Caroline Wawzonek

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, just to reassure the Members, so the two items here related to the barren-ground caribou and the Peary caribou are -- the supplementary appropriations are only for additional money that is coming from ECCC, which is Environment and Climate Change Canada. There are some new funding opportunities or renewed funding opportunities with the federal government in that these supplementary appropriations bring that money in and make it available to ECC here, but it is not the sum total of all the work that ECC does in the space of wildlife management. Thank you...

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs is the entity in the Northwest Territories that can apply to the disaster financial assistance through the federal government, and there are expenses that are covered. Roughly, we find, it comes in at around 90 percent of eligible expenses, which is what is being accounted for here, but it is a fairly rigorous audit process in order to be compliant with the policy, and that comes with a fair bit of paperwork on the particular claims that MACA is putting forward. They would put those claims forward on...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I mean, I would just say, again, I appreciate the comments and the discussion and the opportunity to kind of explain these different processes. I would make, I guess, one last remark which is the other -- another solution is to look at the amount we have in the supplementary reserve. So that is sort of the amount that's set aside to draw from supps. And I guess still the same tension of not wanting to have too much built in there but at least that gives us some planning if you will, the planning runway of how much we expect that we may need for any one of a number of...

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, the fish plant is now fully operational and they are continuing to see increases in catch and increases in the number of fishers. That is the good news; however, finding someone or some entity that has the capacity and skills to fully operate the plant did prove a little more challenging than what was perhaps anticipated in the Great Slave Lake fish revitalization strategy back in 2017, thereabouts, when this plant was first being conceived. So with that, what they have done as a department, as government, is entered into an agreement with the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I certainly take the point. I mean, so as much as I'm saying that the wildfires are a good example for what is an appropriate supplementary appropriation, there is also -- I don't disagree that having an accurate budget when we can see a trend is certainly a responsibility that we do want to take seriously. For instance, if there are items that have a commitment by ECC, so for example if there are contracts they've entered into with their airline suppliers and tankers or -- you know, then that would be an item that would be potentially appropriate for a...

Madam Chair, I actually think I might be back in front of committee tomorrow wearing my other hat with power corporation but also with power corporation officials with me. So if I might suggest -- I'd prefer to defer that question and then what I could do, Madam Chair, knowing that this is a public opportunity -- I do think it's very important the public know the circumstances we're in -- I can perhaps table a letter to follow up from -- as a further detail of some of this information just to -- it'll be more fulsome it comes through that discussion tomorrow. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, I mean, this is a very large question. I'm probably beyond the scope of what I can really get into here and one that should probably go as well to both ECC as well as MACA directly in terms of their operations. But just briefly, Madam Chair, and from the perspective of the Department of Finance, we are responsible for territorial formula financing. That is -- a review is getting underway now in advance of 2029 being the next time that it comes up for renewal. The challenge that we will have is that it doesn't take much in terms of headlines in the news throughout...

Thank you, Madam Chair. So, Madam Chair, this really does relate, I believe, and I certainly would correct myself immediately if I'm -- if there's anything wrong, but it's with respect to the low water events that impact on the Snare system still. So that was a couple of years where there was increase in diesel being burned, and I'm fairly certain that I have seen a chart showing a return to the usage of hydropower in the North Slave, so I'll see if I can locate that and can provide that to Members as well.

But with respect to what's happening in the Taltson, particularly right now, Madam Chair...

Yes, please, Madam Chair.

Absolutely, Madam Chair. The answer is yes. And I will be frank in saying I think that the energy costs and lack of resiliency in our system is probably one of the strongest long-term challenges that I certainly worry about. It is a huge cost driver for the GNWT and a huge cost driver for residents and businesses, and the cost of fixing it are huge and generally, because of the way public utilities work, would go directly back to the ratepayers, which is untenable given the costs that we pay. And there we sit in this very challenging situation. So I appreciate the call for some creativity. I...