Kevin A. Menicoche

Mr. Speaker, thank you. Thank you, colleagues. WHEREAS Rule 85 requires that Members be appointed to the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight;

NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Great Slave, that the following members be appointed to the Standing Committee on Accountability and Oversight: Mr. Glen Abernethy, the Member for Great Slave; Mr. Tom Beaulieu, the Member for Tu Nedhe; Ms. Wendy Bisaro, the Member for Frame Lake; Mr. Bob Bromley, the Member for Weledeh; Mrs. Jane Groenewegen, the Member for Hay River South; Mr. Robert Hawkins, the Member for...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to say that we’re not not doing anything, Mr. Speaker.

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At the Member’s request, we’ve undertaken and pressed forward with this runway extension study. It’s something that we’re looking at. We’re looking at the 2010 regulations as part of the study to see how much of an impact the requirements of the 2010 will actually have, then, thirdly, to identify which communities will require these extensions and work forward to a plan to move towards it, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I believe all our communities have runways, so I don’t know what the Member is talking about. The existing runways aren’t impacting any current movement of our freight and transportation of people there, Mr. Speaker, but the runway issue study is to identify the need for extensions in the communities that may have shorter runways and requirements for the 2010 CATSA requirements for longer runways. It is going to have an impact upon our government, Mr. Speaker. We’re looking at potentially 16 runways right now and it’s estimated between 44 to 170 million...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with the Member that that is not the case. We are continually negotiating and having discussion with ILA to discuss the permitting fees and the permitting to access the route for source 177. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we did not hand any application over to the ILA office. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It has been a strange session. I have been doing things twice about the weddings and now I am doing it again for the Pages. I would like to thank the Pages from Fort Simpson, Hilary Norwegian and Tanis Browning, for helping us here this week. Mahsi cho.

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Mr. Speaker…(English not provided)

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to say that back in 2003 during the election, I was glad to be elected to the Legislature. At that time I didn’t have good use of my aboriginal language and people always said go to the communities, go visit the elders, and that’s what I’ve done. Now I can visit them, drink and have tea with them and listen to them and to their stories. I receive lots of guidance from them. I am very happy to say that there is an actual granny from Nahanni. I have spoken with her and she is very happy, Mr. Speaker, to see that in some small...

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I just want to say that right now DOT has no immediate plans to be extending any runways in the NWT, but we do have several runway extensions identified within our current 20-year needs assessment. I just want to add, Mr. Speaker, that the longer runways have been suggested as a solution for supporting air carriers, existing planes. The theory is that a longer runway will allow the aircraft to meet the requirements in all situations is incorrect. Longer runways will not solve aircraft performance requirement problems, Mr. Speaker. Mahsi.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The Member is correct; the department has undertaken a student to look at all the airport runways in our communities, to look at the length and as well as the 2010 new CATSA requirement for runway lights there, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I’m probably going to have to get into some level of detail here for the Member. He’s well aware of the challenges we’ve had with the ILA and fees and royalty structures in that particular regime. The permitting process necessary for constructing the road from Tuktoyaktuk to source 177 is the application submission will have to have the royalty fees associated with that permit attached. Our estimates, based on the length of the road and the land around the source that we need, runs about $3 million, Mr. Speaker. That’s something of a huge issue for us as...