There are provisions made, not as a matter of respect, by these organizations, such as land and water boards, for the Government of the Northwest Territories departments to call for environmental review. It’s not a matter of respect; in fact that provision is there. We can use it anytime we want.

Mark Carney, ex-governor of the Bank of Canada and current governor of the Bank of England, recently stated at a seminar at the World Bank that fossil fuel companies cannot burn their existing reserves of oil and gas if the oil is to avoid catastrophic climate change. We know what this means for our families – it’s happening now – and our children and what this means around the globe to people who do not have all the privileges that we have.

Exploitation of ever more fossil fuels endangers the people, land and water of the Northwest Territories. The recent pullout of industry from the Sahtu for a year or more provides time for thoughtful review. On what basis does this government presume they can do what nobody else has done? Studies come in every day proving impacts; frack without significant and unpredicted indeed would never happen impacts. How can we do this and thus refuse a public review? What an assumption. What a presumption, Mr. Speaker.