More fish, please

KIRSTEN MURPHY

The next time you find yourself chasing a piece of turbot with a fork, consider an even bigger chase — for boats and higher quotas in Nunavut’s emerging turbot industry.

About 52,000 tonnes of turbot worth more than $20 million has been hauled off the eastern shores of Baffin Island since 1995. Experts say if the department of fisheries and oceans increased Nunavut’s 9,500-tonne quota, revenue would climb to $100 million.

The good news is the turbot population — or biomass — in Baffin Bay and Davis Strait is holding steady. Better still, scientists say the biomass is higher than first thought because the waters around Pond Inlet and Ellesmere Island have yet to be surveyed. There are also tentative but promising numbers for populations of shrimp, scallops and clams.

There is bad news, too. Nunavut’s two fishing zones, 0A and 0B, are being fished by outside interests. This is because Nunavut licence holders, including the Baffin Fisheries Coaliton and Qikiqtani hunters and trappers organizations, for example, subcontract their licences because they don’t have specialized boats to do the job. Furthermore, the royalties these Nunavut licence holders receive are significantly less than what they’d get if they were selling their product to European and Asian markets.

Despite such hurdles, the race is on to tap in to what belongs to Nunavut, said Carey Bonnell, fisheries manager for Nunavut’s department of sustainable development (DSD).

“With the right vessels and infrastructure, turbot has the potential to be a major contributor to Nunavut’s economy. It is likely the last untapped natural fishery in the world,” Bonnell said.

The scientific council of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) recently delivered one of the most promising recommendations to date. NAFO has told DFO that zone 0A’s total allowable catch (TAC) should be increased to 6,000 tonnes — up 2,000 tonnes from the 4,000-tonne quota set in 2001.

Similar increases for 0B are expected in the near future.

Federal Fisheries Minister Robert Thibault’s decision about 0A is expected next month. An increase would take effect this summer.

At the heart of NAFO’s recommendation is data gathered by DFO biologist Margaret Treble.

Treble, who sits on NAFO’s scientific council, studied zone 0A between Qikiqtarjuaq and Grise Fiord in 1999 and 2001. Greenland scientists conducted similar research in 1B, the eastern half of the experimental fishery. Both sides say their respective turbot populations have remained strong and unchanged after the first two years of fishing.

“The advice from the scientific council is the stocks and the catch rates are stable,” Treble said.

The data bodes well for the goals of the Nunavut Fisheries Working Group, made up of representatives from DSD, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board.

The working group envisions Nunavummit captaining Nunavut-owned boats. In perhaps their boldest move to date, the working group has told the federal government Nunavut wants to fish more in Nunavut and the waters near Labrador and Newfoundland — ironically the same regions that are subcontracted to fish and sell the majority of Nunavut’s existing quotas.

“The season in our waters is too short,” said Stephan Kilabuk, NTI’s wildlife project officer. “We need the flexibility to fish in other waters.”

In the meantime, NTI can help the emerging industry by funding small businesses, he said.

“What I’ve suggested to [NTI’s] executive is we give the Baffin Fisheries Coalition a helping hand … but what I want and what the executive want is different,” he said, referring to NTI president Cathy Towtongie’s push to invest in vessels.

The most obvious investor is the Qikiqtaaluk Corp. QC makes it their business to finance Inuit-owned business. However, Peter Keenainak, the corporation’s marine development manager, pointed to a shaky bottom line.

“It all comes down to economics. Are you going to spend a minimum of $1.5 million [on a boat] to get a 40-tonne turbot quota? To make it economical you really need access to the other fishing areas,” Keenainak said.

That Nunavut receives 27 per cent of the 5,500-tonne commercial quota set for 0B almost a decade ago is “outrageous,” said Jerry Ward, chief executive officer of the Baffin Fisheries Coalition.

Provinces like Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island receive upward of 90 per cent of their DFO-assigned quotas.

“No other jurisdiction would put up with this. In fairness, though, if you’re not at the table fighting for the allocations, you’re not going to get them. What happened in the past won’t happen again. Nunavut has made substantial strides in the last three years and is now at the table,” Ward said.

Nunavut’s future successes, he said, hinge on purchasing a boat.

“You will not control your own destiny before you control your resources through the ownership of vessels,” Ward said.

Back at DSD, Bonnell agreed boats, training and a reliable funding source are key to developing Nunavut’s emerging turbot fishery. But with no one willing to step up to the plate yet, Bonnell is focused on Minister Robert Thibault’s pending quota allocation announcement next month.

“We’re confident we’re going to receive upward of 1,500 to 2,000 [additional] tonnes, which means $5 to $6 million for Nunavut.”