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UQSUQTUUQ/GJOA HAVEN
A polar bear hunting moratorium in the area close to Gjoa Haven is resulting in the cultural knowledge of properly harvesting the animal is being lost to the younger generation, according to the chairman of the Hunters and Trappers Organization.

More than 100 people attended a three-hour annual general meeting on Dec. 20 where polar bear quotas, hunter support programs, getting a big boat for the community, a locally-operated meat plan and other issues were discussed.

Chair Louie Kamookak said the biggest issue again this year is the polar bear quota.

"It's a big concern for our community. It's a cultural issue," he said.

For instance, Gjoa Haven has had five polar tags to harvest polar bears in the Boothia Peninsula. But since young hunters captured so many female bears, a hunt is not permitted there this year, said Kamookak.

"Our younger hunters are having less knowledge of if that's a big bear or small bear, or if it's a female or male," he said, adding the distance between the peninsula and the community is an issue, as it is in excess of 135 km away.

"(When) the hunter gets to the area, it's almost out of gas so he wants to shoot the first bear he sees. He's not hunting for a right bear."

In 2000, the territorial government instituted a 10-year moratorium on polar bear hunting in the McClintock Channel. Twelve years later, the moratorium is still in place.

"The community would really like to hear from the government what's the next step on our polar bear issue because we have only one tag and we have lots of hunters that are interested in hunting," said Kamookak. "We don't want to lose the cultural proper way of hunting polar bears to our younger generation. It's been over 10 years already and a lot of it is lost already."

Gjoa Haven and Cambridge Bay have been rotating the polar bear quotas (two and one) each year with Gjoa Haven's turn this year to get one.

Kamookak said more than 50 hunters signed up for the draw for that lone tag.

The community's meat plant stopped operations in May 2011 because the facility has had water system problems, said Kamookak. This summer the community got new sewage and hot water tanks but those have yet to be installed, he added.

"We had the meat plant operational before. It was a big help to the community," he said.

"We're hoping next fall we'll have it in operation. We have to do some more work this summer."

When operational, the meat plant is open only during the winter months because residents are able to hunt their own country foods during the warmer months.

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