Thank you, Madam Chair. The breakdown for the cost of $465,728,561, it is a backlog. We recognize that, but we don't have that kind of money just laying around, especially if we have priorities here within our mandate. We are already working with such a low amount of millions of dollars to complete our mandate in the next three more years. I talked earlier about how the priority one critical breakdown is $11 million. Each year, we are allocated $5 million for deferred maintenance. Some of the potentially critical is about $18 million, just over $18 million, and some of the necessary but not critical is about $436 million. We have broken it down into three categories of what is our priority, what is our potential priority, and our necessary but not needed right now. That is the breakdown that I have, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Perhaps I could just understand: could I get a sense of what is in deferred maintenance? I understand it's all of our assets. Does it include roads or bridges? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The deferred maintenance funding is used to address some of the deferred maintenance issues, primarily consisting of some of the structural failures, building code issues related to life safety. There are roof and exterior envelope failures. There are additional issues related to building and fire codes; building mechanical, electrical, and structural components; and accessibility. Those are some of the areas that the deferred maintenance is used for. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Thank you, Madam Chair. In that list, I didn't hear roads and bridges. My understanding is that this is a giant figure, but if we also included all the maintenance and the O and M on our roads and bridges over the next decade and our needs assessments, our total infrastructure gap would be well beyond this. It is what it is. I think we're all aware of our infrastructure needs, and that we are one of the lowest and most behind in Canada. My specific question, though, is: deferred maintenance is on assets, and when we're doing O and M budgets, the Department of Finance has a formula for amortization such that every asset automatically has an amount of money, the values decrease, that we must the put toward capital. Can I just have an understanding of the relationship between amortization and deferred maintenance? Because, to me, they should just line up. Is there something wrong in how we're doing that, or is there just something I don't understand? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. That's a very technical question that I just can't find the right page for, so I'm going to go and look out to the expertise of David Moore. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Mr. Moore.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Just to go back, it is only buildings. It is primarily looking at about 430 major assets in the GNWT. We inspect them on a five-year cycle, and we look at those assets for a number of things. As the Minister referred to, basically assessing how critical those issues are, structural failures, building code issues, whether there are accessibility concerns, et cetera. Now, to get to the Member's question, a number of the requirements are aligned with the degree to which the breakdown of the deferred maintenance requirement is there. As the Minister mentioned, $11 million of that backlog is actually currently critical, so that would essentially mean life safety hazards, functionality issues, code violations, things that are urgently required. That's where that $5 million is allocated. Is it aligned to outside the program? Not that I'm aware of, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Moore. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. This is just getting to my lack of not really understanding the Fiscal Responsibility Policy and the way things are going. I struggle that we amortize certain assets, and we make sure that we are kind of calculating what the needs assessment is. I get that. It's giant, and it's going to get out of whack. I am wondering if there is a way that the Department of Infrastructure can work with the Department of Finance such that we have a policy where we don't have $11 million in this first priority that comes before us and we're not funding it. To me, it just seems like we're building infrastructure and not building in a financial responsibility policy that requires that we maintain it. I know I'm not going to get that "yes," but is that a conversation that can happen such that we don't continually get budgets that have things that don't meet code, that are just going to cost us more money in the long run? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll say yes, but I just want to point out that the amortization is an accounting treatment of capital assets to expense the costs of the assets' useful life. We talked about some of the capital assets, like the bridges, and they are coming to the end of their useful life. That's a priority. We need that road for big trucks to travel back and forth in the territory safely. We do recognize that this is a priority, and it is working with the Department of Finance to be able to set aside money so that Infrastructure can go and upkeep buildings that are safe for the people, make sure our roads are safe, and the list continues. Yes. I was getting to that. Yes, we will work with the Department of Finance. People like "yesses," out there.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to switch gears a little here. The ice road to the diamond mines, does the Department of Infrastructure have any role in that? Do we pay for that? Can I just have an understanding of how that works? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. No, we don't.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Okay. Well, that's that, I guess. My next question is rather specific: this is the section of the GNWT that does all of our leasing. It controls our building infrastructure. It also is the section of the budget that retrofits our programs. I think we own three large towers in downtown Yellowknife. We rent the other three. We are by far the biggest landlord in Yellowknife. We give all of this money to Northview. We don't dip it. I have a lot of problems with that area, but I only have about 10 seconds left. Can the Department of Infrastructure look into a district heating system for all of the giant towers which we either own or rent in downtown Yellowknife? