Wally Schumann

As I have said, at kilometre 140, everything seems to be working fine. The department will continue to monitor the other culverts moving forward. We will be installing these four heat traces in the springtime at 213, and we will monitor things going forward. If this becomes something that we need to do at other sections of the highway, we will have a look at it.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This issue came up last year, particularly around the Georgetown area, and we are continually monitoring this area with overflow issues on the Dempster in a number of places, as the Member has spoken about.

In particular, right now, at kilometre 213, we have an issue. The department built a couple of berms there to hold back water, but, due to climate change this year and the warming temperatures in that region, a lot of water is coming up from underground, and we had an issue on the highway. A contractor has been out there. He has ice-plated that section to make it...

Low water rates, we did a subsidy from 2014-2016 for the hydroelectricity region for the North Slave and the government provided a one-time subsidy of $49 million for a two-year period.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In 2016-2017 the GNWT provided $380,000 to Northland Utilities to reduce the rates in four diesel communities down to match the rates in NTPC communities. In 2016-2017 the Government of the Northwest Territories provided $6.4 million throughout the Territorial Power Subsidy Program to reduce residential rates in both NTPC and Northland thermal communities down to the Yellowknife rate. Through the Housing Corporation, the GNWT provides approximately $7 million a year to keep rates low for tenants. For income assistance clients, we provided approximately $800,000 in 2016...

I am not going to get into a debate about 140 in Georgetown again. We had that conversation last year. The resident that is there, his father was moved previous to that situation. Someone else moved back into a location that has a troubled area, particularly with climate change flowing in that area, but we will continue to monitor 140. If it becomes an issue with safety, being a priority on our highway system, we will have a look at it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The government is committed to investing in all of the communities in the Northwest Territories, but, in particular in the Sahtu, we have completed a biomass heating which was installed in the schools in Tulita and Fort Good Hope last year; we hope to expand the wood pellet use in the Sahtu region; we have the wind monitoring that will be getting under way very soon in Norman Wells, as that is one of the sites that has the potential to put a windmill in there; we have solar still being considered for a number of communities in the Sahtu; and I think there is some considerable potential that...

We believe that transitioning to a strong, healthy economy that is less reliant on diesel fuel is to the benefit of all residents and communities in the Northwest Territories. To secure sustainable sources of energy, we will help to stabilize the cost of living as we move forward, as the new technologies come along and as the new infrastructure money rolls out. That is why we have developed our 2030 energy strategy that I have talked about, which we have engaged with communities to find solutions and set long-term targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the Northwest Territories, from...

The department always has ongoing discussions with the people of Aklavik who have applied for this funding. There are ongoing engineering and technical challenges that need to be worked out, and the department is working with them. As I've said, the CAP funding is on a first-come-first-served basis, and the community has done very well on it, and we're looking at if we're going to be able to fund them this year as well.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We've worked diligently with the community of Aklavik on this road and bridge project for the Richardson Mountains. They've accessed the CAP funding since 2011, and they do have a new proposal in right now to the department that's having a look at it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Member is talking about, maybe, the original proposal which they had submitted previous to both him and me being elected to the Legislative Assembly. The latest one they've sent me, they revised their proposal, and it is a different approach of how they can use the gas out of the Cameron Hills, ship it to Alberta, process it just across the border, and then be able to sell it back to proponents in the Northwest Territories, being either NTPC or a mining company or something like that.