This is page numbers 2659 - 2688 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was housing.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Minister responsible for Homelessness.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This was brought to my attention in the spring -- I mean, in the -- I want to say March -- February or March that the Inuvik warming shelter, we were experiencing some inhouse challenges, I guess, with the management and with the board. The housing corporation did come into the community to try to alleviate that. The housing corporation did hire a manager to work with the board members in trying to alleviate the conflict that was happening amongst the board and looking at the status of the Inuvik warming shelter.

I'm committed as a Minister to visit that again as well, and, you know, I do understand that, you know, homelessness is a huge issue in our territory. But looking at where we actually do stand, if we do have an active NGO that is able to come and work with us as a corporation and carry out the responsibility, I will have to follow up with the Member on the current status. But as we speak right now, that there is still conflicts amongst that NGO. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Lesa Semmler

Lesa Semmler Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This challenge isn't from March or February. This challenge has been ongoing. I raised it in the fall session. They've been struggling. This is volunteer board of caring people that just keep trying to keep this open. Will the Minister can she commit that this manager or person is somebody who's in Inuvik and maybe where all of our shelters are to have somebody directly working in that community from her department in the community of Inuvik to ensure that this board has support. Thank you.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Absolutely, like, you know, as a Minister and as a department, like, we're willing to work with the community. But the last information that I did receive, that there was a decision that was made by the board to temporarily close the homelessness shelter. And the housing corporation does fund the Inuvik warming shelter $264,000 annually. But we're looking at the overnight operations and the conflict that is happening there. I will reach out to the manager that we do have there and see -- I want to get a further update on what has the progression been since we have stepped in and tried to work with the nonprofit organization and trying to offer them further supports. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Lesa Semmler

Lesa Semmler Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When you live in a small community, when we live outside of Yellowknife, there's not a lot of people that can do the job as ED. The job is a difficult job in the homeless shelter, and if the person is qualified to do it, a government job comes up, they're gone. This is a position that is vital for ensuring funding is coming in, ensuring that staffing is being taken of.

This manager position, you know, this is where these kind of positions should be put in. We should start looking at this homelessness strategy and having a good plan to have if we have to start running it as a government. Will the Minister continue to make sure that this person is on the ground so that this volunteer board, if we even have a board left, will be there and be supported. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Absolutely, the manager was created because there was conflict in Inuvik with the warming shelter and looking at the financial situation that they were getting themselves into, I guess, that the purpose of this position that was created was to try to work with the board to alleviate those challenges.

But we will be working -- well, we will be working with the community as well, because we did end up working with the Indigenous groups in the community. But it's really difficult, and it's challenging when we have NGOs that are facing these difficult situations and trying to alleviate them. But also we are there to support them as well too. So we could come together and look at the Inuvik warming shelter and re-establish the board members and also staff as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes.

Lesa Semmler

Lesa Semmler Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my final supplementary, I just want to know will the Minister commit to making sure that there's something in place for our homeless in Inuvik right now so that they have a place to wash, so they have a place to use the washroom, where they can try and get a meal. Like, we need to have something for our homeless right now. With this board, we don't even know if they're meeting right now. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the housing corporation is in full support. But we don't have the established board members that are there. We had issues with the staff as well. So, you know, we do fund this program annually. So if we have shut the doors and we are looking at challenges like that and looking at further training and the support of this manager to help the Inuvik warming shelter to get back and working again, that, you know, the position is housed in Inuvik. So I will follow up with the position to see where we are at with the board of directors, where are we at with staff, have they come to a conclusion. We need to start working with the homelessness. But we can provide the budget that is there for the homelessness, but we need people to run the programming. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. My questions are for the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. I'm sure he's already been briefed up on the excellent research by Messieurs Palmer and Jamison that proved the overestimation of natural background levels for arsenic in the Yellowknife area and the persistence of mining related arsenic after more than 60 years. We have an outdated 2003 arsenic remediation guideline that is based on this overestimation of background arsenic. Can the Minister tell us what the plans are now to review and update the drastically outdated arsenic remediation guideline. Merci, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Frame Lake. Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the Member for that question. I'm happy to tell the House the department is currently reviewing the 2003 environmental guidelines for contaminated sites remediation. This work is being done with new information on remediation criteria from the Canada Council of Ministers of the Environment as well a new data that has come on arsenic in the Yellowknife area.

