Simeon Tshakapesh says no plans to curtail limited hunt on caribou

The deputy chief of the Innu Nation, Simeon Tshakapesh, says there are no plans to curtail a limited hunt for caribou in Labrador, despite a hunting ban and worries that the Red Wine Mountain caribou herd is dramatically depleted.

Tshakapesh also disputed assertions by government officials that hunting is a primary factor for the troubling state of the Red Wine herd and caribou numbers in general.

He believes the provincial government is more to blame for allowing activities such as mining and exploration, hydroelectric projects, road construction and more. He also referenced low-level flying of military airplanes as a factor.

"They don't care about the herd. They seem to care about it in the media. But they only look at the dollar signs," said Tshakapesh.

• Innu caribou hunt endangers herd, ministers say
• Hunting 'primary factor' in decline of Red Wine caribou, says Dan Crummell

In an interview Thursday with Labrador Morning, Tshakapesh defended the limited hunt of 300 animals yearly from the larger George River herd, saying it is done on the advice of Innu elders, both out of tradition and necessity because of the high price of food in Labrador.

He said hunters have not taken the maximum number of caribou in recent years.

"(The elders) always say we can only take so much. That's still the practice today and we have to respect that," he said.

The provincial government has raised concerns about the hunt, saying that it puts the Red Wine herd in jeopardy because animals from both herds intermingle.

Tshakapesh said he is not aware of any Red Wine caribou being hunted.

There is some stuff that non-natives don't understand about the Innu people because of the dependency on the animal.- Simeon Tshakapesh

"We have not given any hunters permission to harvest the Red Wine herd," he said.

Environment and Conservation Minister Dan Crummell said recently that the Red Wine herd north of the Churchill River is now down to about 20 animals, and he believes hunting is a factor in the dwindling numbers.

Not the only herd in trouble

In 2013, the province announced a five-year ban on hunting of the George River herd. Studies showed the herd's population dropped by 70 per cent since 2010, to less than 20,000 animals.

Tshakapesh said it's wrong to blame hunting for the problem, and added that no one truly knows the definitive answer.

"The Innu people didn't hunt 8,000 animals last year. That would be impossible," he said, referring to population estimates.

Elders have told Tshakapesh that population cycles have occurred in the past, long before modern vehicles and firearms gave hunters the ability to move freely around the landscape.

"It's not like the Innu people are going to slaughter the animals. That's something we would never do. There is some stuff that non-natives don't understand about the Innu people because of the dependency on the animal," he said.