Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in 2001, Inuvik hosted the first annual Inuvik Petroleum Show. It was inspired by the impending announcement that the Mackenzie Valley pipeline was on the horizon, and Inuvik's economic future looked bright. The town was bumping, Mr. Speaker. You could barely find a parking spot downtown. The hotels were busy, the restaurants were crowded, and people were working in the exploration industry. Tour operators were busy, and artisans were selling their products. Mr. Speaker, residents were excited at the prospect of burning clean locally sourced natural gas to heat their homes at a price that would allow them to live without having to worry how they'll get through another winter. Certainly not the $40 per gigajoule they currently must pay for gas shipped to Inuvik from southern sources.
Mr. Speaker, over 700 people attended the show in its early days. Celebrities and prominent political speakers attended, journalists such as Amanda Lang, Andrew Coyne, and the late great Rex Murphy, all made appearances to speak to delegates and Indigenous leaders leading the pipeline project to see for themselves what the buzz was all about. Mr. Speaker, the president of KOGAS flew from Korea to meet with industry and Indigenous leaders to explore opportunities for trillions of tonnes of clean burning natural gas.
As we know, Mr. Speaker, the regulatory system flexed its muscle, and six years later the pipeline dream was no more. But good news, Mr. Speaker. The good news is that the community of Inuvik soldiered on, and the show, now called the Inuvik Expo, still exists. It had to adjust, just as our counterparts in Ottawa have adjusted its priorities around energy development. This week, Mr. Speaker, over 200 delegates are in Inuvik discussing such things as natural gas and renewable resources, climate and energy innovation, Indigenous leadership and circumpolar governance and sovereignty and the knowledge economy, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to applaud and congratulate the hardworking members of my town council, Indigenous governments, and our government for keeping this show relevant and continuing to push for all economic opportunities in our region. Mr. Speaker, like the resilient and hardworking residents of our community, I too will soldier on. I will continue to advocate for the development of this resource. I will continue to advocate for the Indigenous government who are currently developing their own natural gas facility to provide some relief to our residents.
Mr. Speaker, I sometimes think I have a better chance of getting support for a unicorn farm in Inuvik than support for our natural gas. But sadly, unicorn tears will not heat the homes and provide prosperity for people living in the Beaufort Delta, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Members' statements. Member from Great Slave.
