Bob Bromley

Thanks for those comments from the Minister. On the environmental assessment monitoring side where we do screenings and then the higher level environmental assessments and environmental impact reviews, these are real opportunities to put conditions on projects. What sort of conditions are we pursuing in the order of greenhouse gas emissions to work towards the obvious need to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions in the Northwest Territories?

Just generally looking at this division, what proportion of our budget is going to land use plans, water and environmental assessment?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for that information. The regional land use programs are referred to on the narrative side of this and integrate environmental, social, cultural and economic interests. Obviously this would be important for our economic development and mineral development strategies and so on. What regional land use plans that do this integration do we have in place?

I am all for being careful, very careful, when our herds decline like that. Perhaps the Minister can consider all people of the Northwest Territories who he does represent as the herd recovers – hopefully they will recover with our careful management – and consider increasing the opportunity for all people of the Northwest Territories that might be interested in harvesting bison. Not that there’s a lot of them but, as the Minister knows, the cost of living is high. We want people to be on the land, and tied to the land and recognizing value of the land, so they will fight for it when they need...

That’s good that we’re finally getting a response back to this working group. Now, my experience is that there’s generally a 10-day mailing period if it’s mailed by the government when they say it’s mailed in Yellowknife to a group in Yellowknife, is that the sort of timeframe we’re looking at here?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks again to the Minister. Yes, with 30-some students in second year, I think this fall would be a great target for the Minister.

The Minister announced the review of the implementation of the reorganization and so on with our Aurora College. It is just about to get off the ground. Will the Minister include consultation with students on their priorities and perspectives when he is doing a review of this reorganization? Thank you.

I appreciate the comments from the Minister. I appreciate his direction to college to get after this. The president of Aurora College was quoted in media, saying that the past three-year Aurora College programs were withdrawn because of some bumps in keeping them. I know that is the business of the college, but I am wondering if the Minister would know what those bumps are and what action is being taken to clear them away. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. May I follow your lead and also wish happy Valentine’s Day to my most lovely wife, Marianne.

Business administration students at Aurora College have appealed for the creation of a third-year degree-granting program. I support that request. The current two-year diploma-granting program is filled to capacity. Currently, diploma graduates seeking a baccalaureate degree must transfer to a southern institution to complete their studies, or take distance education. Students say 87 percent of them – Mr. Moses might take note – have children, and point out that the demands of...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I appreciate those comments from the deputy minister. I hope that we will be public with that information because I know there are concerns in the public amongst both our Aboriginal governments and other people that aren’t just from reading the newspaper and opinion pieces and so on. It’s clear that people want to move in the area of sustainability and where we derive our energy, but they also want to know it’s being done properly and with all due care. So I appreciate that.

The last question I have here is the climate change and the Greenhouse Gas Strategy and so on. Both...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to make just a few comments here. I think we’re still continuing to miss an opportunity in the forest management area and that’s the area of wild crafting and particularly mushroom harvesting. I don’t know where we’re at on that. I know there has been work to look into that, but it’s an industry that is proving to have some potential but it needs some management to really benefit the people of the Northwest Territories, otherwise the benefits go to people that come in from outside and take away the resources. So one question is what are we doing about that.

I’m...