Wendy Bisaro

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions are directed to the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. I want to follow up on my statement about 911 service. At the time that the city completed the feasibility study, along with a number of other partners, the recommendation was that it be started in seven communities – that’s the majority of the residents within the NWT. About 75 percent of our residents live in those seven communities. About 50 percent of our residents live in the City of Yellowknife. The start-up costs, at that point, were estimated to be about a million dollars, which was...

Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Next on my list is Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I must revisit a service need that this government has been ignoring for too long. The NWT needs 911 phone service.

In a 2009 City of Yellowknife feasibility study, a study in which the GNWT was a full participating member, the recommendation was that 911 service should be established in seven of our 33 communities to start and that it be expanded to the other 26 communities as soon as possible. Now, more than three years later, there’s been no action on this issue and it is crucial that this government recognize and accept our duty to assist the City of Yellowknife in...

Mr. Chair, just one last question here. The Minister talked about moving on to e-waste I think in this next fiscal year. Of this $1.3 million that we have to play with, so to speak, is it currently specifically intended for e-waste or have we not yet decided what we’re going to do with this $1.3 million? Thank you.

Thanks, Mr. Chair. I just have one question here with regard to the surplus under the Environment Fund. It’s down quite a bit from the revised estimates figure for 2012-13, but it’s equal to pretty much the mains from ‘12-13, but it’s down quite a bit from the actuals in ‘11-12. I wondered if I can get an explanation on that as to the why. My other question has to do with what do we do with this money? Thank you.

Thanks to the Minister for that comprehensive answer. I didn’t really hear whether or not the number of our protected areas sites has gone up or down over the last little while. I gather that if there’s a review happening, we’re not adding any more protected areas sites. Is that correct?

Thanks to the Minister for that response and for correcting me. Thank you. I recognize they are guidelines, but they seem to be… The impression I get is, yes, they are guidelines, but you’d better adhere to them. I’m glad to hear that this is a concern across the country. I think particularly for some of our smaller communities and some of our more northern communities, it’s going to be a lot harder for them to adhere to these guidelines.

Does the government have any policy in terms of assisting communities to improve their systems or wastewater systems to match the guidelines the government is...

I didn’t really hear an answer to the question there. I guess I would like to ask the Minister if he will consider meeting with these outfitters to discuss the possibility. I fully understand that there may be restrictions.

Secondly, I have to ask the Minister when we will know whether or not there are restrictions on the Bluenose-East herd. I don’t have the numbers. I think Mr. Bromley probably has the numbers of animals, total animals in the herd and number of animals harvested. I don’t have them with me, unfortunately, but I think should it be proven that the herd is sustainable with both an...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have some questions here with regard to caribou management and caribou quotas and so on. I heard the Minister say when he responded to opening comments where he talked about the resident harvest and that there’s a possibility the resident harvest might be opened up in the fall of this year, of 2013. I didn’t hear him say anything about an opportunity for outfitters to have tags in the fall of 2013 or fall and winter 2013-14.

I am really concerned that our caribou hunt outfitters are in great distress. I know that they have had some assistance through the Sport Hunt...

Mr. Speaker, your committee has been considering Tabled Document 9-17(4), NWT Main Estimates, 2013-2014, and would like to report progress with one motion being adopted. Mr. Speaker, I move that the report of Committee of the Whole be concurred with.