Hunters in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut, still waiting for decision on exporting polar bear hides

Hunters in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut, are still waiting to hear the final word on when they can resume exporting polar bear hides to other countries.

In February, Environment and Climate Change Canada temporarily paused export permits for southern Hudson Bay polar bears so it can update a document that shows it's legal and sustainable to do so.

That's because Canada is part of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora — known generally as CITES, which is also the name of the export permit.

"We're still working on it because we don't know what kind of response we're going to get," said Lucassie Arragutainaq, the manager of Sanikiluaq's hunters and trappers association, when asked for his thoughts on the pause.

The issue surfaced in the Nunavut Legislature last week, with Environment Minister David Akeeagok condemning the pause as unacceptable. At the time, Akeeagok said he planned to keep raising the issue with his federal counterpart in the hope the federal government would "do the right thing."

Polar bears are co-managed by federal, territorial and Inuit governments.

In an email, Environment and Climate Change Canada spokesperson Samuel Lafontaine said there have been changes to how polar bears are managed since 2018 that have to be taken into consideration for its update.

"These factors are being considered carefully," he wrote.

Lafontaine said there have been four permit requests for southern Hudson Bay polar bears since the 2020-21 harvest season.

He said permits are still being processed for polar bears in other areas. Permits for southern Hudson Bay bears are being held for now.