A recent study of polar bears in Hudson Bay alarmed many with its report that arctic polar bears are becoming dangerously low due to the diminishing icepack. However, Nunavut hunters and officials with the Nunavut Department of Sustainable Development believe the danger has been greatly overstated. Current quotas are sufficient to control the effects of hunting on polar bear populations, officials say. Last year’s quota was 408 bears, and 385 were killed. Local hunters, who rely on polar bears for subsistence, say that if anything, their numbers are increasing.