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. We have 23 energy strategies, and there are priorities in there. One of the priorities is to increase the use of biomass. I think the Member has bugged me about this question before. I know the answer, and that's why I'm able to say it. We have a target of 40 percent. Right now, we are at about 25 percent. I agree that we're getting there, but we're not quite there. It takes time and money. That is something the department is working on. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I have some questions about the Tlicho All-Season Road. I was in the last Assembly, and I am sorry to say that this is the first time that I've ever heard that the highway doesn't actually go to the community. It comes as more than a bit of a surprise. I am furiously trying to look at the environmental review board website, and I do see a map here showing the Tlicho All-Season Road going up to a point that is outside the community boundary. Is there actually a road, then, that is going to go from the end? Is there a road already in place from the end of the Tlicho All-Season Road into Whati? Is there a road already there? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes. This Tlicho All-Season Road is a two-lane, 97-kilometre road that's meant to get to the access road. Once you get to the access road, that brings you into the community. Yes, it all connects. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Of course, I have never had a chance to go out there myself. What kind of condition is that access road in? Thanks.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. If I remember correctly, it was the Rae Access Road, and we have blocked that road off for construction. Nobody could go in there unless you are an essential worker or part of the group that is going in. It is from the Rae Access Road, leading into the community of Whati.
I think the question was the condition of the road.
Okay.
To Whati.
To Whati? Okay. I did say Behchoko. Thank you, Madam Chair. I am going to ask Mr. Loutitt to answer that because I thought it was: the road is there, and then we are at the access road. I have not been to the access road part, so Mr. Loutitt can speak on what the condition is. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Deputy Minister Loutitt.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I have had the luxury of going to the beautiful community of Whati on several occasions. The road is, as the Member alluded, narrow and does need some upgrading. We understand that, and as we noted earlier, we do have that in our plans, to facilitate those repairs. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Deputy Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. It was a lot of back and forth to find out that we are building a road, a highway, that does not even go to a community; it goes to a narrow, windy road that needs to be upgraded to actually get into the community. How did we design it? Sorry. I am just a bit astounded that we could actually develop a project like this without actually developing the last, it looks like maybe, 15, 20 kilometres into the community. How do we go forward with a project like this without building the last bit into the community? Thanks, Madam Chair. Sorry. I am a bit surprised at this, having sat through the last Assembly and only finding out now that we are not even building a road to a community. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. When I became Minister of Infrastructure, I was quite surprised, too. It is something that the department will work with, with getting the last part of it completed. Right now, you have the road, and then it brings you access to the community. It's no different than some of the other projects that we are doing across the Mackenzie Valley Highway, such as the Prohibition Creek road and some other projects, as well. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I guess this is a little secret that I will let the Minister in on then. If we are going to build a road to a community and tout it as a project to a community, we should actually finish the project and make sure an access road is included in the highway. I am finding this really hard to believe, but I do not know how many more millions of dollars this is. It's $451 million, including the maintenance cost to build this highway, and it does not even go to a community? Yes. I think I will just leave it at that. I am more than a little shocked.
My next question is about the Frank Channel Bridge. The last time GNWT went to the federal government to ask for money for the Frank Channel Bridge, it's my understanding and I was told that it was competing with the Slave Geological Province road, and for whatever reason, Cabinet of the day said that the Slave Geological Province road was a priority over the Frank Channel Bridge, which I continue to be amazed at, again putting a road to, sorry, nowhere over public safety. What kind of assurance can the Minister give me that the Frank Channel Bridge is actually a priority in terms of funding submissions to the federal government at this point? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The Member is correct, and I have mentioned it earlier on a couple of other questions. The bridge is set to expire in 2023. The final design construction is anticipated to take up to three years. The Member is right. I am told that the proposal did not get approved, but there is other federal funding that is out there that we have resubmitted the proposal. Hopefully, we will know. Again, I do not know the timeline, but this is something that is a priority. As well, if you look at our mandate, there are other priorities, as well. This is one of the many. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Just so I am clear, is there actual money in this set of capital estimates for the Frank Channel Bridge right now? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I am going to ask Mr. Moore to answer this. Thank you.
Thank you. Mr. Moore.
