.

"Iqaluit will be the capital of Nunavut so in the future, it would be nice to get rid of the smell and have a clean environment."