Published every Wednesday | Distributed in all Kivalliq communities

Check us out

SUBSCRIBE NOW to access all news, photo, advertising and feature content from Nunavut News/North and all NNSL newspapers. Not familiar with the paid portion of our website? Try our DEMO SITE to see all the extras available to subscribers.

Text size

E-mail this page

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Herd in danger

Southampton Island

A regional biologist in Arviat has said over-hunting and disease are threatening to wipe out the Southampton Island caribou herd.

The Southampton Island herd was wiped out due to hunting in the 1950s, but was re-introduced again after 50 caribou were transplanted there in 1968, rising to a high of 30,000 tuktu in 1997.

Mitch Campbell said pregnancy rates have dropped to about 30 per cent within the herd since a reproductive disease called brucellosis struck the herd in 2000.

Campbell said only about 7,000 tuktu were counted during a survey on the Island this past year.

Hockeyville?

Kivalliq/Nunavut

The producers of the Kraft Hockeyville TV series had NHL star Shane Doan of the Phoenix Coyotes issue a call for entries from Nunavut and the NWT for Hockeyville 2012 this past week.

The deadline for submission was yesterday, Jan. 31.

As of press time, it was not known if any Nunavut communities answered Doan's call.

Volleyball weekend

Baker Lake

The male and female Nunavut Territorial Volleyball Championships, originally scheduled for Jan. 27 to 29, have been rescheduled to this coming weekend, Feb. 3 to 5, in Baker Lake.

The action is expected to be fast and furious in both divisions throughout the event.

Collecting names

Kivalliq

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) has announced it is collecting the names of students who lived at Kivalliq Hall while attending high school in Rankin Inlet during the 1980s.

NTI is collecting the information to help with legal action the organization is mounting to have Kivalliq Hall added to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement's list of schools.

The addition would mean former students would become eligible for compensation under the Common Experience Payment and the Independent Assessment Process.

Kivalliq Hall is currently not on the list of schools, despite requests from former students for its inclusion.

NTI is appealing the decision to exclude Kivalliq Hall by filing the request for decision with the Nunavut Court of Justice.

NTI will be holding a regular meeting of its board of directors in Taloyoak from Feb. 21 to 23.

First major tourney

Rankin Inlet/Kivalliq

With the cancellation of the Jon Lindell Memorial senior men's hockey championship in Arviat this past week, the Polar Bear Plate junior/juvenile championship in Rankin Inlet becomes the first major hockey tournament of the year.

The Plate will be held in Rankin from Feb. 23 to 26.