NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
Lutsel K'e residents are disappointed with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources' decision to approve a limited harvest of the Beverly and Ahiak barren-ground caribou herds for resident hunters.

A limited resident harvest of one bull per hunter has been approved for the 2014-15 hunting season for the Beverly and Ahiak caribou herds. Lutsel K'e residents, who are closest to the hard-to-access animals, feel ENR made the decision against their wishes. - photo courtesy of Mike Robbins

When a deputy minister from ENR visited the community in the spring to pitch the resident harvest, he was clearly told it was not wanted.

"At the end of the day we said no. Our herd is not that healthy. The government thinks they are but its not," said JC Catholique, who has spent "a good 50 years" hunting near the community. "There's no spirit of good faith to work together."

The Lutsel K'e First Nation and ENR have been collaborating in recent years to monitor caribou, as the animals closest to the community are some of the least studied in the country. Community monitors have been travelling with hunters on the land, collecting samples and ensuring nothing goes to waste.

Michael Tollis, wildlife lands and environment manager with Lutsel K'e First Nation, said it's unfortunate that more hunters will be harvesting near the community before this monitoring can be fully established.

"It was kind of disappointing and frustrating that they let this pass without addressing how it's going to impact the monitoring program," he said.

Since news of the limited harvest was released on Dec. 9, Tollis said several community members have dropped in to his office to voice their concerns. In response, a letter has been sent to Minister Miltenberger asking him to travel to the community to explain how the decision was made and make it clear whether or not any of the community's feedback will be included in the harvest plan.

"We weren't supporting the proposal at all, but if it must go ahead, the tags should be allocated from the community of Lutsel K'e (rather than Yellowknife)," said Tollis.

If they stop in the community before heading out, the First Nation would be able to provide hunters with a guide and a monitor to travel with them on the land, said Tollis. As it stands, there is a worry that hunters will bypass the community altogether -- making their activities nearly impossible to monitor and decreasing the potential benefits the hunt could have on the local economy.

If, say, a group of hunters with tags were to charter a plane and fly directly to where the caribou were, Tollis worried, "How are we ever going to monitor that?"

Getting to the caribou from Lutsel K'e isn't easy. Wile their migration patterns continue to change -- which Catholique credits to the diamond mines, which are located smack in the middle of the traditional migration route -- community members generally travel to Artillery Lake to find the animals.

From the small hamlet at the eastern edge of Great Slave Lake, that means a six hour skidoo ride over some of the most challenging terrain in the territory -- not to mention the roughly $360 in fuel it will cost you round trip, said Catholique.

"It's not easy access anymore," he said. "If somebody is going to go hunting one caribou, they're wasting their time and money for one thing."

Healthy bulls necessary

The "bulls only" approach to limited harvesting was also called into question.

"The knowledge in the community says there's only a few healthy bulls that 'spread the seed,' so to speak," said Tollis. "If people travel so far for one bull, they're likely going to take the biggest and the best they can find."

In the fall, no one should be harvesting breeding-age caribou, said Catholique.

"The one thing that's got to be understood is we have to let the caribou multiply. So there should be no hunting from August to October. Nothing. Let them breed. Don't bother them," he said.

That being said, community hunts tend to happen twice a year: in the fall and spring, but it's common practice not to take bulls in rutting and breeding season, said Catholique.

For the Dene, this is about much more than who can hunt where.

"?Etthen nuwe daiyine ?at'e -- the caribou is our spirit," said Catholique.

"The caribou herd, they take care of us better than the mines," he said. "For us, it's our livelihood. It's our life. We depend on the caribou herd for our subsistence."

While their have been issues of meat wastage in the past, traditional practices are rebounding in the community.

If the limited harvest plan goes through and resident hunters descend on the herd next fall, Tollis hoped they will make the effort to contact the community to keep them informed on their plans.

"Call the wildlife office and let us know your intentions," he said. "We'd rather have people from here travelling with every hunter that goes out."

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