Thank you, Mr. Chairman. One of the other issues I was going to bring up was concerning Economic Development and the Business Credit Corporation have been rehashed by other Members. So I would like to stay with this subject on the environment. The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program found that Inuit whose diets are rich in marine mammals have two, Mr. Chairman, two to four times higher levels of PCBs in their blood, and five to twelve times higher levels of mercury than southern populations. That is shocking. Levels of these pollutants in some Inuit populations are at or exceed levels associated with neurological problems in children, Mr. Chairman. Wildlife are also suffering from increased toxin levels that could affect reproduction and behaviour. These are very serious concerns.
Mr. Chairman, I am wondering if the Minister has had an opportunity to look at the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program and has he had an opportunity to read that report? As a government are we looking at addressing some of these concerns? Although I know that a lot of the chemicals that are involved in the toxins are airborne from southern locations, there are some things that we can do. For example, lobby southern firms, lobby the federal government and so on. So I am wondering, first of all, I guess my first question is, is the Minister aware of the report Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program?