Iqaluit (Feb 21/05) - Kivalliq residents could see their gas problems solved, but those with similar complaints in the Baffin region will have to wait for action to be taken.

Since November, snow machine owners in the Kivalliq have been complaining of ruined spark plugs and thick black smoke coming from their machines.

In 2002, Nunavut's gas supply was missing a critical cleansing additive that was causing damage to two-stroke engines found in snow machines. The Government of Nunavut spent more than $4 million in compensating those affected and disposing the gas. Northern Transportation Company Ltd. was the supplier at the time and the gas was imported from the United States. Baffin region hunters have complained about gas causing damage to spark plugs. They've also reported black fumes being emitted. Gas samples from Pangnirtung have been sent for testing. In November of 2002, a contract was awarded to Shell Canada to supply Nunavut. The gas for the Kivalliq and Kitikmeot region is now supplied from a Shell refinery in Edmonton. Gas for the Baffin region is shipped in from Montreal.

At the end of January, Pangnirtung Mayor Jack Maniapik said hunters in his community were experiencing similar problems since December.

At one point, Pangnirtung spark plug retailers were sold out.

Recently, testing was completed in Rankin Inlet on a pair of new snow machines by the Government of Nunavut's Petroleum Products Division.

Results revealed that mixing an additive with the fuel helped eliminate the fouling of the spark plugs and the black smoke.

Nunavut's gasoline supplier, Shell Canada, says it removed the same additive - originally designed as an octane enhancer - in gas sold across the country, but has had no other complaints.

"(The additive) is not used to improve cold weather performance of the gasoline. However, we've found it does seem to alleviate the problem in Nunavut," said Denita Davis, a spokesperson for Shell in Calgary.

But she says more research needs to be done to determine exactly what has been causing the problem.

Most snow machines seem to be affected during cold weather. Cars and trucks, which run on larger four-stroke engines, do not seem to have the same problem.

"It's just been unusually cold this year," Petroleum Products Division (PPD) director Susan Makpah of the Kivalliq region.

Some hunters in the Baffin region do not see a difference in the weather.

"I think it was colder last year," said Iqaluit Amarok Hunters and Trappers Association President Michael Qappik, who has heard gas complaints from around the Baffin region.

After putting the additive into the Rankin Inlet supply, the GN is now waiting for feedback from snow machine owners, said Makpah.

If users are satisfied, the ingredient will be added to the fuel in each of the Kivalliq's seven communities.

Makpah says people in Rankin Inlet seem happier with the performance of the additive-enhanced gas, saying they change their spark plugs less frequently.

"But that's just a very small group of people. I'm hoping that people will contact PPD with the information," she says.

By Feb. 15, Pangnirtung's Maniapik had not heard from the department of Community and Government Services regarding his January complaint.

He says the problems still exist.

"We've sent out a sample from Pangnirtung and we're waiting for the results. We're going to go through the process again," Makpah said.

Iqaluit's Qappik says he wants more information as well.

"I'd like to see them do more tests and see what's causing the black smoke, and causing us to change spark plugs," Qappik said.

According to PPD, all of Nunavut's gasoline is tested for a variety of indicators at the Shell refinery before being delivered and just prior to being unloaded in the communities.

The gas is not tested for its ability to start in cold weather, Makpah said.

Shell Canada and the GN say the territory's gas meets Canadian standards as well as the more stringent territorial ones.