Kirsten Murphy
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Oct 22/01) - Picture this: Icebergs melted into fresh, bottled water and sold to Japan for handsome profits.

A full-scale Nunavut operation is still several years away. But the innovative plan is gaining momentum thanks to the Qikiqtaaluk Corporation's decision to team up with Pure Berg Canada Inc.

The year-long partnership has produced two ice-gathering field trips, said Keith Windross, chief executive officer for Pure Berg Inc.

(A mid-October test run for some 15 tonnes was postponed until next year due to unsatisfactory ice conditions, which drove up the cost of the run.)

The 2,500 litres of thawed ice harvested to date produced about 7,000 bottles from two test runs off Baffin Island's east coast. The ice was either shipped or flown to Montreal for testing and bottling.

The bottles are now on their way to Japan. Icebergs near Panniqtuuq and Clyde River were used, but the crystal-clear liquid won't be sold in Nunavut -- or even Canada.

"It's expensive to manufacture (gather and ship ice), it has to be sold to a specialty market," Windross said.

Windross said he expects the first round of market feedback from Japan after Christmas. Another two years will pass before a full-scale production begins -- if it begins.

When asked exactly how much the clear, blue-capped 355-ml bottles will cost consumers and how much QC stands to profit, Windross could not say.

"An exact percentage has not been worked out. You have to realize we're still checking market viability and feasibility," he said. "The response has been very favourable so far."

Never before have Nunavut icebergs been harvested for the retail bottled-water market.

Potential obstacles

Expansion depends on two factors, said Methusalah Kunuk, QC's chief executive officer. People must like the product and harvesting costs must not exceed revenues.

If all goes well, a bottling plant may be built. Panniqtuuq, Clyde River and Qikiqtarjuaq are possible sites.

It all seems to make sense, Nunavut's coast is dotted with icebergs and Southerners buy into to the allure of the Arctic?

Maybe.

But Newfoundland also manufactures the no-calorie beverage from ancient ice. And with Arctic Chiller and Ice Berg, two bottled waters already on the market, competition could be fierce.

The good news is Arctic Chiller is made from arctic water, not ice. And Ice Berg, a President's Choice product sold in Canadian supermarkets, is not exported.

Then there are the environmental concerns. The North American Commission for Environmental Co-operation recently painted a bleak picture of Nunavut's supposedly pristine environment. Its report on persistent organic pollutant levels raised the question: how pure is our ice and water?

Very pure, said Kunuk.

"Maybe a small part of the surface could be contaminated but these things (ice bergs) are thousands of years old. I'd drink the water," Kunuk said.

"The demand is there," he added.

"It's hard to know how to keep (production) costs down, otherwise if the costs are too high it's not going to be feasible."

Not only would the project create jobs and a name for Nunavut, traditional knowledge would be an integral part of safely extracting and transporting the ice.

Next summer 15 tonnes (15,000 litres) of ice from around Panniqtuuq and Clyde River will be packed onto sealift boats. In Montreal the water will be tested, treated and bottled.

If the response in Japan is favourable -- that is, if (all the bottles) sell -- then yet another development phase begins. But are Nunavummiut loosing out by not having access to the product?

"No, we already have lots of good fresh water," Kunuk said.

Neither of the project's partners would say what kind of profits they're banking on.