Hay River (Mar 27/06) - Fishermen are a step closer to controlling the fishing wharf area in Hay River.

On March 20, the Great Slave Lake Harbour Authority was formed and an executive elected at the organization’s first annual general meeting.

The harbour authority and the Small Craft Harbours Branch of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) are now working towards an agreement, under which the authority will lease the wharf area from the department. Other harbour areas in Hay River, such as Porritt Landing, will not be affected.

“It is a very important step for us,” said Lionel Rundle, president of the new authority.

It means the wharf will be eligible for federal funding for improvements.

Along with Rundle, the executive of the harbour authority includes Marius McCallum, Shawn Buckley, Allen Ross and Alex Richardson.

While the non-profit authority is an initiative of the NWT Fishermen’s Federation, they are two separate entities.

Rundle, who is also president of the federation, said controlling the wharf area is a step towards other goals. There is ongoing work to form a co-operative and in the long term, it’s hoped that a fish plant will be built on the site.

The idea of a harbour authority has been around for many years, but has only been seriously discussed for the last several years.

Alan Kathan, the manager of the western region for Small Craft Harbours Branch, said under the harbour authority arrangement, fishermen would be responsible for the day-to-day management of the wharf and minor repairs.

Small Craft Harbours Branch would fund major repairs and new infrastructure, he explained. “We do it when we have a harbour authority in place.”

The harbour authority in Hay River is the first in the NWT.

“We’re just in the stage of negotiating the lease,” said Kathan, who attended the harbour authority’s March 20 meeting.

Rundle expects the lease to be signed in the next month or two.

The agreement will be for five years with three options to renew for a maximum of 20 years. After that, a new lease would have to be negotiated.

Such authorities can only be established on DFO land. The department also has land in Hay River’s West Channel, Moraine Bay and the Simpson Islands, but none of those areas are covered by the new authority.

Kathan noted the West Channel requires dredging. “It’s just too costly to dredge that channel.”

At the March 20 meeting, the eight fishers in attendance discussed several possible improvements to the wharf, including a floating dock, a trailer to haul vessels out of the water, oil clean-up and paving of the site, among other things. Membership in the authority is limited to commercial fishermen.

The low turnout at the meeting by fishermen operating out of Hay River did cause some concern.

“There’s no back-up here, and that’s a problem,” said McCallum.

In the summer of 2004, there were up to 80 fishers on the lake, both licence holders and helpers.

Rundle said there should be no alarm among other users of the wharf area, including the Fishermen’s Wharf outdoor summer market or the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary, which has two storage sheds on the site.

“It’s a public wharf,” he said, noting talks will be held with other users.

The Town of Hay River constructed the outdoor market, which is operated by a local non-profit group.

Mayor Diana Ehman says it appears the new harbour authority has no changes in mind for the market, but there will still be talks. “I think it’s very early in the process.”

The harbour authority will eventually establish docking fees for pleasure crafts and other vessels using the wharf.