Michael Miltenberger

This Assembly, I think, can take great pride in the steps that we’ve taken to deal with greenhouse gas emissions as a government. The money that we’ve put into the system to work with communities, to work with individuals, through our community energy plans, our retrofits, our mini-hydro, our rebate programs, our retrofitting our own buildings to reduce our greenhouse gases and the Members have been fully apprised of that, and we look forward to working with all the stakeholders, aboriginal governments, communities, business and industry on this issue to see how we better apply ourselves in a...

Mr. Speaker, a significant priority of the 16th Assembly is an environment that will sustain present and future generations. Climate change remains a serious issue for the people of the Northwest Territories.

The warming of our climate as a result of the release of greenhouse gases has broad implications to our environment and the potential to impact the social, cultural and economic well-being of NWT residents. Our government has taken broad action to support, investigate and implement initiatives to help residents, communities, industry and government departments reduce their greenhouse gas...

The issue of biodiversity and loss of species is a big global issue. I will indicate that, yes, when I stand up to speak to the content of the process and the strategy and the questions that we’re asking and the points that we’d like to be considered, that type of detail will be there to set the stage and the context and try to map out how we move forward. We’ve taken a tack and a path as a government that’s allowed us to do a whole host of things. We’re now turning our attention to how do we do that not only for the government but as a Territory. There are many things in place. We’ve invested...

What we’re standing behind first and foremost, of course, is the protection of the caribou herds across the Northwest Territories and we’ve had to make very many difficult decisions as we’ve dealt with a significant, often precipitous decline of the herds. So there’s a process. It takes time, as the Member is well aware.

In this part of the country, the Wek’eezhii Board has a very clear, mandated role to play. There’s overlap into the Sahtu with the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board and the co-management boards as well as up into the Inuvialuit, there’s involvement by the Dehcho. Also the herd is...

We have a process that has just barely run its course and we’re still in the process of reviewing the recommendations from the Wek’eezhii Renewable Resources Board. The new numbers will be revisited by the board as it’s being revisited by Environment and Natural Resources as well as the Tlicho Government. Whether it will have any impact on any recommendation changes, it’s too early to say. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Range Lake, that Bill 21, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 2009-2010, be read for the second time.

Mr. Speaker, this bill authorizes the Government of the Northwest Territories to make operations expenditures for the 2009-2010 fiscal year. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, that Bill 23, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 2, 2010-2011, be read for the first time. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Range Lake, that Bill 21, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Operations Expenditures), No. 4, 2009-2010, be read for the first time. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, barren-ground caribou management has been a major priority for the past five years. In a time when caribou herds around the circumpolar world are declining, we have spent considerable time, effort and resources to conserve our herds.

This work has been done over the years with our partners, including aboriginal governments and wildlife co-management boards. I want to commend all our partners and harvesters for their ongoing actions to help conserve these herds.

Last week Environment and Natural Resources staff participated in the 13th North American Caribou Workshop in Winnipeg...

I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Bill 24, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 4, 2010-2011, be read for the third time. Thank you.