Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am pleased to present the Department of Public Works and Services main estimates for the fiscal year 2010-2011.
The main estimates propose a department operations and maintenance budget for 2010-2011 of $92.3 million, which represents a 65.3 percent increase in O and M funding over 2009-2010. Strategic and corporate initiatives like the consolidation of maintenance and utilities, and the
one-time costs budgeted for the demolition of the Chief Albert Wright School in Tulita and the Deh Cho Hall in Fort Simpson account for $31.9 million of the O and M funding increases in 2010-2011. In addition, the department has an infrastructure investment plan of $27.3 million for 2010-2011.
Public Works and Services is an essential partner in the achievement of government-wide goals while achieving the best value for government, communities, business and residents. The department achieves this through support and leadership in the areas of:
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asset
management
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information and communication technology
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procurement
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records
management
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community fuel provision
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electrical and mechanical safety.
The department also manages an additional $187 million for projects and services on behalf of its clients through revolving funds, chargebacks and capital transfers. These funds are used to provide:
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computer and data communications for
government offices;
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fuel services for residents, businesses, and the NWT Power Corporation in 20 communities; and
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deliver capital infrastructure for our clients.
PWS is working to improve how we do business. In response to direction given by the 16th Legislative
Assembly, and specifically the stated priority of achieving effective and efficient government, PWS has led the charge in the way the GNWT approaches how we plan for and acquire public infrastructure. Under the guidance and direction of the Ministerial Sub-committee for Infrastructure, implementation of the revisions to the capital planning process will continue in 2010-2011. Examples of changes include:
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planning
studies,
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peer reviews of large capital projects,
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value analysis of large capital projects, and
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development of standardized designs.
Funding is in place in 2010-2011 to complete the planning, design, and transition activities required to implement shared services procurement models for the GNWT at the beginning of 2011-2012. Through this initiative, PWS will eliminate duplication and unnecessary processes and will standardize services in a way that is compliant with GNWT policies. The establishment of this shared services unit will allow departments to focus on their core business rather than on these administrative and support service functions.
In 2010-2011, Public Works sand Services will lead a change in the way the GNWT manages facility maintenance under the Consolidation of Maintenance Strategic Initiative. As of April 1, 2010, the maintenance of most GNWT-owned buildings will be consolidated in Public Works and Services.
This will result in a standardized approach to the operation and preventative maintenance of government building infrastructure. This approach will allow the GNWT to more adequately address the growing deficit in deferred maintenance and will provide a consistent level of preventative maintenance for GNWT building assets. At this time work is currently underway within Public Works and Services to ensure detailed preventative maintenance plans and work schedules are in place for 2010-2011.
In order to support the department’s enhanced responsibilities under the Consolidation of Maintenance Initiative, PWS will establish indeterminate settlement maintainer positions in the communities of Ulukhaktok, Sachs Harbour, Wrigley, Fort Resolution, Behchoko, and Tulita, as well as one new electrician position in the community of Inuvik. These new permanent positions will allow PWS to recruit qualified individuals and better manage the maintenance activities and availability of resources at the community level, while having more control over the cost and quality of the services provided. It will also allow Public Works and Services to be more proactive in completing its mandate of building maintenance and better support the department in complying with code-mandated checks and repairs and completing deferred maintenance requirements.
Safe, reliable infrastructure is essential for the delivery of GNWT programs and services. As such, PWS will continue to implement programs in one of the department’s key areas of focus: Facility Risk Management and Safety. To date, PWS has completed 675 facility condition assessments and over $470 million in deferred maintenance costs have been identified. The Risk Management and Deferred Maintenance Program has identified $5 million in capital and $3 million in O and M funding for 2010-2011. This funding will deal with the highest priorities identified in the latest GNWT asset assessments.
In 2010-2011, responsibility and current funding for utility expenses for GNWT-owned buildings will be transferred from program departments and consolidated with Public Works and Services. This will allow for accurate tracking of utility expenses government-wide and feed into current energy conservation projects. PWS is proposing to capture the savings identified through its energy conservation initiatives and establish funding that
would be used to offset the cost of delivering future energy conservation projects.
The department has initiated several energy conservation projects to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in the GNWT. Through the Capital Asset Retrofit Fund, PWS will invest $3.5 million into greenhouse gas and energy efficiency improvements to GNWT infrastructure in 2010-2011.
Some examples of the work planned for 2010-2011 include:
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energy efficient lighting retrofits
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water saving washroom fixture upgrades
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heating and ventilations system replacements and upgrades
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building control system upgrades
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building envelope upgrades.
The projected annual energy savings for energy conservation initiatives completed to date and those currently planned and in progress are projected to be $2 million and 9,000 tonnes of greenhouse gasses per year.
The projected energy savings for retrofit projects planned for 2010-2011 are $325,500 and 268 tonnes of greenhouse gasses per year.
In conjunction with the consolidation and tracking of utilities, PWS proposes to reinvest the savings generated from these investments to sustain the Capital Asset Retrofit Fund in the future.
In addition to the facilities owned and maintained by the GNWT, PWS currently manages a lease portfolio valued at $18.6 million with 60 leases across the Territory. PWS reviews this portfolio regularly to ensure that occupied space meets the program needs of our client. In the area of leased accommodations, the program review office in the Department of Executive made a number of recommendations during its review of general purpose office space and it concluded the GNWT could achieve considerable long-term savings through investment in new owed office space in Yellowknife. In response to those recommendations, PWS will be seeking approval to complete a planning study for rebalancing the portfolio of GNWT-owned and leased office space in Yellowknife.
Through the Technology Service Centre, the department provides information technology support and services to meet the business objectives of the GNWT. More and more, the ability of the government to provide services to NWT residents is dependent upon the availability of secure and reliable information and communication systems. To that end, the TSC will be adding an infrastructure support analyst position as part of the implementation of the Security Strategy.
Finally, I would like to mention the provision of essential fuel services. Through the Petroleum Products Revolving Fund, Public Works and Services funds the provision of heating fuel and gasoline in communities where a commercial operation does not exist. Through the Fuel Management Services Agreement, the petroleum products division provides the Northwest Territories Power Corporation with all of its fuel requirements and manages and operates its tank farms in 20 communities across the NWT. Under this agreement, PPD maintains safe tank farms in many remote locations, as well as contracting with and training local fuel delivery agents to provide necessary services. These agents have an important function in their communities, and Public Works and Services works with them to carry out this important service.
In response to the challenge of fluctuating oil prices and increased volatility in the market, the petroleum products division is focused on exploring strategic partnerships and ways to stabilize the cost of fuel products for people in communities served by the program.
To effectively reduce the cost of fuel transportation, PPD will continue to work with its marine carriers to maximize the amount of fuel that is transported to the GNWT by bulk tanker via the “over the top” route.
The marine freight costs that were avoided in the summer of 2009 by the use of the “over the top” route versus the traditional Mackenzie River route are estimated to have exceeded $1.8 million, savings that are passed along to the consumers and to NTPC in the form of reduced fuel prices.
Public Works and Services continues to be responsive to its many clients and strives to provide a high quality service to departments and the people of the NWT. The budget that we are reviewing today will contribute to achieving this objective.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my opening remarks. I would be happy to answer any questions Members may have. Thank you. Mahsi cho.