Whati Fish Camp 2014 Introductory Meeting June 25

This year's "fish camp" or Tłı̨chǫ Aquatic Ecosystem Monitoring Program (TAEMP) is scheduled to take place near Whatì  --and planning is currently underway, with an introductory meeting in the community scheduled for June 25th (see poster in Gallery at the end of the article).

Boyan Tracz, Wildlife Management Biologist for the WRRB and Sarah Elsasser, Regulatory Specialist from the WLWB, along with Tłı̨chǫ Government staff in Whatì, will be meeting with community members and students from the Mezi Community School to discuss this year's camp.  They’ll show our recent video from last year’s fish camp near Gamètì to help introduce the TAEMP and to give people a good idea of what the fish camp is about.  The meeting will provide an opportunity for everyone to start thinking about the 2014 camp set-up and activities, all of which will be discussed in more detail during a planning meeting which will be held in Whatì in about a month’s time. 

The TAEMP is a community-based monitoring program to sample and test the fish, water and lake sediments near Tłı̨chǫ communities. Fish camp locations rotate to a different community each year so that sampling is done near each community every four years.  TAEMP has already sampled fish, water and sediments near Behchokǫ̀, Wekweètì and Gamètì so far – and this year’s fish camp is an important step in the program.  It completes the first round of sampling and collection of important baseline information that communities and others can use to compare with sample results in the future and see if things have changed. Once fish and water have been sampled and tested in Whatì, the 4-year cycle will begin again,  returning to the Behchokǫ̀ area in 2015 for the first round of comparative sampling.

For more information about TAEMP, contact Boyan Tracz at 867-873-5742