Bob McLeod

We are expecting the results of all of the detailed work by April 2010. The expectation is that by October we would have our cost estimates and work plan developed. Assuming that the project is technically, environmentally and financially viable, then we would proceed through the regulatory process. Mini-hydro has a very small footprint so it won’t be flooding any large areas. The powerhouse is very small and the transmission line is very short; it’s only 17 kilometres. So our expectation is it wouldn’t take us very long to get regulatory approval. Assuming that, probably the earliest we could...

There are a number of ways we can analyze how successful we’ve been at Northern House. One is to impute the value of all of the media coverage that we’ve been getting. We’ve been on major international networks, we are getting a lot of coverage from the tourism media and different newspapers and publications, so that’s one way of imputing value. If we had to pay for all that coverage, it would probably be in the millions of dollars, perhaps in the tens of millions of dollars.

Other ways will depend on how many people come to the Northwest Territories, and we capture that information through our...

When I say we’re looking and studying Fred Henne Park, we’re looking at the available land that we have. We’re also looking at how many campsites we can build in there. Once we get all of that information we’ll have to put together a business case so we can come to the Legislative Assembly as part of our business planning process to obtain additional resources so that we can expand our capacity for RV camping. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, many Northwest Territories residents are watching with great interest as our Canadian athletes, including Hay River’s own Brendan Green, strive to “Own the Podium” at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

It is important to note that the Olympics are more than just a sporting event. These Olympics are not just Vancouver’s games, but Canada’s games and, more importantly, have been the first Olympics to fully partner with aboriginal people. The 2010 Olympics are also a celebration of arts and culture, which we witnessed when our performing artists put on a tremendous show during the Victory Day...

My understanding is we have a date that’s been confirmed for the first week of March. I don’t have the exact date, but it’s one of those dates between March 1st and the 5th. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

That’s correct.

We always consult very closely with the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Investment, so we would be doing that. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Our regional offices will be providing that information to the communities. We have met with the TFA and set up that process for doing so.

We will be seeking input from filmmakers in the Northwest Territories. Our preference is doing it internally. We don’t want to be accused of relying too much on outside consultants to do things that could be done internally. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

This I guess has been around for quite a few years. This is the latest extension. We have met with the Territorial Farmers’ Association and there’s a whole host of initiatives that potentially could be funded through this agreement. I guess we say “potentially” because it’s quite a rigorous paper process to access the funding. Some of the initiatives include small-scale foods, northern agri-foods, commercial game harvest, traditional harvest, inter-settlement trade, environment, Bison Strategy, national strategic initiatives. That’s what we’re looking at there.