This topic of increasing volunteerism is not new to the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs. We have been realizing that the numbers of volunteers have been going down over the years. There may be a variety of reasons for that, including the need for two-parent families to be working now.

We are actually doing a number of things. We are looking at increasing our advertising to get more nominations out there. We are also going to be putting it forward to the stakeholders, the five regional stakeholders that we will be meeting with, because I am guessing that they are also realizing that their volunteer base is shrinking, as well. So we will be putting it forward to them when we look at how we look at a strategic regional policy and seeing if we can come up with ideas to support throughout the Northwest Territories to increase our volunteerism.

I thank the Minister for her answer. That is a good step, a good start. However, I think we have lots and lots and lots of volunteers. I know that. I can see there are people out there volunteering. I don't think it is the income thing; I just think the recognition is the problem. Is the department looking at ways to help communities recognize their hard-working volunteers as the first step towards the territorial award?

So although I recognize that volunteers are really critical, really important, very valuable in our communities, they often don't do that for recognition. However, it is important to recognize our volunteers, and so we do a number of things to promote volunteerism.

We have a Volunteer Organization Development Contribution program that gives training support funding. We have a Volunteer Recognition Program, that we have $30,000 that we provide funding for community governments to run volunteer recognition events. They can apply up to $1,000 per event. That program is still taking applications, so I would like that to get out there, as well as the Volunteer Organization Development Corporation program for training. We also are continuing to take applications for that.

We support agencies, the NGO Stabilization Fund that gives to non-profit organizations that are mostly led by volunteers. We provide them with funding. We have the NWT Outstanding Volunteer Awards where we annually recognize volunteer achievements, that we are talking about, in four categories, youth, individual, elders, and groups. We have the NWT Youth Ambassador program, where we give youth opportunities to travel and experience volunteerism and get recognized for that. Of course, we have the Fire Service Merit Awards where we promote our volunteers within our emergency services.

So we do quite a bit. We offer some training. We can always do better, but we are looking at ways, and we are hoping that we will be able to expand on that.

Thank you, Minister. Member for Nahendeh, final question.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Minister for her answer. I am very familiar with those programs and that, so she did a great job. Still, I think we need to get that money out to the communities. It shouldn't be application-based. It should be given out every year. It should be done so the communities can recognize their volunteers.

Now, in regard to the importance of volunteers that the Minister has talked about, does the department have any courses or resources that they can offer to volunteer groups to become more efficient and effective volunteers out there? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have gone through on my last answer a number of areas where we promote volunteers and where we support organizations with doing that. Any organization that is interested in either accessing more volunteers or training their volunteers, we are willing to work with them individually, as well.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question today is on the energy alliance program, directed to the Minister of Public Works and Services. The program, as mentioned, is a good one, well-received in the communities, and I would like to know what currently the department is doing in this fiscal year on the program deliverance to the communities of the Sahtu. Thank you.

Minister of Public Works and Services.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, we agree. The Arctic Energy Alliance is a great program for the communities in the Northwest Territories. We are currently updating all the energy profiles of the communities of the Northwest Territories. They were last done in 2010. Over half of them are done, and they will be posted in the coming month here, hopefully. Within this next calendar year, we will finish up the rest of the communities on the community energy profiles. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I welcome the reply to that question. My next question, Mr. Speaker, is: having completed the updated plan there from the last one referenced in 2010, which is seven years ago, when that updated energy plan per community could be -- if I can get a copy of that as well, if it can be provided?

As I said, the ones that are done are going to be posted here shortly and the rest of them in the coming year, but I can get the specific ones to the Member's community, for the Sahtu, if they're completed already. I don't know if they're in the list that's not completed, but if they're done I will get them done.

I guess the other thing that I want to mention that we're working on this year, too, is Arctic Energy Alliance is working community energy plans, and there are two communities that are doing that right now. We're working with Fort Providence and Aklavik; this is an NRCan-funded project. At the conclusion of this, these two project communities will be identified energy projects that they want to undertake and it will be for a sum of $400,000 that will be split between the two communities.

My final question is: once these engagements are under way in developing the community energy plan, will the community leadership be approached and have some input to the community energy plan?

The two that we're working on, as I just mentioned, Fort Providence and Aklavik, we'll be working with the communities. We're hoping in the future that we're going to get some more federal funding to commit to do more community energy plans in the future, so we'll be pushing that, but also as part of our energy public engagement that we're doing presently, we are also asking invited participants as well as the public that come to our meetings about the Arctic Energy programs and services and how they can be improved as well. So that's another avenue for people to reach out in the communities on how we improve this.

Thank you, Minister. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I was referring to the questions earlier for the Sahtu communities, not somebody else's riding. Thank you. If I can get the questions to that, energy plans for the Sahtu communities. Thank you.

I think there's some confusion. Right now we're doing community energy plans, like I said, for the community of Fort Providence and Aklavik. That's an energy plan. The other ones that we're currently trying to finish up in the Northwest Territories is the community energy profiles for all the communities, and that is the ones -- the Sahtu community is done, I will be able to give the Member from across.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife Centre.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. I know that, in some of our government offices, even in the executive offices here at the Legislative Assembly, you still find bottled water coolers. At meetings in GNWT-sponsored events, bottled water is still being offered. If we believe in the quality of our municipal water supplies, we need to walk the talk. So in that vein, will the Minister take the lead in Cabinet and have bottled water removed from the executive offices in this building? Thank you.

Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Personally, I do not believe in drinking bottled water. I think that we have excellent-quality water in the Northwest Territories. As MACA, my job is to promote community governments. I work with them in building and monitoring their water treatment plants. I am not responsible for all of the government buildings, though, so I will voice my opinions but I cannot make authorization on someone else's department. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

If the Minister is a champion for tap water, then can she take the lead in Cabinet and request her Cabinet colleagues to instruct their departments and agencies, the ones that are under their direction, to remove the bottled water coolers and also to direct them that bottled water will no longer be purchased with GNWT money?

I will bring the issue up to Cabinet and bring it to their attention. I can do that.

I respect the Minister's answer on this, but I'm asking her to go further. I'm asking her to be a champion. She's already said she believes in the fact that our tap water is some of the best water in the world, so I'm wondering if she can use her authority to get as many GNWT public servants as possible to take the NWT "Love NWT Water" pledge and also to promote the message that bottled water is unnecessary, through bare facts and any other communication means she has at her disposal.