Workshop to address caribou hunting limits, harvesting
Deline understands need for stewardship in Bluenose East herd conservation
Andrew Livingstone
Northern News Services
Published Monday, January 19, 2015
DELINE/FORT FRANKLIN
Raising awareness and educating residents about what it means to be stewards of the land is the goal of a three-day caribou workshop scheduled to take place in Deline later this month.
The workshop grew out of a late-2014 meeting with Environment and Natural Resources Minister Michael Miltenberger when the territorial government was consulting aboriginal groups about hunting limits on the Bluenose East and Bathurst caribou herds.
"We realized that we weren't going to be able to involve all the interested people in the Sahtu region in the discussion with the minister," said Deborah Simmons, director of the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board. "There was a strong interest being expressed from the communities in understanding the issues and being involved in regional decision making processes."
A 2013 population survey of the Bluenose-East herd indicated it had declined to about 68,000 animals from the more than 100,000 animals estimated during a 2010 survey. A June 2014 reconnaissance survey of the Bluenose-East calving grounds suggested the herd has continued to decline by about 30 per cent.
Simmons said the board is interested in initiating dialogue about people's relationship with caribou and the animal's well-being within their habitat as they travel.
"Our approach will be bio-cultural, including in a balanced way, both the social, cultural and ecological aspects of caribou issues," she said. "We will take a positive approach in emphasizing the role of the communities in developing that management perspective."
Along with interested parties from the region, Inuvialuit representatives are also expected to attend the workshop and the Tlicho have been invited to attend.
The three-day meeting will focus on three core issues: the common ground in knowledge about caribou based on scientific and traditional knowledge perspectives; management scenarios and action plans; and harvesting.
The Deline First Nation and the Deline Renewable Resources Council have taken a strong lead in facilitating the dialogue, said Simmons, because the community considers itself the stewards within the area where the herd travels. Simmons said the community has taken a pro-active approach to educate residents, particularly younger generations who are joining the hunt, about their relationship with caribou.
"They consider it to be more of a responsibility than ever to maintain the law that governs their relationships with the caribou, the laws of respectful behavior," said Simmons. "They understand that wastage is a major issue for the community for ensuring that younger generations are well-informed and all parts of the caribou are brought back to the community and used."
To that end, the community has put in place measures to closely monitor harvesting, as well as a mentorship program for younger hunters to learn proper harvesting. A summer hide tanning project was also successfully piloted this past summer, said Simmons.
Caribou conservation has been a particularly controversial issue in the territory for over a half-decade.
Since an outright ban was placed on the harvesting of Bathurst caribou in late 2009, aboriginal groups have been at odds with the territorial government over how to proceed with protecting caribou for future generations. However, Simmons said that divisive relationship has changed in recent years for some aboriginal groups.
"It is becoming clear how important people's knowledge is and leadership is in caribou stewardship," she said. "It's going to be difficult for conservation measures to have the positive impact intended if there isn't strong ownership from the communities."
Hunting of the Bluenose-East herd is governed by a voluntary number of about 2,800 animals set in 2010. However, a late December press release from the GNWT stated that an overall target of 2,500, including 1,500 for NWT harvesters, would be more reasonable until consensus can be reached on conservation measures moving forward.
This harvest number is lower than the number recommended by the Advisory Committee for Cooperation on Wildlife Management (ACWM) of 2,800 animals, including approximately 1,800 for NWT harvesters.
The government stated it will monitor the herd closely and if indications of decline continue, more stringent limitations could be placed on harvesting.
