The community of Clyde River filed legal action with the Supreme Court of Canada 3 days before the Canadian federal election. The filing followed the Federal Court of Appeal’s rejection of a previous
motion by the community, against the NEB’s 2014 decision to allow oil exploration companies to conduct blast tests in Davis Strait near Baffin Island. According to Jessica Wilson, head of Greenpeace Canada’s Arctic campaign, “The blasts are 8 times louder than a jet engine heard 50 metres away on land. Sounds at this level can burst human eardrums.” Local Inuits hunters recall having seen deaf polar bears, seals with bleeding eardrums, and narwhals trapped in ice. Nunavut’s Liberal MP-elect Hunter Tootoo said, “Trudeau wants to review the whole regulatory regime to ensure the Crown’s obligation to consult with Aboriginal people is honoured and respected.”
