The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has long claimed that the beluga whale populations in Ungava Bay and Eastern Hudson Bay are endangered, with 2,000 whales in the Eastern Hudson Bay area and only about 200 in Ungava. Nunavik hunters have disputed these claims, arguing that they have seen far more in person, and that if the numbers seem lower, it is because boat motor noise drives the whales further offshore, making them harder to count. A recent meeting of Nunavik elders with representatives of the DFO organized by the Kativik Regional Government (KRG) allowed the DFO to more clearly explain its conclusions and respond to objections. When the DFO explained the methods of aerial surveying and DNA testing it uses to distinguish between different beluga stocks, many elders were convinced of the danger posed to the beluga populations, according to the KRG. However, Nunatsiaq News interviewed several elders who still had their doubts about the findings. A larger complaint about the meeting was that although the DFO had much to say, they did not listen to the Nunavimmiut and acknowledge the importance of their traditional knowledge. Quotas have been imposed but are often ignored. Talks like such as this are motivated by a desire to reach a beluga harvesting agreement that will prevent an outright whaling ban, threatened by the federal government.
