Thank you, committee. I will ask you to turn back to page 13-7, the summary, Environment and Natural Resources, department summary, operations and expenditures summary, $67.493 million. Agreed?

Thank you, committee. Does committee agree that this concludes the Department of Environment and Natural Resources?

Thank you. I would like to thank the Minister and his witnesses and ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to please escort the witnesses from the House. Next up we have the Department of Transportation. Does committee agree?

Thank you. I will ask the Minister if he wishes to make opening comments.

Mr. Chairman and Committee of the Whole, I would like to present for your review the Department of Transportation’s main estimates for 2011-12.

The main estimates before you detail the funding requirements to carry out the plans outlined within the department’s 2011-12 business plan. This plan will ensure the protection and enhancement of the Territory’s transportation infrastructure and supports our primary mission of proving for the safe, secure, accessible and reliable movement of people and goods, while looking towards the future at the needs of individuals and businesses.

For 2011-12, we are proposing an operating budget of $110.7 million, including amortization. This is a 6 percent increase over the 2010-11 main estimates. In addition, as approved in the fall session, we plan to deliver an additional $62.7 million in capital investments in 2011-12.

The most significant change to the O and M budget is forced growth. Funding increases of approximately $5 million are included in the budget to cover Collective Agreement changes, increases to highway maintenance contracts, winter road contracts, information technology system maintenance and the repatriation of vehicle registration and driver licensing services in Fort Smith and Inuvik.

The department also plans to continue to address the strategic initiatives of the 16

th

Assembly. Under

the Reducing the Cost of Living initiative, we have proposed a number of new projects focused on strengthening our connections with smaller communities. These new activities are in addition to many activities already underway, including ice crossing acceleration on the Dempster Highway and the expanded Community Access Program. The proposed new initiatives in 2011-12 include:

•

$170,000 to extend ferry operations on the

Dempster Highway at both the Peel River and the Arctic Red River crossings. This will improve access to Fort McPherson, Tsiigehtchic and Inuvik in the early winter period, while the ice crossings are being constructed; and

•

$250,000 to accelerate ice crossing

construction at Tulita, and on Great Bear Lake near Deline, which will enable the ice crossings to reach full strength sooner. Additional funding is also available for watering at select locations of the winter road to provide a more durable road surface.

The department has made significant progress on the planning for the Mackenzie Valley Highway from Wrigley to Tuktoyaktuk. The highway has

been a priority in departmental plans for decades and is a priority of this Assembly. In the past year the department completed the project description report for the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk portion of the highway. This project is currently within the regulatory process and the environmental impact statement will be submitted very shortly.

For the portion of the highway between Wrigley and the Dempster Highway, we are working with Aboriginal groups in the Mackenzie Valley to complete the project description report. We have signed memorandums of understanding with Aboriginal groups representing the entire Mackenzie Valley and work is underway to complete the project description reports for all segments. This work will provide the necessary environmental and engineering information required to submit applications to regulators for preliminary screening of the Mackenzie Valley Highway Project.

Mr. Chairman, the 2011-12 planning cycle marks the final construction push and opening of the Deh Cho Bridge.

---Applause

Mr. Chairman, the opening of the bridge is an event we are all looking forward to. The 2011-12 main estimates begin to include the bridge’s finances once it comes into operation. The main estimates before you today include $2.772 million for interest expense and $96,000 for community contributions related to the Deh Cho Bridge. However, they do not yet reflect the revenue or cost savings that will accrue once the bridge is in operation. The department will return in 2011-12, once the exact timing of the bridge opening is known, with a negative supplementary appropriation request to account for the savings from the ferry operation and ice crossing construction, and to report on the estimated toll revenue. The 2012-13 planning cycle, representing the first full year of bridge operation, will include the full annual expenses and revenues for the bridge.

Our team is working closely with the contractor, who is continually improving his operation and finding ways to regain time lost due to the steel fabrication delays. This contractor is making good progress with launching of the truss from the north end of the bridge. It is expected that construction materials, including the steel truss, towers and concrete deck panels, will all be on-site prior to the spring breakup. This critical milestone will facilitate the next stages of work once the river is clear of ice. We continue to plan and work towards a November 2011 completion date.

Mr. Chairman, very briefly, these are the highlights of the Department of Transportation’s proposed main estimates for the 2011-2012 fiscal year. There are many other positive and exciting projects and initiatives that the department expects to accomplish. I am confident that the proposed

budget will provide for the continued safe and reliable operation of the NWT transportation system. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mahsi.

Thank you, Minister. I would like to ask you if you would like to have witnesses join you in the House.

Yes, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Minister. I would like to ask the Sergeant-at-Arms to escort the witnesses into the House, if committee agrees. Does committee agree?

Thank you. I would like to ask the Minister to please introduce your witnesses.

Mr. Chairman, with me today on my right I have Mr. Russell Neudorf, deputy minister of Transportation. On my left I have Mr. Daniel Auger, the assistant deputy minister of Transportation.

