Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources questions in the area of environmental protection. In Fort Resolution the community feels there are enough sites to warrant some sort of contaminated soil from within the community. Does the Minister have data on all the sites that are contaminated within the municipal boundaries in the Northwest Territories communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a list which I’d be happy to share with the Member. I believe there are six sites in Fort Resolution all assessed as low risk and there’s another seven in Lutselk’e all assessed, as well, as low risk.
Does the Minister have a schedule to clean up all of the sites that were identified as contaminated sites in the community even if they are low risk? I think the community wants them cleaned up. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We have an extensive list, both between ourselves and the federal government, which is responsible for Crown land mainly outside of municipal and community boundaries. There are many hundreds of sites. The ones in communities we’re looking at. We work and we are intending to work and are going to continue to work our way down the list from the high priority areas to those that have been assessed as lower priority. Thank you.
Do the amount of sites currently identified as contaminated still warrant the contaminated soils farm in Fort Resolution and Lutselk'e? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, what I would suggest to the Member is that I will share the list with him and he can give us his advice. He is far more familiar with the sites than I would be. Then we could, if it’s the wish of the Member, we could set up a meeting with the department officials to get an update for both of his communities. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Your final supplementary, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Could the Minister tell me if there’s a good possibility that work could be done this summer, the summer of 2010? Thank you.
The one that I can tell the Member about with some certainty based on questions in the House is the Stark Lake site. The ones within the community, once again, I would have to commit to the Member to sit down with him, share the list and get an update for the Member from the department about the status of all the sites. Thank you.
