Sachs Harbour
| Sachs Harbour Ikahuak |
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|---|---|
| — Hamlet — | |
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 Sachs Harbour
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| Coordinates: 71°59′08″N 125°14′53″W / 71.98556°N 125.24806°WCoordinates: 71°59′08″N 125°14′53″W / 71.98556°N 125.24806°W | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Territory |  Northwest Territories |
| Region | Inuvik Region |
| Constituency | Nunakput |
| Census division | Region 1 |
| First permanent settlement | 1929 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Priscilla Haogak |
| • Senior Administrative Officer | Jackie Coulter |
| • MLA | Jackie Jacobson |
| Area | |
| • Land | 290.94 km2 (112.33 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 86 m (282 ft) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 122 |
| • Density | 0.4/km2 (1/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| Canadian Postal code | X0E 0Z0 |
| Area code(s) | 867 |
| Telephone exchange | 690 |
| Prices | |
| - Living cost | 167.5A |
| - Food price index | 197.3B |
| Sources: Community Governance Data List[1] 2006 Canada Census[2], Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre[3], Canada Flight Supplement[4] ^A 2005 figure based on Edmonton = 100[5] ^B 2004 figure based on Yellowknife = 100[5] Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Sachs Harbour profile</ref> |
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| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | %± | |
| 1996 | 140 |
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| 1997 | 150 | 7.1% | |
| 1998 | 149 | -0.7% | |
| 1999 | 138 | -7.4% | |
| 2000 | 127 | -8.0% | |
| 2001 | 125 | -1.6% | |
| 2002 | 118 | -5.6% | |
| 2003 | 113 | -4.2% | |
| 2004 | 121 | 7.1% | |
| 2005 | 122 | 0.8% | |
| 2006 | 127 | 4.1% | |
| 2007 | 126 | -0.8% | |
| 2008 | 130 | 3.2% | |
| 2009 | 136 | 4.6% | |
| Sources: NWT Bureau of Statistics[5] | |||
Sachs Harbour is a hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. Situated on the southwestern coast of Banks Island in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, the population according to the 2006 census count was 122 people.[2] The two principal languages in the town are Inuvialuktun and English. The traditional name for the area is "Ikahuak", meaning "where you go across to". Bulk supplies of food and other items are brought by barge in the summer months and flights from Inuvik, some 325 mi (523 km) to the southwest, operate all year, via the Sachs Harbour Airport. Sachs Harbour is the only permanent settlement on Banks Island.
The town was named after the ship Mary Sachs, which was part of the Canadian Arctic Expedition of 1913.
Contents |
[edit] Community life
The community's economy is based largely on hunting and trapping, but tourism also plays a small role. Most of the town lies within 250 yd (230 m) of the shoreline. Residents also engage in ice fishing, harvesting fish from the Amundsen Gulf and the Beaufort Sea. There is a goose hunt every spring - Banks Island being the home to the largest goose colony in North America. The community is also home to the largest commercial muskox harvests in Canada. Three quarters of the world's population of muskoxen roam the island. Barren-ground Caribou and polar bear are also seen on the island. On April 26, 2006 the world's first documented wild-born grizzly–polar bear hybrid was shot near the town.
[edit] Aulavik National Park
Sachs Harbour is the headquarters of Aulavik National Park. The Aulavik National Park Visitor Reception Centre is situated in Sachs Harbour. Aulavik National Park is located on the north end of Banks Island, and is co-operatively managed by Parks Canada with the residents of Sachs Harbour and the broader Inuvialuit community. The Visitor Reception Centre presents the Park and Inuvialuit culture to visitors to Banks Island, as well as serves as a centre for community activities.
[edit] Exploration
Oil and gas exploration has provided jobs over the years for some Sachs Harbour residents—estimates of commercially recoverable oil in the Beaufort Sea range from four to 12 billion barrels (1.9×109 m3), and there is believed to be between 13 and 63 trillion cubic feet (1,800 km3) of natural gas.
[edit] Services
Services include a two member Royal Canadian Mounted Police detachment and a health centre with two nurses.[6] Phone services are provided by Northwestel with Internet access. The local hunters and trappers association provides outfitting for big-game hunts like musk-ox and polar bears.
