Mr. Speaker, I am just wondering if the Minister can give us an estimate. I know the $2 million and if you add that to the $1.8 million...I want some assurance from the government that it is going to be a certain amount. I don’t think it is something that we can just guess. I think we need to know what we’re getting ourselves into. Is it going to be the operation to the ice crossing and ferry operations at the time or is it going to be what we were told two years ago when the bridge was being talked about then? That was $1.8 million, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, we certainly can provide that information to the Member. We have already indicated how the calculations are going to be made, what formula is going to be used and how much our subsidy is. He is asking us for specifics on dollars and cents here, so I would be very reluctant to give him that information from the top of my head. We will calculate it. We will provide it to him in short order. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are to the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources in regards to the time frame and the implementation framework on the Traditional Knowledge policy. I wanted to ask the Minister in terms of this policy going forward in terms of a work plan. When can we expect to see some type of work plan that would start seeing the department have some staff orientation and other department staff orientation on the traditional knowledge framework?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There would be information contained on that in the business plan that was presented to committee. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, in regards to the traditional knowledge work that this department is leading, how soon or when would we see these types of traditional knowledge information be implemented into government-wide policy with all departments?
You already see evidence of it. For example, if I can point to our science agenda where there is a clear recognition, the Water Strategy that we are going to be tabling. We will have a very clear central role for traditional knowledge. Environment and Natural Resources already has it in play. The work that we are doing with all the communities and all the co-management boards on caribou, for example. There is an extensive curriculum in the schools already that exists, and other departments that don’t have a major role in this are also doing that as a normal course of their business are going to be building that into their business plans as well. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Time for question period has expired; however, I will allow the Member a short supplementary question. Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In regards to the training of employees and training of the departments, when can we see this department in terms of the type of training programs that will require staff members to really get a sense of the essence of traditional knowledge from our elders and how they would be implemented into future policies and programs and services within the GNWT?
Mr. Speaker, the longer-term plans and the formal training for folks will, as well, be built in and reflected in the various business plans. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Item 9, written questions. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.
Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to go back to item 8, oral questions.
---Unanimous consent granted.
The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Aklavik is located on the west side of the Mackenzie Delta and, as we all know, global warming and shoreline erosion is a major problem. Mr. Speaker, I got a call, just before the House started, from the council in Aklavik with their concern with the shoreline erosion. Yet, Mr. Speaker, we, as government, realize that they had a major flood a number of years ago and they had to move the road inland because of the erosion on one of their service roads. Yet, Mr. Speaker, very little is being said from this government in regard to what we are doing to protect communities from shoreline erosion and, more importantly, the effects we’re seeing from climate change.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, we do have some funding sources we’ve been getting into from Building Canada funds, Disaster Relief funds. I would just to ask the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs exactly what is the department doing to assist the community of Aklavik, knowing that it has flooded over the years. We’re seeing the effects of global warming and shoreline erosion throughout the Mackenzie Delta. So I’d like to ask the Minister, does his department have any programs and services that communities can access to deal with shoreline erosion in that community?
Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m well aware of the flooding issue in Aklavik. I’ve been through a couple of them and I know that there was some shoreline erosion done a few years ago and that seems to have worked very well. There are some issues that still need to be taken care of. We do supply -- and I go back to this because I do all the time -- the communities with capital infrastructure money and they decide that if it’s a priority to have this work done, then they have the capital means to do so. If there are other programs out there, federal pots of money that we can access to assist the communities with some of the work that they propose to do, then we are willing to do that. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, this is a major fiscal undertaking by a community. There’s no way the community, with the resources they get through gas tax and whatnot, are going to have to deal with this problem. We’re talking millions of dollars here.
Mr. Speaker, under the Building Canada Fund in regard to infrastructure planning, there’s money available for research and development for climate change. I’d like to ask the Minister, have you considered looking at accessing some of these federal dollars through the Building Canada Fund for dealing with shore erosion in communities that are affected by climate change?
Mr. Speaker, a lot of the programs that we have applications that have come through for the Building Canada Fund, I have yet to see any application from the community. Maybe we should encourage them to put an application in with some of their requirements, and then we can go and look to access some of the money. If there’s money available for doing some research, then we can pursue that too. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, a number of years ago when they had the flood in Aklavik, as part of the Disaster Relief Fund you had to do a report at the end of the program in regard to infrastructure funding for the community. I’d like to ask the Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs that under that plan they did identify that as an issue that had to be dealt with. I’d just like to ask the Minister to direct his department to seriously look at that report in regard to the last flood in Aklavik. What has the department done in regard to that report and why is it that you’re leaving the onus on the community and not the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, who is responsible for disaster relief?
Mr. Speaker, I will have discussions with the department and follow up on the Member’s comment on the report. I haven’t seen the report personally and I would be quite interested in having a look at it. I will follow up and see what recommendations or actions may have come out of the report because of the flood of a few years ago.
I’ll say again that we continue to assist communities in identifying a lot of their priorities and if shoreline erosion is one of the priorities from Aklavik, then we’d be willing to work with the community to try and identify sources of funding for the project and assist them any way we can coming forward with a proposal. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to formally invite the Minister to travel with myself to Aklavik, hopefully after the adjournment of this House, and deal with this problem, because I believe we have to deal with it this winter. We can’t wait for another flood next spring. It has to be put on the Minister’s priority list, because we are talking about the safety and the security of the community -- and erosion is a real threat to that community -- so we can avoid whatever, if that’s possible. I’d like to formally invite him to Aklavik after the adjournment of the House. With that, I’d like to ask the Minister if he’s available to bring his staff, the people that bring the cheques, and we’ll sign it off in Aklavik at the end of the House.
The Member is twisting my arm to get me into Aklavik, but I will make that commitment that I will make it into the Member’s community. With that, we probably will have staff. We’ll leave the chequebooks in Inuvik and then we’ll...Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.
In regard to vacant public housing units in the NWT:
What is the vacancy rate of housing units by community?
What is the range and average period of vacancy for units?
Are vacant units heated or are they winterized and not heated until needed?
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document titled NWT Business Development and Investment Corporation Annual Report 2007-2008. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following two documents titled 2009 Volunteer Summit Report and the Northwest Territories High Performance Athlete Grant Program. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Monday, November 2, 2009, I will move that Bill 4, An Act to Amend the Child and Family Services Act, be read for the first time. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.
Mr. Speaker, I give notice that on Monday, November 2, 2009, I will move that Bill 5, An Act to Amend the Commissioner’s Land Act, be read for the first time. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Bill 2, Forgiveness of Debts Act, 2009-2010, be read for the first time. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Bill 2, Forgiveness of Debts Act, 2009-2010, has had first reading.
---Carried
The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Thebacha, that Bill 3, Medical Profession Act, be read for the first time. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Bill 3, Medical Profession Act, has had first reading.
---Carried
Before we go any further, colleagues, I’d like to draw your attention to the gallery to Mr. Dick Abernethy, father to Glen Abernethy, who is with us today, the former deputy secretary to Cabinet. Welcome to the House.
Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Tabled Document 1-16(4), NWT Capital Estimates 2010-2011; Tabled Document 18-16(4), Supplementary Appropriation No. 2 (Operations Expenditures), 2009-2010; Tabled Document 19-16(4), Supplementary Appropriation No. 3 (Infrastructure Expenditures), 2009-2010; Committee Report 1-16(4), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the Information and Privacy Commissioner’s 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 Annual Reports; and Committee Report 2-16(4), Standing Committee on Government Operations Report on the Review of the Auditor General on Contracting for Goods and Services in the Northwest Territories, with Mr. Krutko in the chair.
