clipped from: www.cbc.ca   

Hunters in Nunavut's Baffin Bay region will be able to kill up to 105 polar bears this season, after the territory's environment minister agreed to leave the quota unchanged, despite concerns from officials about overhunting.

outgoing Environment Minister Olayuk Akesuk accepted a recommendation from the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board not to cut the Baffin Bay polar bear quota — also known as the total allowable harvest — for this season

Territorial government staff had wanted to cut the quota to 64 bears or less. They've argued for the past three years that the harvest there is too high, in part because of hunting in nearby Greenland.

dozens of hunters from Pond Inlet, Clyde River and Qikiqtarjuaq told the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board that the polar bear population in Baffin Bay is on the rise, not decreasing

Gissing said he is expecting a backlash from the international community for the decision not to reduce the Baffin Bay hunt quota.