Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I spoke about the water tanks that need replacing in Wrigley. I believe it’s reaching a critical stage. About six weeks ago the community health representative tested about six houses and their water tanks and deemed two of them not potable, meaning that they cannot use it for household use. It’s really impacting the families there. I’m not too sure who to ask this question to. We’ve got several departments responsible for water in the community. Perhaps I can start with or ask the Minister of Health and Social Services.
What I’m looking for is that the NWT Housing Corporation had said no to replacing these water tanks, but these tanks need replacing. If they cannot access programming, then our government’s going to have to find a solution around addressing this very, very important health need. I’d like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services if we have existing programs to help a situation like this.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In terms of a program available in Health and Social Services in this regard, we have produced promotional material and videos on the health promotion side to inform and educate people in our communities about how to keep their water tanks safe.
I’m aware of the rules for the House, so if it was up to me, I’d keep asking each Minister individually until I reach the right one. What I’m actually after is that federally, in the eastern provinces they recently announced a Water Tank Maintenance Program in fact to replace some water tanks on a reserve. It is really getting to a crisis stage in Wrigley. They’ve got many, many homes and their water tanks are in very poor condition. They’re in arrears with the Housing Corporation. They can’t get programming to replace the tanks, so we’re going to have to look at a unique and different program for this community, Mr. Speaker.
I’d like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services, once again: given these circumstances, is there a way to assist the community of Wrigley in replacing these water tanks? Maybe she can confer with her colleagues, as well. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Premier, Mr. Roland.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Because it does affect a number of departments, the Department of Health and Social Services does do the testing. The maintenance or repairs from that point on depends again on if it is public housing, then the Housing Corporation is directly involved. If it’s a private homeowner, the homeowner then would be required to do that maintenance. They can qualify for support through the Housing Corporation, but that, again, depends on the program criteria and if they’re eligible and if they’d had support previously on other initiatives. So depending on the scenario, a number of potential outcomes apply. Thank you.
I’m well aware of our policy and guidelines when it comes to arrears and what it means is that the government is saying no to replace these water tanks. But it is getting to the critical stage, Mr. Speaker. It is getting to a crisis situation. In fact, it can be deemed an emergency that these tanks need replacing in these communities and the residents need assistance with that. So I’m calling upon the government to come up with a strategy for the community of Wrigley and let’s address all these homes that are badly in need of replacing these water tanks. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, there are a number of avenues that can be undertaken by individuals and, again, it would be a case-by-case scenario. If there is, for example, private homes, the Housing Corporation could be of assistance, depending on the situation. As the Member pointed out, if there are arrears that come into play, then individuals can sign a prepayment plan that may be able to make them eligible for applying again, but I’d have to further confer with the Minister of the Housing Corporation on the specifics.
I would say that maybe here’s an opportunity that we can put the Member and the Minister together to see if there are specific initiatives that could be looked at that would apply to a number of areas. For example, Mr. Speaker, if the tanks are poly, there’s a cleaning procedure that is acceptable that would bring it back to the proper standards. So, again, we’d have to get more details and see what initiatives can be looked at. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Your final supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. That’s an avenue I wasn’t told about. When a couple families called me, their first line was, of course, to see the Housing Corporation and they were denied immediately. That’s exactly what it was there, Mr. Speaker, there was just an outright no. There were no alternative solutions provided to them. Hence, I’m raising it in the House and I’m glad that at least there’s one avenue that the Premier had indicated. I would like to ask the Premier if there are any other routes or avenues that we can address this critical situation of the water tanks in Wrigley. Thank you.
I probably should have referred it to the Minister of the Housing Corporation so he can give the actual program detail, but in this case I’ll confer with the Minister of the Housing Corporation to see what initiatives may be undertaken when it comes to dealing with folks on arrears, if it’s a pre-payment plan or does it have to be paid off in full. The issue, again, becomes more specific to the unit. If it is a matter of cleaning, then that falls under the homeowner’s responsibility, and, as Minister Lee pointed out, there is a process to make that water system safe again. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
