Senate to scrutinize marine activities in the Arctic

The Senate's committee on fisheries and oceans has launched a review of theCanadian Coast Guard, fisheries and marine activities in the Arctic.

ChairSenator Bill Rompkey said the committee thinks it's importantto hear from people who are directly affected by global warming.

The committee will also examine whether northern fisheries can build on local research and provide more employment, as well as look at community infrastructure, he said.

"We heard from representatives of Nunavut earlier in the fall and we were surprised and disappointed that although the government has spent money on harboursalmost everywhere else in Canada, there really is no fishing harbour as such, in Nunavut," Rompkey said in a recent interview.

The committee willbegin its Arctic visits in May, he said.