The fight to save caribou is very much on the mind of a caribou management board in northern Canada.
The Beverly and Qamanirjuaq Caribou Management Board recently met with Anconia Resources, a company looking for minerals in Nunavut.
The board is worried because of the site where the company is exploring for zinc.
Board chairman Ross Thompson says it’s mid-way between Arviat and Baker Lake, the spot where the Qamanirjuaq herd traditionally goes for calving season.
Thompson says aircraft noise and industrial activity has been known to stress the animals.
He says if a mother caribou is disturbed too much it can eventually leave the calf.
Thompson wishes the area was kept free of activity altogether:
“Well what if there is promising results, what if there is minerals, metals found? Then the area is opened up further. The exploration is one thing and then the development comes and along with it the roads, the mines, the other things that come with development.”
Thompson says the company has assured them it will do its best to protect the animals but he is still worried.