Money that had been collected to build a fish processing plant in Prince Albert is now being returned.
Fishermen, cooperatives, First Nations bands and the Northern Lights Casino have contributed close to a half million dollars to the project.
In 2004, the province also approved $350,000 in conditional support for the fish processing plant but this money has since been withdrawn.
Marie Hildebrant, the treasurer of the Saskatchewan Commercial Fishermen’s group, says because of rules governing securities the organization simply couldn’t hold onto the money any longer.
“With the securities you have to use it within a certain period of time or know exactly when,” she says. “It is not that it is still not being worked on but we have nothing down on paper and this is tying up people’s money.”
She adds the goal of the commercial fishermen’s group is to still build the plant and they are still looking for government investment in the form of a loan.