Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Ootes.

Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, like I said, we are still sorting out some of the work plan, the timing and so forth. Ideally, we would like to get the consultation done as soon as we can in the next two months or so. If not, then we will have to maybe extend that. We know realistically that it is impossible to do it by March, so we are going to have look at maybe as far as June, or even into the fall. We are still having meetings with the Constitutional Working Group. We are looking at the times, and ideally we would like to try to get the consultations done as quickly and as thoroughly as we can, so that as the feedback comes in, we will revise the document. Hopefully we will have a revised document by some time late summer or even early fall. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Final supplementary, Mr. Ootes.

Mr. Antoine.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, when the document was first tabled in this House and went to the public, there was no opportunity for myself or Members of the Constitutional Working Group or team, to properly put a package together and present it in a way where all elements that were put into this document were explained in a very acceptable way by all the participants. To this point in time, the staff have been able to put a package together that will incorporate all the different input that was put into the document. As you know, we are in partners with the aboriginal leaders in putting this package together as elected MLAs. It is a partnership kind of arrangement. To put the package forward we need to have input by different people that participated. I think we have a fairly good package together that incorporates the history of constitutional development in the North, along with the different elements that are there already in the Canadian constitution, the different sections that cover the different rights of everybody in Canada as well as in the north. Once the package is presented in that way, I think people will see it in a different light even though it was received quite negatively by a few people with very strong opinions in Yellowknife.

There are other people than those in Yellowknife throughout the north. I think even the reactions that I have heard personally are quite favourable now as people understand the package more. Hopefully the people that had very negative reactions at first, if they see a package that is well presented, will see it under a different light. Thank you.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mr. Barnabas.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member's statement, I stated that there was concern in my community of Arctic Bay. I would like to ask the Minister, Mr. Kakfwi. (Translation ends) ... practices at Nanasivik mine, have prompted Qitirmiut Association to ask for a full review of its operation. Is the Minister aware of this situation? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister responsible for Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you. Oral questions. Mr. Picco.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Renewable Resources and the Environment, Mr. Kakfwi. Mr. Speaker, there has been much concern regarding the recent tender issue for the sale of 11 DEW Line sites by the Department of National Defence. Recent environmental studies show that many of the buildings on these sites contain paint with high levels of PCBs. Canada's chloride biphenyl regulations prohibit the sale of material containing these substances. However, the Department of National Defence are asking to be allowed for exemptions for these sales. My question to the Minister is, has his department been following this issue and what is being done to address this situation? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Minister responsible for Resource, Wildlife and Economic Development. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Picco.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Minister is correct when he says that it is not acceptable for PCBs from these DEW Line sites to be buried in the Northwest Territories. My supplementary question to the Minister is, will he write the Minister of Department of National Defence, Mr. Sergio Marchi, the federal Minister for the Environment, to let them about the concerns we have in the Northwest Territories regarding the sale of the 11 DEW Line sites? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. Mr. Kakfwi.

Thank you. Oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Picco.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the concern, here of course, is that it is a public tender. If Ed Picco, for example, buys a DEW Line site, it would not be, probably, cost efficient for me to bundle the site up and ship it out to Calgary, ship it out to Montreal, wherever. What they would like to do, the person who would buy this, is take off whatever they want in the buildings and then get rid of the rest, and that I guess, is why DIAND is asking for an exemption so that they could actually bury this in the Northwest Territories. My concern here would be, and the concern that has been raised is that they not be allowed to do that, and my question was to the Minister, would he write DND explaining our situation here in the Northwest Territories? Under no circumstances, no circumstances should these DEW Line sites, these buildings, this refuse, the paint, the PCBs be buried here in the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Kakfwi.