A proposal for an island tent camp to serve as a base for a guided angling business on Aishihik Lake is facing determined headwinds.

Among the several parties expressing their opposition in submissions to the assessment board are the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, and a couple of Yukon government departments.

Several individuals and families have also indicated that approving the proposal would mean providing a commercial operation with exclusive use over a favourite location for the public in general.

It would also provide the commercial operator with use of a harbour that serves as a shelter for boaters when Aishihik Lake blows up, say the submissions.

The time for public input expired last week.

Just yesterday, the Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Board sent out an information request to the applicant, Normand Leroux.

It pointed out the proposal has received substantial opposition, and it laid out some concerns being raised.

It asked Leroux if he’s considered other locations for his campsite.

He has 28 days to respond.

Leroux is proposing to use the island – located about 16 kilometres up the lake from the south end – for a campsite with four wall tents and two smaller tents. The timeframe would span early June through to early September.

In his proposal, he says he could use the Aishihik Lake Campground for his base camp, but he would be limited to 14 days.

He says he could find another location along the lake, where he’d be legally entitled to stay for 100 days before having to move to another site, and so on.

But he says at this point, there is no other location, and the location on the island “is the only suitable site.”

“This project is solely for sport fishing and providing accommodation for my clients during the summer,” says Leroux’s proposal to the assessment board.

He expects there would be up to four clients and two guides in camp at one time.

Of the 17 or so submissions to the assessment board, one defends the proposal. It suggests the opposition coming from another commercial guiding business is routed in an attempt to keep out the competition.

There are, however, many who argue they and their families have boated and fished on Aishihik Lake for years, and longer. The island is one of the only suitable sites to camp for a night, they write.

And when the lake gets rough, it’s the cove on the island that boaters head to for shelter, say the submissions.

They say allowing the commercial camp would eliminate their opportunity to spend a night at their favourite camping spot.

And if the cove is already full with boats, it could limit their ability to seek shelter, say the submissions.

There was also the question around introducing more fishing pressure on the lake that has already been designated as conservation waters.

The six pages of opposition from the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations go deeper.

“Lu Shäw Dzé (“big fish heart”; the bay and islands) is a sacred, culturally significant area where development should not be permitted,” says the submission from Champagne and Aishihik.

“There is an important story about the place, which we will expand on below, and therefore it holds power.

“Therefore, it is not appropriate for a commercial tourism business to use the proposed site, or exclude others from using the site.”

Traditional knowledge about the site that was included in the letter of opposition has not been released by the assessment board.

But the First Nations says the cultural value of the site goes beyond archaeological evidence, such as the presence of physical artifacts at boat launches or campsites.

The territorial Department of Energy, Mines and Resources points out in its submission that shallow soil conditions on the island are not suitable for digging outhouses. It also points out the harbour is the only shelter for many kilometres.

But the Department of Tourism and Culture points out it’s impossible for wilderness guiding businesses to get any tenure to support their businesses.