Hay River (Feb 14/05) - A delegation of Great Slave Lake fishermen will make a first-ever trip to Ontario and the U.S. next month to check out fish markets.

The Great Slave Lake Fishery Task Force Group met Feb. 9 in Hay River. Fisherman Shawn Buckley, front, sat in on the meeting, which was attended by several task force members, including Jerry Morin, centre, and Lionel Rundle, president of the NWT Fishermen's Federation. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

They are members of the Great Slave Lake Fishery Task Force Group, which was established by the NWT Fishermen's Federation to develop a recovery strategy.

"More knowledge is what we're looking for," says federation president Lionel Rundle, who is also a task force member. The group is also considering withdrawing from the Freshwater Fish Marketing Co-operation (FFMC), a federal agency that sells fish caught in the Great Slave to markets outside the NWT.

However, Rundle says such a decision would be up to all fishermen, not just those on the task force.

"We're studying to see if it's feasible to opt out of the FFMC," explained Jerry Morin, a fisherman and task force member.

Beatrice Lepine, an RWED employee seconded to the task force as a special advisor, says the trip will also give them a look at fish marketing and processing facilities in the east. "We want to educate ourselves on what's happening there."

The 10-day trip, which begins March 7, will take task force members to several locations in Ontario, New York and Boston, with a stop in Winnipeg for a meeting with the FFMC. Lepine, Morin and Bert Buckley will visit markets in the U.S.

The four-member task force aims to have a recovery strategy ready by March 31.