The Canadian federal government is continuing full speed towards a very controversial plan. The government will issue commercial fishing licences for Greenland halibut and shrimp to a coalition of the Mi’kmaq, despite Inuit groups having protested the plan. This decision stems from the previous acquisition of Clearwater Foods by the Mi’kmaq group in January 2021 and follows a Federal Court ruling that deemed Ottawa’s earlier decision “unreasonable.”
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) just completed a first look at this. They are fighting to get important, hard-won licenses repurposed for fishing zones along the coast of Baffin Island. That proposed move has once again inflamed tensions. The Inuit, who have long traditionally been allocated lower quotas than their Atlantic Canada brethren, are presently fighting the legality of the transfer in court.
This case made a large impact in 2021 when the Inuit coalition was able to launch their Federal Court case. They claimed that the Minister of Fisheries failed to adequately consider the adjacency principle found in the Nunavut Agreement when transferring licenses. This principle requires that the federal government take into account the importance of local interests when issuing commercial fishing licences.
Ottawa’s defense is that Inuit communities had the opportunity to purchase Clearwater Foods. They were initially welcomed to help shape the acquisition efforts, but chose to withdraw from the negotiation table. Inuit organizations representing all communities in Nunavut and the Qikiqtaaluk region continue to firmly oppose the project.
“DFO is implementing the court ordered redetermination through a transparent and fair process that enables the parties to put forward all relevant information and views, so that the minister’s final decision is fully informed, fair and reasonable, and takes into consideration the Nunavut Agreement,” stated a departmental spokesperson.
Throughout this ever-evolving legal landscape, DFO was instrumental in the ongoing legal conversation. Second, they circulated a memo showing robust local support for reallocating the licences and doing so with ways other than a market-based approach. The administration’s memo underlined the importance of accounting for local priorities to the greatest extent possible when establishing fishing rights.
The parties have until January 9 for comment on DFO’s preliminary analysis and subsequent responses. The department assures that any concerns raised during this period will be taken into account before making a final recommendation to the minister.
The Trudeau government acknowledges that Inuit fishermen have much smaller quotas than their Atlantic colleagues. Even though the Atlantic fishermen manage around 90 percent of the quotas off their coasts, the federal government is promising to make up for these disparities. In fact, the Nunavut Agreement specifically stipulates a case-by-case consideration of local factors when distributing commercial fishing licences.
Nunavut Tunngavik, representing Inuit interests, has declined to comment publicly on the preliminary decision at this time, maintaining a strategic silence as discussions unfold.
