Michael Miltenberger

I am here to present Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures) No. 5, 2014-2015. This document provides for a net increase of $4.133 million to the 2014-15 capital budget.

The most significant items in this supplementary estimates are:

$2.0 million for the Department of Health and Social Services to advance the cash flow of the Hay River Health Centre Project because construction is ahead of schedule;

a total of $1.6 million for the Department of Transportation for the costs associated

with the Trout Lake Airport Relocation Project, permafrost research along sections of the...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Over the years the capacity of the Northwest Territories has increased in terms of the complexity of presenting problems and cases that you can work with, families and individuals who are very challenging. But there are still many that are beyond us.

It requires a regular review and oversight by Health and Social Services. As Mr. Bromley pointed out, for example, he had a constituent who they managed to get appropriate placement for. I’ve had experiences in my constituency, as well, and they’ve worked out very well. The case I have in mind is of an individual who was...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following documented, entitled “Return to Written Question 23-17(5), Decentralization Analysis.” Thank you.

If the Member can rattle off that name without looking at his paper again, I will commit to looking at that. All joking aside, I will add that to the list that I have to follow up on with the department. Though, I would be interested to see if the Member could actually rattle that name off without looking at that paper.

Mr. Speaker, we believe it’s doable. Whether it will be fully operational with everything that needs to be done is an issue of some debate, but we do commit to getting the work done. We will be better than last year. If we get that legislative change through, it will allow us to really structure ourselves over the next few years as we rewrite the Forestry Act in its entirety. Thank you.

I wish to table the following two documents, entitled “Natural Resources Conservation Trust Fund Annual Report 2013-2014” and “Waste Reduction and Recovery Program 2013-2014 Annual Report.” Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My understanding is that, in fact, not a lot of jurisdictions set themselves up to regulate the mushroom market after fires. So we are looking at some places like, I believe, Alaska, but there aren’t a lot of best practices out there.

The issue of contaminated soils, I have to commit to the Member that I will follow up with the department to see what the intention is in the areas around Yellowknife that the Members have highlighted so that we, in fact, avoid issues if we’re going to get into this in a big way of having one batch of contaminated mushrooms possibly ruin the market for the whole...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We are going to build off of the work that was done last summer as we started to mobilize to be more efficient, organized and coordinated with morel mushrooms. Just today we have a legislative proposal to make a modest amendment to the Forestry Act that would give authority to do the work and address some of the issues that the Member raised. That will be making its way to committee. If there is willingness, we can get that operational by May. The Member raises good points about timeliness. We are also at work in terms of policies and regulations, one way or the other...

We have funds tied up in the Community Harvesters Assistance Program. We have some money still available in the Western Harvesters Assistance Program as well. As well, we have the fur pricing advances that we do have and prime pelt fund as well. So we do have some funds available. Thank you.

Thank you. Yes. One of the things we’ll be doing is doing a review, and as the Member has requested and suggested, we’ll be looking at that particular issue as well. Thank you.