Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we begin this budget session, I wish to bring the government's attention to an opportunity for long-term savings through our capital construction program. People in the North are particularly concerned about energy and the environment. There is a need in the Northwest Territories for our own energy strategy. We know, as noted by the Minister of Finance in his budget address yesterday, that we will be seeing a strategy put forward by next summer.

Mr. Speaker, there are actions we can take now to save energy and be more environmentally friendly. Our government has major capital construction projects planned and underway and I want to ask the government to act now in reaping energy savings. As a positive example of this, I learned that the young offender's facility under construction in Inuvik now will incorporate a solar wall in its construction. This is a good start but much more can be done.

Savings can be achieved through the use of proven renewable energy technology. Things like wind, mini-hydro and solar are technologies that do not just save money, Mr. Speaker, they also help cut greenhouse gas emissions. That is something that this government is committed to reducing.

I think we are shortsighted in our project planning criteria. This is because when we tend to plan for the budgets to build these facilities, we do not plan for their long-term operational costs. Here is where the up-front cost of putting in the technology, while it may be high, will have those financial and environmental paybacks in the future.

I think our policy should be that proven renewable energy technologies will be designed into all construction, Mr. Speaker, and I am calling for all of these technologies to be included in the original cost framework of facilities we are planning. I will be asking the Minister to make this a mandatory requirement on all of our future GNWT construction contracts.

This government can and should be demonstrating leadership in the use of renewable energy technology and capital construction programs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

-- Applause