As Hay River fish plant nears finish line, hope and worries abound for the future

With construction of a new fish plant in Hay River, N.W.T., almost finished, the territorial government is turning its focus to training up a new generation of fishers.

The N.W.T. government originally announced funding for the plant in 2019 and planned to have it completed by summer of 2020.

Budget issues and project delays pushed that date back, and construction is now expected to be done in June.

The project is in line with the N.W.T.'s official strategy for revitalizing the Great Slave Lake commercial fishery.

Andrew Cassidy, the territory's manager of agriculture and commercial fisheries, said the next step is to get more residents in the Hay River area involved in the commercial fishing industry. 

"One of the ways we are trying to do that is through hosting introductory-style training programs," Cassidy said. "So we're working with experienced commercial fishers to achieve that."

Cassidy said workshops focus on winter and open-water fishing skills and are meant to be a starting point that will teach inexperienced fishers how to set a net, how to pull a fish out, and some basic cleaning techniques.

"Each fisher's got their own particular style or technique and each boat might be different," Cassidy said.

Cassidy said officials hope participants will be so inspired by the course that they will seek out employment or continued mentorship on their own. The ultimate goal is for those people to start their own commercial fishing businesses.

"It's got a long historical value in our communities and it's a good fit for many people. So we're just trying to reintroduce it to the next generation," he said.

Cassidy said another plan to bring in more fish to the plant is to revive the winter fishing industry in the north. He said at one time, that industry was quite strong, but it has seen a significant decline over the years. He said lengthening the fishing season will be good for both the plant and fishers.

"It's a livelihood, it's a way of life for many people," he said. "We want to get people back into it — we see a lot of potential there."

Cassidy said the ability to process fish locally will eliminate transportation costs, and that will help increase profits for commercial fishers. With increased production, the goal will be to target and saturate the local market.

Once fully operational, the territory expects the fish plant to more than double the annual amount of processed commercial fish from 600,000 to 1.5 million pounds.

Commercial fishing is a different kind of beast

However, not everyone is convinced training will work to revitalize the local industry.

Bert Buckley followed in the footsteps of his father and has been in the commercial fishing industry for almost 60 years. He doesn't think the younger generation is up to the challenge.

"You have to live it. You gotta smell it, you gotta eat it, you gotta do everything to be a commercial fisherman. I don't see the drive in these young people," said Buckley.

He said commercial fishing is a different kind of beast compared to other industries. He's seen a lot of people try it over the years, only to find it's too much work for them. He's skeptical that the territory will be able to recruit new fishers.

"The government is spending money uselessly on trying to train people," said Buckley. "You need the drive behind you to do this, that's pretty much lost."

Although Buckley is not sold on the training programs, he said he supports efforts to revitalize the commercial fishing industry. He just wishes the government would have done more consultation.

Buckley said he thinks there needs to be a focus on better and newer technology, even though it's very expensive. He doesn't know how a small operation like his would be able to afford that without help.

He also said the territory needs to do more in-depth and better consultation with commercial fishers in the north. But even with new technology and better consultation, Buckley still comes back to the recruitment conundrum. 

"I have no idea how we would recruit, but we've got plenty of fish. We've got really good fish in the Great Slave Lake, the best in the world," he said.