Michael Miltenberger

Yes, we want to identify if there are gaps, be it in policy or procedures or standard operating procedures as well as any broader structural issues, equipment issues. This is a very comprehensive review, so we will be seeking to address those in anticipation of being ready for the upcoming season. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The fire suppression budget for this year, the base budget remains as it’s laid out in the main estimates. We are looking at next year probably a five-year average approach that would see a change, especially if one of the five years includes the $60 million. We’ll see what this fire season brings. The assurance to the people of the Northwest Territories, of course, is that we will, as a government and as a Legislature, put the resources that we need to to protect the homes, people and the safety and property values that we hold dear in the Northwest Territories. We...

The planning work is going on and has been going on now since the end of the fire season. We will have a compilation of all the feedback and responses and recommendations on a go forward basis by the end of March. That work is being done and funded through the forest division and the staff we have on our payroll. With an internal exercise, as well, we’ve been going out to the regions. I’d ask the deputy if he would want to add a bit more information about the work that’s been in done in anticipation of wrapping up last year and lessons learned for next year.

This is an important part of the economy, as the Member points out, that and the traditional knowledge. We’re committed to carrying on the good work that was done when the funding flowed through ITI. I’ll ask the deputy to just give a bit of a rundown on the various programs we do have that we’ve been administering now for some time both in terms of hunters and trappers assistance, Western Harvesters Fund, community harvester assistance and Take a Kid Trapping and such, with your agreement, Mr. Chairman. Thank you.

Mr. Chair, I will ask, with your indulgence, the deputy just to speak to the practice of assisting wherever we can with equipment, fire hoses, sprinklers and pumps as a matter of practice and convention when we have them available.

Once again, it’s a point that I would not disagree with the Member that the idea would be that yes, we have a long backlog of contaminated sites that need to be remediated and on a go forward basis we want to design our processes to avoid the creation of any new ongoing costs that are going to weigh us down, which is why we have invested the money we have in terms of securities and managing all those arrangements and making sure that as we do the project planning and assessment that there are the proper counterbalances in there to accommodate and prevent the type of contaminated sites by being...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It’s been since 2007 that there’s been a fire crew there. So yes, we will have our folks and the deputy will arrange to make sure there are discussions with Tsiigehtchic about the upcoming fire season. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. We accept. We’ll follow up with Mr. Bromley. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I agree that we’re going to be challenged more and more to try to anticipate the plan for the future. Prevention, as the Member indicates, is one thing; mitigation and adaptation are going to be the other two. So this particular division has a role to play, but if we’re going to link all the pieces not only in this department but other departments that have that prognostication function and as we move through Managing this Land and other committees that we have, that type of work and the budgeting side as well as we project our fire costs, for example, and costs that...

Yes, Mr. Chairman, I do. Thank you.