Bob McLeod

I can assure the Member that we have regular interactions with Avalon; our regional staff interact with them almost on a weekly basis. I myself meet with them at every opportunity. The last time I met with management of Avalon was at the Cordilleran Roundup in Vancouver and they do have representatives here in Yellowknife as well. So we have the opportunity to meet with them on a regular basis. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

We would follow policy review convention and it would be referred to a committee, whatever the process is. We’ve already done all the consultation. All the stakeholders are aware of what is being proposed, so we would follow the policy convention of the government. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

This office helps coordinate the activities throughout the government and is also responsible for coordinating with community governments and aboriginal governments. So they have been travelling to the different communities to update them on what’s been happening with the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline.

Mr. Speaker, the Summer Student Employment Program is a crucial part of this government’s commitment towards the people of the North and the development of a skilled and knowledgeable northern workforce. The 2010 Summer Student Employment Program is underway and applications for summer student employment are being accepted.

I ask all Members, residents and parents that if they are aware of any students seeking summer employment, to encourage them to register as early as possible with the Department of Human Resources at @email.

Mr. Speaker, each year the Government of the Northwest...

Yes, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think those are all very important questions. I think that with the environmental assessment the rationale and logic is that there’s a very tight business case. It will be a function of the power purchase agreements and how the financing would be arranged. I think that it will all hinge on the environmental assessment and negotiations with the diamond mines. That’s where the regulated/unregulated difference is and I think that hydro power is a very important part of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.

Yes, Mr. Chairman, I would.

Our expectation is that the money would be available from existing ITI funding programs. If there was a requirement for additional funding, we would have to look at the $2 million that’s available from... We’d have to work with ENR for any incremental requirements.

Yes, I do, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

That is my understanding, and working with ENR we’ll be working closely with the NWT Association of Communities and engaging communities. I’d like to point out that our expectation is because of the fact that our government has had tremendous success in promoting the use of biomass in the Northwest Territories and you can see it in the large number of government buildings that are using wood pellets. So I expect that we’ll have similar success with communities, although because of the fact that there’s biomass available in every community in the Northwest Territories except maybe in the...