Canada proposes keeping Nunavut fishing licences with non-Inuit organization

The Qikiqtani Inuit Association says it is “extremely disappointed” that Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) is seeking to reissue fishing licenses off the coast of Nunavut to non-Inuit operations.

That DFO decision It was made even though a federal court judge said Ottawa’s initial decision was unreasonable.

In a news release Friday, DFO said the proposal is based on the department’s “preliminary analysis.” DFO did not indicate the content of that analysis.

In 2021, then-DFO Minister Bernadette Jordan reissued fishing licenses to a coalition of seven Mi’kmaq First Nations, as part of the sale of Clearwater Foods to FNC Quota.

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association (QIA) filed a lawsuit over that decision.

That’s because the sale would have given Nunavut Inuit a window to acquire those fishing licenses, which predominantly involve catching green halibut (turbot) and shrimp. But Jordan transferred the licenses to the Mi’kmaq coalition, which bought 50 per cent of Clearwater Foods, which called itself the largest fishing company in Atlantic Canada.

The two Nunavut Inuit organizations argue that the minister failed to take into account the provisions of article 15 of the Nunavut Agreement, which states that the federal government must give “special consideration” when allocating commercial fishing licenses, based on the adjacency and economic dependence of the communities. That means local communities in Nunavut should benefit from local resources.

But in a decision from April 2024, Federal Court Judge Paul Favel said Jordan’s decision in 2021 did not meet Nunavut’s special considerations.

DFO declined an interview with CBC News, but the news release indicated the redetermination process is being conducted in a “transparent and fair process that allows the parties to present all relevant information and views,” while taking into account the Nunavut Agreement.

Recommendations undermine Nunavut’s economy

In a statement to CBC News, Clearwater Seafoods said the transfer of the licenses is widely celebrated as a model of economic reconciliation.

“The report confirms the validity of the transfer of these licenses and protects important and historic Mi’kmaq investment as they take their rightful place within the Canadian fishing industry,” the statement reads.

The QIA said they have fought for decades alongside NTI to “address the systemic exclusion of Inuit from commercial fishing opportunities in adjacent Nunavut waters.”

“Rather than charting a path toward equity, DFO’s latest recommendations simply maintain the status quo, allowing commercial fishing access to remain controlled outside of Nunavut and undermining Nunavut’s economy and the economic well-being of Inuit for another generation,” the QIA wrote in a statement.

In a document published in 2023, the QIA called the Nunavut fishery an “underdeveloped pillar of the Nunavut economy,” however, arguing that the federal government has not fairly distributed commercial fishing licenses in adjacent Nunavut waters, as required by the Nunavut Agreement. As a result, the QIA said Nunavut interests only own about 52 per cent of the quota in adjacent waters, compared to other jurisdictions such as British Columbia and Newfoundland, which own between 80 and 90 per cent.

According to QIA estimates, between 1993 and 2022, the Inuit of Nunavut lost approximately $1 billion in economic benefits and opportunities.

While the redetermination process is ongoing, DFO said the three affected fishing licenses remain valid under the FNC Quota name. They can be fished according to their terms, until the minister makes her final decision on the redetermination process.

The parties have until January 9 to respond to DFO’s preliminary analysis, before the department presents its final recommendation to the minister.