Michael Miltenberger

In fact, Municipal and Community Affairs has provided the community about $175,000 to assist them with the work, the technical work, engineering work, as they look at the type of conversion that’s going to best meet the needs of the community.

Once again, I’ll commit that we will make sure, as a government, that we are coordinated and supportive of the community in this process. I will, as well, be talking to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

The Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to working with the community of Norman Wells the same as we are working with the community of Inuvik to resolve these critical energy issues. We have been and will continue to work with the community to do that.

I’ll commit to have the officials check on the latest status of this proposal. As the Member has indicated, if it’s some type of letter or some type of letter of comfort, then, of course, we will seriously look at that either through Environment and Natural Resources or Finance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The officials and staff, in fact Environment and Natural Resources, who are conversant with biomass, have been working with the community of Norman Wells. Now that there’s been an election and a change in leadership, we have to revisit the priorities of the community just to confirm whether those are still the priorities or if there has been any change. But we have been working with the community.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document, entitled Northwest Territories/Nunavut Agreement: Legislation and Regulation of Northern Employee Benefits Services Pension Plan.

Thank you. I recently returned from a meeting of the Environment Ministers and over supper we were talking about whatever success Canada has in terms of managing their emissions. My observation, which was agreed to by all the folks around the table, was that the federal government in fact has benefitted from the work of the subnational provinces, territories, states, and the Northwest Territories is a perfect example.

We’ve spent tens of millions of dollars; we’re doing ground-breaking work on things related to biomass, alternative fuels like biomass, its application across the land, the use of...

It’s not a future tense, but that issue has been driving us, as the Member said. We are dealing with it; we are adapting to this on an ongoing basis. There are things happening that are the new reality. There is endangered species, there are the fire seasons that are increasing in addition to all the things that Transportation has talked about. That reality is there and we are making and are committed to managing our greenhouse gas emissions.

We have to keep in mind that we live in a cold climate. We are carbon-intensive users and we do have some of the highest prices for energy right now and...

The Wildlife Act is a unique piece of legislation that has, in fact, been drafted in partnership with the Aboriginal governments. We’ve had the working group members comprised of members from Inuvialuit, Gwich’in, Sahtu, Tlicho, Metis, as well as seats at the table for the Akaitcho and representatives from the Dehcho First Nation, should they choose to attend and when they choose to attend. It has been that collective that has worked to draft the Wildlife Act, a unique process in this country of Canada, a unique bill that has no equal in this country. We have made tremendous efforts to involve...

The consultation feedback has gone well. The bill has been reviewed and the bill was substantially the same as what was before the House in the last Assembly. The issues that have come up, there have been some technical issues, there have been some issues of processes for ongoing feedback. For example, for groups like the SWAAG. But overall, we’ve concluded all the reviews. The one contentious issue that is really out there is the structure of the conference, and as well, we want to give a full and comprehensive response to the concerns put forward and recommendations put forward by the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to thank my colleague for going back to this number. As well, I’d like to recognize, actually, Mr. Willard Hagen, chair of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, as well as Richard Edjericon, chair of the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board. Thank you for coming and spending time in the Assembly.