Tom Beaulieu

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. [English translation not provided.]

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In all fairness to the Minister, I’m going to be asking my questions in my own language.

[English translation not provided.] Marci cho, Mr. Speaker.

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, many years ago just outside of Fort Resolution, actually about 40 miles down the highway or 60 kilometres down the highway or straight across the lake about 20 miles, they discovered lead-zinc. As a result of that, in the early 1960s a huge lead-zinc mine came into operation in the place that they named Pine Point. That mine operated from the early ‘60s until the late 1980s. At that point, I do believe it was the secondbiggest lead-zinc mine in the world. In the 1980s, the price of lead-zinc went down, and it was no longer feasible to do open pit operation...

Marci, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, [Translation] the people are saying there the Pine Point Mine, the work that was worked on all the chemicals that was used would be going into the water. The Fort Resolution bay might be affected by the chemicals that were used for the mine. It seems like the people are getting sick from it and we don’t know. I would like to ask the Minister when are you going to start doing an assessment on how the land is impacted, the extent of the impact? When are you going to do that? [Translation ends].

[English translation not provided]. Marci cho, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I’d like to take the opportunity to recognize the interpreters we have in the House from my riding. We have Tom Unka. Tom Unka is from Fort Resolution, and he interprets for us in Denesuline. Mary Rose Sundberg who is from Detah, and she interprets for us in Tlicho. Thank you.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I don't know where the positions went to so I don't know if we're better off. I don't know if the positions were taken out of communities that had low employment rates and put in the larger centres that have more crews. Larger centres that have more than four crews that could within themselves create… If they had 20 firefighters, for example, they could easily go from four crews to five crews without any impact. Or if there's three crews and there's more people needed they'd have to come from some community. All I know is that the impact is felt by...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, just wanted to dig a little deeper into the reconfiguration of the fire crews and the loss of positions in the communities. I notice that there's still the same amount of firefighters and I knew that; the Minister had advised me of that. I'm wondering what process was used to determine that some communities would lose positions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we wish to continue on with the consideration of Tabled Document 5018(2), Main Estimates, 20162017. Mr. Chairman, we would like to continue our deliberations on the Environment and Natural Resources, and time permitting, get into Health and Social Services. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Marci cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’d like to ask the Minister has there been any discussion with her senior officials at the Housing Corporation towards developing a plan for what we’ve been talking about through the mandate, aging-in-place for seniors. Thank you.