The Board has posted an Aug. 19 decision document titled “Cumberland Sound Turbot Management Area_10 tonne TAH increase_Greenland Halibut” in its fisheries decision records. Pangnirtung’s Hunters and Trappers Organization had asked in June for a one-year, 10-tonne open-water turbot harvest in fall 2026 as a pilot before a forecast El Niño winter. ᓇᑭᓐᖔᖅᓯᒪᓂᖏᑦ↗

The increase is small—two per cent of the former 500-tonne limit—but could give Pangnirtung fishers a chance to test open-water harvesting as a backup when winter ice conditions restrict the established fishery. The HTO application described the request as a pilot, not an emergency response, and noted possible operational and bycatch questions still needed testing.

The public records reviewed do not confirm that fishing has occurred, that a federal fishing licence has been issued, or the final operational conditions for the pilot harvest. Follow-up reporting should seek the underlying Aug. 19 decision letter and Fisheries and Oceans Canada licensing information before reporting on harvest activity.

The NWMB’s July notice said the 500-tonne total allowable harvest was set in 2005, with a 4.4-tonne Pangnirtung basic-needs level. It gave interested parties until Aug. 14 to request participation in, or object to, the allocation of the surplus. ᓇᑭᓐᖔᖅᓯᒪᓂᖏᑦ↗ A total allowable harvest is the overall management limit; it is not proof of a completed catch.