Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of ITI and are with regard to the management of the Prelude Lake campground and boat launch. There’s a large and growing demand on these facilities and it’s probably the most popular park in the Northwest Territories. A large volume of parked campers, casual users of the boat launch, and those accessing both legal and illegal squats from the landing. Parking and dock use is maxed out and quality of experience is declining. In correspondence from the 16th Assembly’s Minister of ITI, the Minister said a new and comprehensive management plan for the park will be forthcoming this year. Can the Minister of ITI tell me the status of that work?
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. David Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It was my understanding that this comprehensive management plan was started and I would be more than happy to advise the Member of the status of that plan as soon as I find out.
I look forward to that update. I guess really we want to be staying on top of our facilities such as this in a timely way and before they disintegrate to this degree, making the corrections that are necessary. What are the mechanisms that we have to regularly monitor the health of our facilities such as the Prelude Lake boat launch and so on, and for taking action to get those repaired in a timely way?
I take very seriously the concerns related to parks and tourism. I spent a number of years as a parks officer in the North Slave region. I’m well aware of the condition and deteriorating conditions in some of our parks and the fact that when it comes to maintenance dollars and capital dollars, parks, because of the competing interests for those capital dollars, are usually one of the last things that gets put on the table. I think we really need to do parks a service and try to identify capital dollars in a meaningful way going forward that are going to have an impact on our parks and the condition of our parks, because we are out there in a large way promoting this territory to tourists around not only North America but globally, getting them here. It’s important that when tourists do show up in the Northwest Territories that our parks are in shape, that they’ll enjoy their stay and that our residents will also enjoy our park system the way it is.
Thanks for the response from the Minister. As the Minister noted, in my previous question, there’s a wide range of consultation going on with territorial and federal departments with regard to Prelude Lake, but there was no mention from the previous Minister how First Nations governments’ involvement will be ensured, and the public and stakeholder consultations. The boat launch itself is a jumping off point to the use of Akaitcho lands. Can the Minister assure me that the Yellowknives Dene First Nation will be included early in the work and the public will be informed and involved throughout?
I gave the Member a commitment to get him an update on the status of the plan for Prelude Lake and I’d be more than happy to get the Member a status of the involvement of the Yellowknives Dene in those discussions.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the Minister’s commitment there. Another big component of the high demand for a boat launch and parking facilities is the high number of illegal occupations on federal lands, squatters that use the boat launch and so on. I’ve received an assurance from the Minister of MACA that there will be a call for aggressive federal enforcement of land law. These squats debase our tourism product as well as for the local law-obeying citizens. I’d like to ask if the Minister will work with the MACA Minister to push for federal enforcement of its law.
Yes, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
