Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, we need to move from a very fickle power system to an opportunity of resilience.
Mr. Speaker, last Thursday evening, in case some of you might have missed it, Yellowknife sat in darkness for four hours as temperatures plunged at minus 25. Mr. Speaker, a four-hour outage in a southern city may be an inconvenience but in the subarctic, it's a ticking clock that's deafening.
Mr. Speaker, again, an inconvenience to some, but a tragic experience for many. I heard over the weekend stories of frustration where pipes in modular homes had frozen and broken in some cases, Mr. Speaker. With today's understanding of technology and opportunities, there must be a better way.
Mr. Speaker, as you just alluded to, Clean Design may be that opportunity to help stabilize our power. The technology is there. It's proven. It manages ups and downs of power waves. It even turns on the system when it gets interrupted. Again, an uninterruptible system working for people. It reduces the consumption of diesel, Mr. Speaker. I am not sure where there's a problem here. It sounds too good to be true. But it's real, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, this is proven technology, Mr. Speaker, and this potential investment will save tragedy as well as massive amounts of stress for Northerners who worry about power. Mr. Speaker, at the same time, as pointed out just moments ago, the diesel system could be turning off which reduces noise pollution in the evening in some communities. Mr. Speaker, this will give folks a much-needed night's rest.
Mr. Speaker, people are dreaming of the future, but the truth is the future is here. Mr. Speaker, this smart technology has been in effect for decades, and now we could be doing it here. Wait a minute, Mr. Speaker, we are doing it here.
Mr. Speaker, the project moving into Fort Simpson, your community, is bringing this technology to life. I say now let's bring it to Yellowknife where we need it. Because when the power goes out, there is no plan B, Mr. Speaker, other than hope, and as we said yesterday, we can't eat or spend hope. Mr. Speaker, on our biggest investments, we can't put them at risk, and we can't count on luck. In the North, energy security is public safety. Last week was yet another warning that if the outage had lasted 14 hours instead of four hours, we'd be discussing a disaster, Mr. Speaker, not an inconvenience.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, Clean Design provides intelligent energy management. It helps the system to ensure the faults are smoothing out and, Mr. Speaker, it demonstrates a reliable power in places like Fort Simpson, and I hope in Yellowknife, will be there for Northerners at the greatest risk and when we have the greatest need. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
