Nunatsiaq News: Sanikiluaq conservation efforts get big boost from $5.5M grant
Sanikiluaq can look forward to a new research facility, a locally run monitoring program and the creation of a new national conservation area.
That’s thanks to $5.5 million that has been earmarked by the federal Canadian Nature Challenge Fund for the Hamlet of Sanikiluaq, the Sanikiluaq Hunters and Trappers Association and the Arctic Eider Society.
The money will support construction of a multi-purpose research facility on Sanikiluaq and set up a stewardship and monitoring program, called “Qikiqtait,” the Inuktitut name for the Belcher Islands.
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“We’ve been working on this for a long time and creating a protected area for the Belcher Islands will have a big impact for our community, hunters and youth,” said Lucassie Arragutainaq, the manager of the Sanikiluaq HTA, who received a 2017 Inuit recognition award from ArcticNet for his work on climate change and other environmental areas.
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“We’ll be working closely with QIA [Qikiqtani Inuit Association] and a whole-of-government approach to protect both the water and the land around our islands, “Arragutainaq said in the release.
