Mahsi, Madam Speaker. The Mackenzie River Basin, or in my language the Deh Cho Basin, is the largest water basin in the world. It covers about 20 per cent of Canada. The Deh Cho Basin has a lot of industrial economy upstream. The products of the economy flow downstream to the Northwest Territories where people are more dependent on a traditional life-style and more careful with what they do to their environment.

There are many things which impact upon the basin as the Deh Cho runs towards the Arctic Ocean. There are ten pulp mills discharging waste into this water. Municipalities along the basin also flow the water through their sewer and storm systems. In the provinces there are run-offs from farm chemicals and industrial waste, which also impacts on the water quality.

On March 22 of this year, I attended a meeting of the Mackenzie River Basin Committee and the First Nations representatives. Although this committee has been meeting for ten years, only in the past few months has there been any involvement of First Nations. There were chiefs from the western provinces and the Northwest Territories at this meeting. They passed a resolution indicating the strong desire to be more involved in the committee. The resolution indicates that the existing water management regimes, established by the western provinces and proposed master and bilateral agreements, do not adequately address the rights and interests of the First Nations people.

First Nations groups should be active participants in the management of the basin and signatories to the master agreement in their own right. The resolution also states that the federal government should enter into negotiations with First Nations regarding the development of a master agreement. First Nations does not want to kill the agreement. Instead, they want to enhance it by bringing the contribution of the First Nations people who have always worked and lived with respect for water and the land.

Water is a precious resource to all people. However, to aboriginal people the river has always played a crucial role in who we are and how we work with the land. The Deh Cho River is important to those who live along it. Northern people are concerned about the quality of the water in the mighty Deh Cho. Those who use the water have noticed changes in the past few years. These changes showed themselves through the wildlife which relies on the water. An example is fishermen are finding that the fish have deformed fins and deep sores in them.

Madam Speaker, I urge the Government of the Northwest Territories to support the First Nations in their bid to be an integral part of the Mackenzie River Basin Committee. Mahsi.

---Applause