In working with the Alberta government, we have secured, along with the western provinces, a spot at the table when it comes to transboundary water issues. That is over and above the work of the Mackenzie Basin. I don’t have the accurate terminology with me right at this point, but that is the western jurisdiction of Saskatchewan, Alberta, B.C., ourselves and the Yukon when it comes to the basin and catchment area of our water supplies and the transboundary

issues. The federal government is part of that and our Minister of Environment and Natural Resources is involved in that area as well. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am aware also that particles of toxins from southern pollution like the Alberta tar sands do stick to the algae that the fish eat. Fish is the main food in many of our homes in the Northwest Territories, especially my people in the Sahtu. So I want to ask the Minister in terms of what type of current monitoring is happening in the Northwest Territories to the water and to the fish. Thank you.

The jurisdiction of water, although not in the Northwest Territories area of responsibility, through our Water Strategy and working with our aboriginal partnership, we are coming up with a comprehensive planned approach to the water issues in the Northwest Territories. Right now the Department of Fisheries and Oceans does that work when it comes to waterways and testing. We can also bring it from time to time, for example if there is an environmental issue, the Department of ENR could be drawn into that. Again, I would have to get the appropriate departments to provide that information and the necessary steps that are taken. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Recently the Minister of Public Works and Services visited Hay River and had an opportunity to have a firsthand look at some of the potential sites that have been identified for the construction of a new hospital in Hay River. I was wondering if Public Works has any kind of an update on the evaluation of those sites. Thank you.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Michael McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We did have the opportunity to visit Hay River, along with yourself and Mrs. Groenewegen, to look at one of the potential sites or relocation, providing the hospital project goes ahead with some sites that they require movement of other departments. We had a very good visit. We had a facility that was very attractive. We had indicated at that time that we would provide some staff to do further follow-up in terms of what it would cost, what operating costs are, what kind of land is available and things of that nature. I also had the opportunity

to look at a number of sites that the hospital had or the review had considered. I saw firsthand. It also allowed me to go onto the reserve and visit some facilities there. We have not, or at least I have not, had an update. The due diligence is being done right now. It has been worked on for quite a while. I don’t have any update to provide at this point. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, we have had the construction of a new hospital on the agenda for Hay River for quite a number of years now. There has been a lot of work that has gone into the development plan and trying to determine what is best needed in the community. Now we are down to trying to decide where such a facility would be best located. Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Health and Social Services indicated to me that there could be some time sensitivities around identification of a site for a large capital project. I was wondering if the Minister of Public Works and Services could tell me what is that date by which a site should be identified if the Hay River hospital would make it onto the capital plan of this government for this year. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t have a date for the Member. There is a review team that is looking at the different proposed sites. Depending where the hospital will be located, it may require further relocation. For example, if the site where the ENR facilities are at currently, if that is the area that is going to be chosen, then it will require either a co-location or movement of some of the facilities off that base site. That hasn’t been decided yet.

I think we expect to have some reports fairly quickly in the next couple of weeks. We are waiting for that information. We would need to have it in a timely manner so that we can ensure that the project is on the books. I think we have already made room for that. It is just a matter of getting some of the locations worked out.

There are a number of locations that have been brought forward. I think there were 29 locations brought forward initially but we are down to two. We did look at three, but we are down to two sites that are potential for the hospital. There have been some preferences brought forward by a committee that was put together. There were also some preferences brought forward by the municipality. All of these things will be taken into consideration by our review team. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, as one of the MLAs for Hay River, I am most concerned that we do not pass this date by which capital projects need to be into the mix for the upcoming year. A capital project of this size, actually, funding is allocated over a number of years, but you have to start somewhere and I had hoped that some of the capital required would be identified in the capital

budget and it would be voted on in this Assembly in the fall, but there is a date by which a site would need to be designated in order for that to be accomplished. That is the date that I am concerned about Public Works and Services working to so that this assessment of potential sites is…that work is completed. Does the Minister know what that date is? Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I am checking in my binder to see if I can find that date. Mr. Speaker, I want to reassure the Member that we, in my discussions with our staff -- and I apologize that I don’t have the date on the top of my head -- but in our discussions with our staff, Public Works, we don’t anticipate that there will be any slippage on the time frame. We are working toward the site. We are also working towards schematics and things of that nature, so it is all being moved forward as a package. I can reassure the Member that we will have those decisions made in a timely manner so the project is going forward as scheduled. Thank you.

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

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The work of the CEO of the hospital, the public administrator, yourself, Mr. Speaker, and I had met to go over some of this preliminary information. I believe that when this site is decided on or determined, I would hope that we are certain that the stakeholders have been consulted. I know that the Town of Hay River has a very keen interest as well in being kept fully apprised of what is happening with this project. I don’t know why there were no representatives from the town at some of those planning sessions that we were part of, but I would just like to get the Minister of Public Works’ commitment that the affected stakeholders, MLAs, town, hospital administrator and CEO will be kept fully apprised of where the planning for this very important piece of infrastructure is at. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I can certainly commit to that. I think there is still a lot of time to do a proper consultation. We have done a lot of work in that area. There is a lot of discussion that has been happening with the different people in the community. It is our policy to make sure everybody is involved, including the MLAs. We will provide that information. We will make sure we have an actual date so that the Member is aware of it. We will make sure that there is no slippage on this project. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As the Member is aware, this government has taken the unprecedented initiative of identifying $60 million over three years in order to look at alternative energy opportunities so that we can reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. As part of that $60 million, we have identified approximately something in the neighbourhood of $4 million to $6 million over a three-year period to develop a biomass strategy and to implement that strategy which includes utilizing wood pellets and manufacturing wood pellets et cetera. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, the feasibility study has been concluded, as I said. The ability of the business to support all of the initial start costs, which I believe would be in the neighbourhood of $3 million, this work has now been done with the support of this government. So going forward, what would the next steps be to see if any of the funding that Mr. McLeod has referred to could be allocated for the establishment of a pellet mill in Hay River? Thank you.

I should also point out that my colleague the Minister of ENR, who is not here,

is the lead with regard to biomass and forestry. I guess the single most important requirement in this project would be the ability to secure a supply of timber. That would be the first consideration. Secondly would be power, as the Member has indicated. Thirdly, we think our tool kit of business programs would allow us to be able to work closely with the proponent so that we can provide funding or to work with him to identify and attempt to access other sources of funding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I have very recently met with the person who would like to be the proponent for this project, understanding, though, that it may need to be a government project so to speak, but then the economy would come in where we would have a savings on the fuel and the economy could be created by the people who would be participating in the harvesting of the material to make the wood pellets.

Mr. Speaker, this has been quite a long while in the works and I had just recently met with Mr. Patterson, Mr. Patterson Jr., and he had asked me to request the Minister if we could have a sit down, face-to-face meeting about next steps and how we can get what could be a very valuable project on the go. I would like to, at this time, publicly invite Minister McLeod to come to Hay River to meet with the proponent and the MLAs and see if we can get this off the ground. Thank you.

I’d certainly be quite pleased to come to Hay River and to meet with the proponent and the other MLAs and whoever else could add to the project, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The time for question period has expired. Item 8, written questions. Item 9, returns to written questions. Mr. Clerk.