Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services

Cambridge Bay (Jan 21/02) - The wildlife office in Cambridge Bay is worried about safety and pushing to restrict caribou hunting.

Wildlife officer Shane Sather said the high number of cabins along the shoreline and the arrival of caribou in the fall creates a "tense" environment for both hunters and residents.

"People have complained about bullet holes in the walls of their cabins," said Sather, adding officers have found blood and casings on the road.

"We're looking at it from a safety point of view," said Sather. "It can get tense with all the shooting."

The wildlife office is asking that no hunting take place within an area about three kilometres in width, stretching to the shoreline. Sather said the restriction would fall on either side of the road to Mount Pelly.

He said current hunting practices involve people shooting caribou from trucks, which is illegal under Nunavut's Wildlife Act.

He added some hunters in the community no longer hunt in the area, and those who do get out as quickly as they can.

Sather said he is working with the Ekalutkutiak Hunters and Trappers Association to bring in the proposed bylaw. The hamlet's jurisdiction extends over the area.

Elwood Johnston, senior administrative officer with the hamlet, said he received a map of the proposed restriction area, but knows little of the details.

Representatives of the hunter's association could not be reached for comment.