Thank you, Minister. Welcome to the witnesses. Does committee agree that we start with general comments?

Thank you. We will start with Mr. Ramsay.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have just a few comments on the Minister’s opening comments. I continue to be shocked at some of the words that are coming out of the Department of Transportation pertaining to the Deh Cho Bridge. In the Minister’s opening comments, he says, “However they do not yet reflect the revenue or cost savings that will accrue once the bridge is in operation.” Maybe if I can at some point... I know the Minister won’t respond until after all the Members have commented, but I would like the Minister to explain to me how putting over $5 million on an annual basis in a contribution to this bridge is going to in any way save us any money. We are taking the $2.2 million a year currently used to fund the ice crossing and the ferry operations there in Fort Providence and dumping it into the bridge. I fail to understand how we are going to be seeing any cost savings there. Also, on the revenue side, I haven’t been shown any evidence that the bridge will, in fact, earn any revenue. In the last piece of information that I received from the department, it would look like that operation of the Deh Cho Bridge is going to be running a deficit of somewhere in the neighbourhood of $1.5 million and that is in the first year and going forward. I can’t see how that bridge would turn a profit, but according to the Minister’s opening comments, it looks like that might in fact be the case.

I have to say this. I appreciate the department’s time, attention and energy and effort that it is

putting into trying to get the project done. I know it has been a challenge at times. It will remain to be a challenge until that bridge is open, but with all the effort that is being put into the bridge project, I hate to think that other things in the department are being left aside and needing some attention. That is always the inkling that I am left with when I look at that bridge project and all the effort that is going into it from the department’s perspective.

Again, we really need to stay on top of it. It is far from over. I know the Minister is going to be meeting with committee tomorrow night. We look forward to the presentation that the department is going to be making to the committee. As well, the Auditor General’s report should be coming in a couple weeks’ time. I certainly look forward to reading that and seeing what that has to say.

Again, I guess I will disagree with the Minister on his assertion that the bridge is going to be open in November. I really hope it is open in November 2011, but judging by the delays that we have seen recently and the steel, I just don’t understand how it is possible that we can be concluded by November and that bridge open to traffic by that date. I can’t see how that can happen. I know that Ruskin is supposed to come forward with a new timeline. Perhaps that might be part of the discussion tomorrow night or at some later date. I just had to take issue with that statement that was in the Minister’s opening remarks because I just don’t think it is accurate. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. With the committee’s tolerance, we will stick with the general comments and then ask for the Minister to give a wrap-up response. Next on my list is Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to the Minister for his comments. Just following up on Mr. Ramsay’s comments, please get the bridge built on time and within budget. That would be fantastic.

There are some other things that I think are quite positive in here. I’m happy to see progress on the Mackenzie Valley Highway in any capacity. I think that’s great news. Moving forward, obviously, it would be great if as much as possible we can involve Northerners in any construction and planning that takes place. I know that there are different groups from different communities that are very eager to be involved and I would encourage the government to, as much as possible, get them involved.

One thing that I would like to see more of, obviously, is many of our roads aren’t sealed, they don’t have a topcoat on them throughout the Northwest Territories and I think we need to be putting some more planning and effort and time into figuring out how we can get our highways coated with some sort of substance, a chip coat or Easy

Street or something along those lines over the coming years. In particular, I think something like finishing the Deh Cho loop in a higher quality than it is, the road from Simpson to Liard is a little on the rough side. It would open up the North to significant tourism opportunities, which would be good for all regions in the Northwest Territories, in particular the Deh Cho by way of campers and other motor traffic coming up that way. Right now I believe the Liard Highway does scare some people off, which is really unfortunate because it is an incredibly beautiful highway, it’s an incredibly beautiful part of our Territory and it would be great if we had better roads in that area.

Just a couple comments. I see some good things happening here. I’d definitely like to see the bridge built on time, can’t wait to drive over it in November. That will be fantastic. I’m happy about the Mackenzie Highway and wish there was a little bit more planning and progress as far as developing the Deh Cho trail. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Next on my list I have Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. It’s good to hear in the Minister’s opening remarks in regard to the all-weather road project into Tuktoyaktuk. It’s good to hear they’re making progress. Also, the Mackenzie Valley Highway is a whole working towards that to finish Wrigley to Tuk. It’s really needed. It will drop the cost of living in the communities for all people in the Beaufort-Delta even more.

Moving on from there, the dust suppression in communities in my riding for people with asthma, we don’t have chipseal so we have to go off of gravel roads. So we tend to worry about our youth and babies in regard to dust. So I think if we could make it possible if we could help out the communities with dust suppression, it would be good.

Also, with a portable unit for the GNWT drivers licensing and I.D. I know we do have one and it doesn’t make its trips into the communities as much as it should, because I’m still getting the people calling in regard to that.

I just look forward to going page-by-page with the Minister and thank you for giving me the opportunity for opening remarks. Thank you, sir.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. Next on my list I have Mr. Krutko.