Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today I'm doing it on caribou. Tlicho people have lived with caribou since the beginning of time. Traditionally when the caribou moved, Tlicho people followed. They would move from their settlement area to the barren lands to follow the path of the caribou. The meat would be harvested, the hide tanned, the bone marrow boiled, and other bones used for tools. Every part of the caribou was used and an important part of the Tlicho way of life. Today, Madam Speaker, we know the relationship with caribou is changing because the numbers of the herd continue to decline, and a ban is in place to protect the caribou for future generations.
There is a concern about this due to conflicting information regarding caribou herds. The herds of the caribou that we heard of. Accordingly when the ban was in force, Tlicho people were told the ban would be for three months in 2010. It is now 2021 and the number of herds reported is still low. The ban has been place for over ten years.
Madam Speaker, there is concern that people who have always relied on caribou to survive are being separated from their traditional way of life. People identify themselves by their relationship to caribou. The current state of the herd and the ban on hunting impacts Tlicho way of life. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has a lot of on-the-land programs to support families to get out on the land. I recognize the department's efforts to support healthy relationships with the land. But, Madam Speaker, it is very difficult for Tlicho people to live as they always have since the herd is not easily accessible. Thank you, and I will have questions for the Minister for Environment and Natural Resources.