Sahtu

Statements in Debates

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

One of the things I look at, especially when we have potential such as many parks and I want to talk about my favourite one is the proposed Doi T’oh Territorial Park on the Canol Heritage Trail. One of the things we looked at was skill development with our leaders. I know it’s taken some time. I hope the Minister has some initiatives that will look at skills development with our young people. Maybe junior park rangers or junior guides in the park that will give some training to some of the younger people. I’m hoping that, I know our park is not quite turned over to the territorial jurisdiction...

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

I look forward to the Minister continuing his work on this initiative. I think I just have to work my schedule and look at when to do a presentation to the EDI so that I can come in then. So I look forward to the Minister’s continued work on this whole issue here. I’d like to see how far, when you clear the dust off and you see how big this thing is and say okay, this is what we’re dealing with and this is real. This is not one year, this is 10 years, 15 years and this could possibly be significant for the North.

So in saying that, I want to just get to an issue here that Mr. Bouchard talked...

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I heard on the radio and I also heard here in the House about the Aboriginal tourism strategy and the council that you formed and what you’ve asked this Aboriginal tourism strategy to do. I want to ask the Minister through the life of this government is this tourism council now set for the next three or four years.

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

The Minister’s Mackenzie Valley Pipeline office mandate to work with the communities, I like to see them come into the Sahtu and say, okay, community of Tulita and Norman Wells, we need X amount of welders, pipefitters and et cetera, et cetera, when we know for sure the pipeline is coming down. Are we ready? Have we done the assessment? Because right now, like I said, we don’t know, and maybe that’s our strategy, is to continue saying we support the Mackenzie Gas Project. I don’t know. Someone’s got to tell the emperor he has no clothes. We can’t keep saying that.

For me, the big push right now...

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Just for clarification, Mr. Chairman, the regional hydro renewable energy solutions funding related to ongoing work, is funding ongoing work with the Aboriginal organizations? He has $100,000 here. Is that going to be divvied up between the Tlicho, Sahtu and Akaitcho? Is that correct?

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Department of ITI, when you look at the situation in the Northwest Territories, it’s at a place and time where the department and staff and its resources are most important or critical at this time. You have some big projects going on with ITI. You have tourism with world-class spots in the Northwest Territories that people want to see and visit. We have opportunities with tourism right down the Mackenzie Valley. In some places it’s pretty advantageous to put in some tourism projects and some it’s not too good because of the infrastructure. We don’t have quite the...

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Thank you. The question I had earlier with the Minister on the NWT Hydro Strategy was on gathering the baseline data required to look at future hydro potential in areas and sites. I wanted to ask the Minister one specific question. For example, the baseline data for fish on the Bear River, have they figured out the types of impact if you put a dam on the Bear River what will the impact be on fish there? I certainly like my fish on the other end of the river here and a lot of people have their fish nets there. I want to know what they have figured out on the impacts of fish.

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Thank you. Is it possible that this Minister and this Cabinet could look at some situations in the Sahtu where he could get a dentist, Adam Dental or out of Inuvik, they could go into the Sahtu, spend a good quality three months, four months in there to look after the people’s teeth? Because right now it’s on an emergency basis. Right now there are no dentists in the Sahtu, not even in Norman Wells. There are people who are not First Nations who are buying airline tickets to go to Inuvik or to Yellowknife to get their teeth looked at. The nurses are handing out antibiotics. People are going...

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Thank you. Under page 12-37, Mr. Chair, the repayment of the fur account loan. I see we’re in the bracket here. There’s $1.1 million. Why is that?

Debates of , 17th Assembly, 3rd Session (day 8)

Can the Minister tell me, when they’re involved in the NWT Hydro Strategy, are they going to be doing various types of baseline data gathering, assessments and doing this for the whole Northwest Territories to indicate where the hydro potential areas are? Like had been mentioned earlier, they’ve done some work in Whati and Lutselk’e and Bear River, and I want to show where the other areas are. Will this information that they’re collecting all be wrapped up into a Hydro Strategy? I make the assumption on the presumption that the dollars will be on target to say well, this is the area that...