Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it’s this concern about costs and lack of full cost accounting that has brought us to this situation where we now have a changing climate leading to the death of millions of people around the world annually, real challenges to our food, while fossil fuel costs are soaring and so on. We need to get ahead of the game. Just on the ITI’s reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, on your recent trip to China, did the department cover carbon offset costs of that travel; something you can do with a click of a button and a fairly minor cost as a way of demonstrating your commitment to reducing climate change and greenhouse gas emissions? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod.

Supplementary, Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would be happy to provide the Minister with some information on that. You can, in fact, buy it at your local travel agency as well as on the Internet.

I realize that renewable energy is new and complex. The wind does stop; the water flows seasonally and so on. Is the department, in recognition of that complexity and the need for a comprehensive approach, working to deal with those complexities right from encouraging Aurora College programs on renewable resource technology through to tying domestic systems even to the grid such as solar panels that you can mount on your home and provide energy into the grid when the sun is shining and so on? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My colleague at the Department of ENR is dealing with energy conservation issues and there are a number of projects that are looking into this area. I guess the best example is the Fort Smith electrification project whereby the government is converting a number of government facilities from diesel to electric heating and power. As a government, we are getting organized so that we are better coordinated to deal in all areas of energy. It will be an area that I will be working very closely with my colleague from the Department of ENR and also the Minister responsible for the NWT Power Corporation to ensure that we look at all of these different areas. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Bromley. Thank you. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have some questions for the Minister of Transportation. Could the Minister please share with us the status of the ferry crossing at Fort Providence today? Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister responsible for Transportation, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Member for Hay River South. The ferry is in suspension as we speak and right now the department is checking the time as to when we can have that opened up in terms of continuing our services across the Mackenzie River. Of course, our department is doing all it can with its resources to ensure that we have this ferry up and running as quickly as possible.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Why isn’t the ferry at Fort Providence running today? Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The situation here has been determined by the low water we have in the Mackenzie River and that’s why the ferry isn’t operating now; it hit the bottom of the Mackenzie. We’re assessing it and will see how soon we can have the ferry up and running in terms of ensuring that traffic is flowing on a more consistent basis.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya.

Supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Is this a common occurrence at this time of year, Mr. Speaker, or is this low water something that is unusual? I was wondering how the Minister is planning to raise the water level in the Mackenzie River. Thank you.

---Laughter

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if I had the power to raise the water, I would raise other things in the Northwest Territories. Mr. Speaker, this is an annual issue with the low level of water in the Mackenzie River specifically around the Fort Providence crossing, and certainly other seasons have seen better times. Of course, this season we’re dealing with this issue here and hopefully that, again, I thank our staff for doing a wonderful job at this crossing to ensure that we do have our ferry up and running as quickly as possible. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Final supplementary, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of those people who may be waiting to cross there, and for the information of the public and for their convenience, does the Minister have any projections as to when the ferry will be re-operating or the ice bridge will be ready to take traffic? Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we’re working, the staff is working to its greatest potential in terms of opening the Mackenzie ferry at Fort Providence. We’re hoping that it will be done as soon as possible, Mr. Speaker. I’m reluctant to give a specific time because I will be held to it. We have to have the weather on our side in terms of the water, the level of the water, and if that can be resolved, then certainly the Member will be notified through my office as soon as the ferry is open. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. Robert McLeod.