[edit] Climate
Sachs Harbour is in the Arctic tundra climatic zone, characterized by long, extremely cold winters. Since the activities of many residents of the community revolve around fishing, hunting, and travel, many residents have considerable knowledge of weather conditions, permafrost, and even erosion patterns. Because of climate changes in recent years, local residents fear their knowledge of weather patterns may not be of much use, as the weather has become harder to predict. Since the climate has been changing, sea ice has been breaking up earlier than normal, taking seals farther south in the summer. Seals are one of the main sources of food for the town. Salmon appeared for the first time in nearby waters between 1999 and 2001. New species of birds are migrating to the island, including robins and Barn Swallows, and more flies and mosquitos have been appearing.[7][8][9]
| Climate data for Sachs Harbour | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Humidex | -4.4 | -6.1 | -5.6 | 1.1 | 9.4 | 22.1 | 26.0 | 23.7 | 16.3 | 3.9 | 1.1 | -4.3 | 26.0 |
| Record high °C (°F) | −4.4 (24.1) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
−4 (24.8) |
2.2 (36.0) |
10.0 (50.0) |
20.5 (68.9) |
24.2 (75.6) |
21.5 (70.7) |
15.6 (60.1) |
4.4 (39.9) |
1.7 (35.1) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
24.2 (75.6) |
| Average high °C (°F) | −25.7 (−14.3) |
−25.2 (−13.4) |
−23.5 (−10.3) |
−15.2 (4.6) |
−4.6 (23.7) |
5.9 (42.6) |
10.3 (50.5) |
6.3 (43.3) |
0.6 (33.1) |
−8 (17.6) |
−17.4 (0.7) |
−23.3 (−9.9) |
−10 (14.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −29.3 (−20.7) |
−29 (−20.2) |
−27.2 (−17.0) |
−18.9 (−2.0) |
−7.7 (18.1) |
2.9 (37.2) |
6.8 (44.2) |
3.5 (38.3) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−11.1 (12.0) |
−20.9 (−5.6) |
−26.9 (−16.4) |
−13.3 (8.1) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −32.9 (−27.2) |
−32.8 (−27.0) |
−30.8 (−23.4) |
−22.7 (−8.9) |
−10.8 (12.6) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
3.3 (37.9) |
0.7 (33.3) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
−14.2 (6.4) |
−24.4 (−11.9) |
−30.4 (−22.7) |
−16.6 (2.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −52.2 (−62.0) |
−50.2 (−58.4) |
−48.4 (−55.1) |
−43 (−45.4) |
−26.7 (−16.1) |
−16.5 (2.3) |
−4 (24.8) |
−11 (12.2) |
−22.8 (−9.0) |
−35.5 (−31.9) |
−42.8 (−45.0) |
−45 (−49.0) |
−52.2 (−62.0) |
| Wind chill | −71.6 | −68.1 | −64.8 | −58.4 | −40.3 | −21.1 | −10.3 | −20.4 | −31.2 | −44.9 | −56.4 | −64.1 | −71.6 |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 4.7 (0.185) |
7.2 (0.283) |
5.9 (0.232) |
11.2 (0.441) |
10.4 (0.409) |
7.9 (0.311) |
15.0 (0.591) |
27.0 (1.063) |
23.4 (0.921) |
22.2 (0.874) |
9.0 (0.354) |
5.4 (0.213) |
149.4 (5.882) |
| Rainfall mm (inches) | 0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.7 (0.028) |
5.5 (0.217) |
13.9 (0.547) |
21.8 (0.858) |
9.8 (0.386) |
0.5 (0.02) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
52.2 (2.055) |
| Snowfall cm (inches) | 5.2 (2.05) |
7.6 (2.99) |
6.6 (2.6) |
11.7 (4.61) |
10.5 (4.13) |
2.6 (1.02) |
1.2 (0.47) |
5.4 (2.13) |
14.1 (5.55) |
23.7 (9.33) |
10.3 (4.06) |
6.5 (2.56) |
105.4 (41.5) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 5.6 | 6.1 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 6.0 | 4.8 | 7.5 | 13.3 | 12.4 | 13.9 | 7.8 | 5.7 | 93.1 |
| Avg. rainy days | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 3.0 | 7.0 | 9.8 | 4.8 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 25.7 |
| Avg. snowy days | 5.8 | 6.1 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 5.9 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 3.9 | 8.6 | 13.6 | 8.0 | 5.8 | 70.4 |
| Sunshine hours | n/a | 36.4 | 162.9 | 268.3 | 280.8 | 344.8 | 326.1 | 181.2 | 80.5 | 37.1 | n/a | n/a | 1,718.0 |
| Source no. 1: 1971-2000 Environment Canada[10] | |||||||||||||
| Source no. 2: Sunshine data from 1961-1990 Environment Canada[10] | |||||||||||||
[edit] References
- ^ Community Governance Data List
- ^ a b Canada 2006 Census
- ^ Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre - official names
- ^ Canada Flight Supplement. Effective 0901Z 15 December 2011 to 0901Z 9 February 2012
- ^ a b c Paulatuk - Statistical Profile at the GNWT
- ^ Infrastructure
- ^ First Records of Sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) and Pink Salmon (O. gorbuscha) from Banks Island and Other Records of Pacific Salmon in Northwest Territories, Canada
- ^ Observed Climate Change Impacts in Sachs Harbour, Canada
- ^ Climate change impacts on Canadian Western Arctic: the Inuvialuit of Sachs Harbour
- ^ a b Environment Canada—Canadian Climate Normals 1971–2000. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sachs Harbour |
- The White Fox Fur Trade NWT Historical Timeline, Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre
