Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just going through the briefing with regard to this item, it seems like we are spending a lot of money on outside agencies but very little by way of community-type projects and looking at the water issues regarding our communities such as boil water orders and people still having challenges. With regard to Aklavik and THMs and not really focussing on community-based water issues, it seems like your department is trying to solve the national issues in Canada, but not focussing on community-based health and water aspects. What are we doing to work with those communities, whether it’s Aklavik that have been recognized to have a health issue regarding water? I’d like to know why aren’t we developing a strategy and working with the Northwest Territories communities with regard to these issues.

I’ll use the Athabasca Delta, for instance. It seems like we are spending much money in Alberta, but what are we doing for communities like Aklavik when they still have THM issues which affects people’s health, and the possible connection to THMs and the water, which is the Peel River, which flows in from the Yukon and the potential water elements that may flow down those river tributaries by way of metals or heavy metals or different types of contamination.

I’d like to ask the Minister how much of this is being expended actually in Northwest Territories communities.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. Minister Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. We can go through key points on this list on page 303. The water unit staff have responsibility and involvement with the communities across the North and work on the ground in the communities across the North.

The Wilfred Laurier University contribution is, we partnered up and got, I think, $3 for the price of one or $2 for the price of one to a contribution agreement to do on-the-ground water research in the Northwest Territories on areas of significant interest and concern not only to Wilfred Laurier but to the Northwest Territories and the communities.

Source water protection plans are talking about the water supply and security of every community in the Northwest Territories from where the water comes from until it comes out of your tap. That involves all the communities, the Water Strategy implementation, as well as workshops across the land and working with the Aboriginal steering committee.

The Peace-Athabasca Delta is one of the monitoring programs that we’re involved in. It’s the biggest delta just south of our borders where the water flows from there into the North. We also have involvements not listed here with the Slave, as well, the Slave Delta. In addition to that, the Government of the Northwest Territories spends significant amounts of money through Municipal and Community Affairs in communities to ensure water supply. Public Works has a role to play as does Health and Social Services in terms of environmental health and public health issues and the quality of water.

When you combine all that together, there’s a significant amount of money that is spent in addition to this money trying to deal with that particular issue at the community level. Thank you.

Mr. Chair, again, I think this process is too top heavy. It’s basically run out of Yellowknife. I think that you have to start doing workshops and having these meetings in the communities. I know in the Mackenzie Delta we

have been requesting having a water conference and we have been talking about the Peel River watershed. There’s a major effort being made between the Yukon government and the Gwich’in Tribal Council to develop a land use plan for the Peel River watershed. Again, that’s another government in another jurisdiction and we seem to have a better relationship with the Yukon government than we actually have with the Government of the Northwest Territories when it deals with overlap issues such as the Peel River watershed. I’ve been asking for that since I’ve got here in regard to trying to have a conference in regard to the Peel River watershed, because the issues that Fort McPherson and Aklavik have had in regard to water directly correlate with the Peel River watershed. There’s major mining development that’s going on in this watershed and I think it’s important that, you know, we’re focusing on the Alberta watershed and we’re not focusing on the watershed in regard to the Peel River which, again, has to be developed into any process.

Again, I’d like to know, out of the $725,000, how much of that is going to be expended in actually doing work in the communities with community groups and organizations so that we can develop a made-in-the-North Water Strategy and depending then on groups and agencies from outside the Northwest Territories.

Two things: the Member and I have discussed this and, as well, with the deputies, and as far as I understand, there is money there for a conference to be held in the Member’s constituency and the region. The detail has not ever been worked out in terms of having the workshop. It’s the one region that we have yet to have the workshop. We’ve talked about it for some time.

I agree with the Member about the concerns out of the Peel watershed. In fact, we’ve had correspondence with the Yukon Minister indicating that we think it’s time to look at that agreement that was signed many years ago through the Mackenzie River Basin Transboundary Agreement.

The $725,000 is geared very, very specifically to the negotiations of transboundary water agreements with Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Northwest Territories. That has been identified as a priority issue. We have been working on that for a number of years, as well, and now we’re getting to the point where we’re very close to sitting down at the negotiating table and this will give us the funds to do that for the rest of this year.

I just have a question going through the detail of that $725,000. There was $70,000 for Aboriginal participation. Could you clarify what that $70,000 has been spent on?

The Water Strategy was developed in consultation and partnership with the Aboriginal government. We have a committee that was set up to provide oversight to work with the territorial government. That role is carrying over in terms of what’s happening with the negotiations and there’s a cost to that. We, as well, want to make sure we have, when we have the actual negotiating team at the table, that there’s an Aboriginal representative there along with the territorial government representative. Those funds will be expended to fulfill those particular job requirements and obligations that we think are essential. Thank you.

So the $70,000, is that professional fees or is that actually given to each of the organizations to be represented on this panel that you’re talking about?

Mr. Chairman, the negotiator fee is going to be when there is a negotiator decided on that will represent the Aboriginal government, that will help offset... That will be the fee to help cover the costs of that particular individual. The broader amount of $175,000 tied into working with the Aboriginal committees and groups will pay for those costs. So that negotiator fee will be specific. We anticipate having probably a three member with a lead negotiator and Aboriginal representative at the table along with the GNWT representative that’s going to be very focused and highly skilled, so that’s to assist us with that particular process. Thank you.

It sounds to me that you’re talking about one Aboriginal person represented on this panel of three. How do you pick the Aboriginal person that’s going to sit on the panel? What’s the process going to be used to identify that person or what’s the process going to be used to ensure that you have someone there that’s representative of the whole Northwest Territories?

There is work underway, as we speak, with the territorial government, the Aboriginal Steering Committee, to look at who would be the best people suited for the team, including the Aboriginal representative. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. We’re on page 9, Environment and Natural Resources, operations expenditures, total department, special warrants, $6.012 million.

Total department, not previously authorized, $725,000.

That’s the end of the tabled document. Is committee agreed that

we’ve concluded consideration of Tabled Document 54-16(6)?

Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move that consideration of Tabled Document 54-16(6), Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 2011-2012, be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 54-16(6) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. A motion is on the floor. The motion is in order. To the motion.

Question has been called.

---Carried

Recognizing the clock, I will now rise and report progress.