Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today my question is for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. Earlier on I spoke about active fish species, and my first question to the Minister, Mr. Speaker, is how is the department involved in monitoring changes to species range and habitat? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Environmental and Natural Resources.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, they do have the lead role in managing Canada's fisheries including those in the NWT. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources, we're responsible for managing sport fishing regulations and issuing licenses to NWT residents and visitors. We also provide funding through the Cumulative Impact Monitoring Program to conduct studies on salmon, among a number of other things. In the case of salmon, this is a partnership approach with the University of Manitoba and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to determine how the movement of salmon into new habitat will affect species like char and act as indicators to climate change. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, my second question to the Minister is can the Minister explain how invasive species are different from species like Chum salmon that are becoming more widespread in the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, the change in climate is causing a movement and introduction of new species in the NWT every year. The impacts of these new species are complex and will take some time to determine how they affect our ecosystem. Invasive alien species are generally species that are introduced by people and the movement of salmon to different parts of the Northwest Territories is naturally occurring, not by people, and the salmon are therefore called invasive alien species. They are considered pioneering species.
I appreciate the response. Mr. Speaker, my third question is how has the department incorporated traditional knowledge into this work on invasive species?
Mr. Speaker, the knowledge of your elders is essential and very important to tracking and learning about changes in our climate. There are observations of species changing ranges and habitats and the new introduction of species is how these changes will affect our ecosystem. ENR works with elders at wildlife workshops in the regions and collect this valuable information to help us with our added adaptation to climate change and the experience and the knowledge that they bring is very important to the work we do at ENR.
Masi. Oral Questions. Member for Nunakput
Mr. Speaker, my final question for the Minister is does the department have concerns that species that are migrating further north with drive out plants and animals that have been the keystone of northern landscape and harvested from the land for a millennia?
Mr. Speaker, the department, we share these concerns with these species working their way further migrating. However, as our climate is changing we are starting to see the movement of new species out of their natural ranges to the Northwest Territories, and it's awfully difficult with climate change for us to stop these migrations, and it's just something that we have to adapt to and try to work with and see what type of an effect it will have on our ecosystems, and we will continue to do that work and keep Members apprised as to the work we're doing.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
