Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe the Member's question was, does the GNWT have a responsibility to address issues of environmental contaminants and research associated with such potential contaminants. Yes, the Department of Health and Social Services does have a mandate to minimize the exposure of NWT residents to environmental health hazards and does work collaboratively with territorial, federal and aboriginal governments to respond to issues such as contaminants.

There is a lot of research that does go on in the Northwest Territories at any given time in this area. We are kept informed of it. We do not always initiate it. This is something that is carried on by more than one level of government, but we do actively participate. Thank you.