Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I spoke about Darnley Bay, and my questions are for the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment. Mr. Speaker, my first question to the Minister is what geological information has the GNWT collected about mineral deposits in Darnley Bay anomaly area? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. No mineral deposits have been discovered in the anomaly area, but, as the Member knows, Darnley Bay Resources has reported diamond-bearing kimberlite pipes there on the Parry Peninsula just northwest of there. Unfortunately, as the Member stated in his statement today, the drilling at Darnley Bay has not been able to determine what the anomaly actually represents and it's, you know, supposedly a very significant one. Mineral resources, what is contained there, will not be known until we are able to drill the area. But to get back to his question, ITI's Northwest Territories Geological Survey Division has Mineral Industry Assets Reports for the Darnley Bay area dating back to 1972.
Another area of interest is that the Geological Survey of Canada and NWT Geological Survey have recently conducted research in the area through a federal government Geo-Mapping and Energy Minerals Program, which is a seven-year $100 million program. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I appreciate the clarification. Mr. Speaker, my second question to the Minister is how is the department engaged in monitoring mineral resource development projects and staying up-to-date on activities of junior mining companies?
The Mineral Resource Division and the NWT Geological Survey both follow mineral development projects in the Northwest Territories and speak often with junior mining companies throughout the NWT. These divisions also monitor press releases by junior mining companies and compile a report. This report, though, is actually put out by the Mineral Exploration Overview and it's produced by the NWT Geological Survey. In addition, companies and prospectors regularly contact the staff at the Mining Recorder's Office, so we're in contact with junior mining companies in that manner.
Also, as early as this month, we're going to have the Yellowknife Geoscience Forum of the Northwest Territories, which I invite everyone to participate in in the House, it's on for three days from November 15th, and companies will regularly inform us on some of their updates and exploration programs.
I see the importance of the GNWT working with Aboriginal governments has moved toward mineral explorations and road building. Mr. Speaker, my third question for the Minister is what project readiness activities is the department undertaking during the current downturn in the economy so the Northwest Territories has a better capacity to take on new projects when commodity prices rise?
We have the Mineral Development Strategy, which provides the GNWT with clear direction on a large number of programs and activities that benefit the NWT economy, and when commodity prices rebound we will be looking towards that. Within ITI, both the mineral incentive program and the exploration incentive program provides various forms of support to help these companies participate in the Northwest Territories and be active.
It's also critical that we encourage companies to continue their exploration efforts in the territory and provide them with the information they need. ITI is well-equipped in that through our client services and our community relations unit, and we'd also like to highlight the work conducted by the mineral resources division to encourage NWT regions to develop their own mineral strategies for their regions.
It's been encouraging to see that the regions are going to be moving forward in developing some of their own mineral resource strategies, and we look forward to that.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I appreciate the response. Mr. Speaker, my final question is Darnley Bay is also the site of a proposed marine protected area. How would developing minerals interests and their sensitive ecosystems be balanced in a way that satisfies traditional land users, but also modern society's demand for mineral resources? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
As the Member knows, the Government of the Northwest Territories is very supportive of the marine conservation area along the east and north coast of the Parry Peninsula, and we continue to work on that. This marine protected area, once established, will have numerous regulations in place that are expected to provide the balance that the Member speaks of here today in the House. It's encouraging to know that the conservation goals of these regulations have been developing using traditional local knowledge, so that's very important.
The regulations also consider the economic needs of the region and, in particular, the residents of Paulatuk. Moving forward, if the balance between conservation and development is not being achieved, the management plan in the marine area is adaptive and can be modified to better meet the needs of traditional land users.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.
