Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So on this project, there would be the time for July and then after that, our public hearings would be held. And again, our hope certainly being that if we are in advance of that, spending time with the communities who are affected and impacted, that these public hearings would go fairly smoothly, that there will be no, again, that people are hopefully well versed in the project by this point. One of the things we are hoping to see happen in the immediate future is that a working group readiness or a project readiness working group can be set up for those communities...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. No, not yet, Mr. Chair. And there have been studies done really over the last few years of quite a large number of routes. There have been -- and with varying degrees of technical research on each. For instance, some have had geological analysis to understand what potential geology is in the regions. And some have had further than that, also more environmental analysis and more design analysis. But Mr. Chair, the stage that we're at right now, we have -- there's the YKDFN and Tlicho who I think are -- who I understand are looking to find a path to work together in order...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, those conversations certainly have begun, but I can't say that they are -- I'm not going to suggest they're far advanced at this point. This is a project that does continue to move as a partnership. The GNWT is but one member of the steering committee, and then there's a working group that's established with staff and officials from ourselves, as well as from all of Indigenous governments around the watershed both north and south of the lake at the landing points as well. And that is one of the items that's sort of next in line, if you will, for a key item that...

Oh, my witnesses. Oh dear. Just -- you know, Mr. Chair, let me just get my notes out because I have a problem with names when I sit in this chair.

Gaeleen MacPherson associate deputy minister, Strategic Infrastructure, Energy and Supply Chains. And on my right, Kim Wickens, assistant deputy minister, energy and strategic infrastructure.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am more than happy to come back again. I mean, every year before and as part of the budget process, there's a fairly lengthy set of papers that get produced. Also this term, there would have been the fiscal update that was provided to give the public a sense of where we're at in terms of a government and our fiscal situation, and the fiscal responsibility policy, and a lot of the indicators that go with it. So I'm pleased to -- that people want to hold those documents. I also want to hold those documents. They are available -- generally, they're made...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So Mr. Chair, I do want to be quite frank about this, but that this was always expected that what was originally known as the Lockhart All-Season Road would be moving to an environmental assessment in the coming fiscal year. I think there has been a bit of a dialing back of that language and really a shift in a positive way to take advantage of the attention that we are seeing on a national scale to see an all-season road through this region. And so that shift in name has also come with a shift in approach, which is to say that this would not be a singularly GNWT-led in...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. So key milestones that we're expecting for 2026-2027, which is the money that's being advanced or proposed for advancement at this point, would be to get us to the beginning of an environmental assessment process. So, and to get there, we are partners on both sides of the lake are responsible for doing some of the environmental preparatory work in terms of determining exactly where the landing points would be on both sides. I understand that work is at least underway, does need to be completed before we can go to an EA, obviously, for the coming fiscal year. And along...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, at this point this is still at a planning stage. I would say no, there is not concerns in the sense that we know that the Snare system does tend to have a cyclical low water event. Nonetheless, Mr. Chair, it is still anticipated that even considering that this isn't anticipated to bring about GHG emissions reductions up to or in the range of 25 percent over the course for the community of Whati, if this is successful, but also I'd note, Mr. Chair, there's also part of a longer term effort here where Lac La Martre has for a long time had a hydro project that's...

Yes, please, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, a big part of Restoring Balance was on the -- premised on the idea that we would try to be repaying our debt down, which required significant operating surpluses, and it certainly does appear that given the circumstances in the broader world economy that that is not -- should not be the area that we're prioritizing right now. So we're not looking anymore -- we're looking to see what we can do, frankly, to bring some stability to the economy and to residents here and not focus on paying down debt, which was a core part of the Restoring Balance approach...