ENR recognizes that the 2003 guidelines is dated, and the updating environmental guidance is standard practice as new data and scientific research is available. This work is nearly completed and will be finalized in the fall of 2021. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le Président. I want to thank the Minister for that. Yeah, I raised this in the context of even the Giant Mine environmental assessment where I wanted the board to look at the remediation guideline, but they declined to do that.

This old work that was done leading to the 2003 arsenic remediation guideline, it overestimated background levels by 5 to 10 times. Of course there's a lot of other research, even the Minister mentioned some, that has been done on the toxicology of arsenic since 2003, and much of that points to the need for lower exposure for humans. Will the Minister commit to having the human health risk assessment work associated with the GNWT 2003 arsenic remediation guideline reviewed and updated to be truly protective of human health. .

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The GNWT arsenic soil quality guidelines are being developed using the Canada Council Ministers of Environment framework, which is specific to both health, human health, and the environmental health.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. Thanks to the Minister for that. I don't think I got a response. I wanted some work done on the human health assessment work that was done back on the 2003 guideline, but I'll pursue that separately with the Minister. Clearly, there's a need to review this arsenic remediation guideline which currently only includes two land uses for residential and industrial use.

So in reviewing this guideline, is the Minister committing to expand the land uses that are considered, and then what, of course, are the implications for the Giant Mine remediation.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Multiple land users are being considered for the GNWT arsenic soil quality guidelines, and this work is in the process of being finalized. The Giant Mine remediation project has approved a closure and remediation plans by the MacKenzie Valley Land and Water Board.

The criteria used by the projects were not solely based on the GNWT guidelines; they are site specific criteria for the Giant Mine that are confirmed through the human health and ecology risk assessment.

ENR has also led the development of the human health risk assessment for legacy offsite arsenic in the area surrounding Giant Mine. This work is near completion, and the public engagement is planned to begin in June of 2021. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Frame Lake.

Kevin O'Reilly

Kevin O'Reilly Frame Lake

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to thank the Minister for that. I think he answered most of my last question.

I don't want to sound alarmist, but in my statement today, I expressed that back in 2003, I had doubts about these remediation standards that were developed by this government. I don't think that it was just a coincidence that residential guideline for arsenic was set marginally above the known measurements of arsenic in soils in the residential built-up areas of Yellowknife. So what assurance can the Minister provide to Yellowknifers that this is still a healthy, great place to live, and that our property values are protected. Merci, Mr. Speaker.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And, again, I thank the Member for these questions. They're very important, and they have an impact on residents of Yellowknife. Updating environmental guidance is a standard practice as new data and increased scientific research is available.

I can assure residents of Yellowknife that the previous guidelines completed in 2003 was protective of human health and the environment. ENR will ensure our guidelines continue to be protective of the human health and the environment while incorporating new science and data that becomes available to us. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

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

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Since the Department of Finance has just recently begun a new government renewal initiative, would the Minister consider expanding the scope of that initiative to incorporate a renewal within the structure and processes of human resources. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Finance.

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Department of Finance is one of the first two departments that will be going through the government renewal process. That process is already underway. It's begun. And as such, a human resources branch, being part of the Department of Finance, of course is going to be going through that as well.

But, Mr. Speaker, that's not the end of that, the work that's happening with human resources. We also are well underway in having the Indigenous recruitment retention framework actioned and developed, and that will also be providing a further human resources tool to all of the Government of the Northwest Territories. Thank you.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Mr. Speaker, as mentioned earlier, the department of human resources continues to put up roadblocks for people applying to government jobs. Does the Minister acknowledge that there are some existing questionable hiring practices within her department which adversely affects applicants. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.