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Northland blames Power Corp. for high power rates Northland Utilities hit back last week accusing GNWT policies and the NT Power Corp. for the power rate dis- parity in the South Slave. See page 2. Wobbly jet stream could be cause of intense re seasons WarmingintheArcticischang- ingtheglobaljetstreampark- ing certain extreme weather patternslikedroughtoverareas for long periods of time. See page 15. TRADITIONAL TANNING Fort Smithers learn the art of moosehide tanning. See page 9. North Slave Mtis ght for right to intervene in trial TheNorthSlaveMtisAlliance wants to prove its distinction from the NWT Mtis Nation through the courts during another First Nations trial. See page 11. Fracking moratorium plebiscite motions voted down by MLAs Motions for a moratorium review and plebiscite on fracking in the NWT were voted down in the legislature last week. See page 7. V IS IT W W W .N O R J.C A A national award winning independent newspaper serving northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories since 1977 1.00 June 9 2015 Vol. 39 No. 6 Joel Gordon of the Hay River Track Club blows past Carson Roche of Deline in the senior mens 100-metre nal at the 25th annual NWT Track and Field Championships in Hay River last week. Gordon placed rst in this and all of his other events. For more photos head to page 8. Fire temporarily closes Hwy 5 to Fort Smith Rain brings short-term reprieve to NWT re crews PhotoMarilynBolt-Marshall By MEAGAN WOHLBERG Hot and windy weather saw a re encroach quickly upon the sole transportation route to Fort Smith on Saturday temporarily closing Highway 5 as crews from both En- vironment and Natural Resources ENR and Parks Canada worked together to protect the road. Rapid action by both agencies saw the highway re-open Sunday morn- ing and rain on Monday granted crews across the Northwest Terri- tories some short-term reprieve according to ENR re operations manager Rick Olsen. The re known as Fire 7 by Wood Buffalo National Park WBNP personnel is a 1400-hect- are re approximately 45 km west of Fort Smith. Though it originally started in the park due to light- ning Friday night it crossed the park boundary into the NWT on Saturday. According to Parks re crews are engaging in facility protection mea- sures for values at risk in the area. Another re Fire 12 is burning 80kmwestofFortSmithabout6km Olsen said the NWT is enjoying a littledownturnintemperaturewhich isassistingallreefforts.Thoughlight- ning has been rolling through there has been some associated rain from While conditions are expected to dry up mid-week Olsen said there mightbemoremoisturecominginto the territory by the end of the week. Overall conditions are fairly calm. Weve got a chance to nish up with the res were dealing with and thankfully weve had no new problem res that we arent able to manage at this point in time he said. Season still well above average There have been 55 res to date in what has been an early and rapid start to the NWT re season. Of those 39 are still burning. More than 100000 hectares have burned since the beginning of May over twice the normal average for this time of year. Typically some 18 res would have burned around 40000 hectares by early June. See Crews wrap up on page 3. westofHighway5withinWBNP.That re is currently being suppressed by re crews and helicopters. Becausetheroadcouldcloseatany timedriversareadvisedtocheckwith theNWTdepartmentofTransporta- tionpriortotravellingonHighway5. Whati to Fort Smith which looks to be expanding west into the Dehcho. It may or may not extend east into Yellowknife and into the East Arm Olsen said. We are expect- ing it will have a little bit of a short- term reprieve this week. Overall conditions are fairly calm. Weve got a chance to nish up with the res were dealing with and thankfully weve had no new problem res that we arent able to manage at this point in time. Rick Olsen Environment and Natural Resources 2 Tuesday June 9 2015 POLITICS ENERGY NEWS BRIEFS Child tax benets no longer income for public housing tenants Child tax benets and payments to foster parents will no longer be counted as income in the rent calculation for public housing tenants in the NWT Minister Rob- ert C. McLeod announced last week. The NWT Hous- ing Corp. will be changing its policies to allow for full implementation by Oct. 1 2015. Total income will be based off the income tax returns of household mem- bers to calculate rent. Minister announces new incentives for NWT students NWT Education Minister Jackson Lafferty announced changes to Student Financial Assistance last week. In the 2015-16 academic year students will see improvements to loan remission rates for faster debt forgiveness 2000 for studentswhoresideintheNWTtobeappliedtostudentloan debtazeropercentinterestrateforstudentswhoreturnto the NWT after completing their studies increased funding for tuition and books and increased borrowing limits for students actively paying down their debt. An online appli- cation process was launched June 1. GNWT maintains Aa1 credit rating Moodys Investors Service again recognized the NWT nancial management regime with an Aa1 credit rating last week. The stable outlook rating is based on Moodys annual review of the GNWTs scal plans and outlook including borrowing activity and the impact of devolu- tion. The high investment grade rating reects prudent scal policies a low debt burden and a developed scal framework with a track record of positive consolidated surpluses. The highest possible Moodys rating is Aaa one tier above the GNWTs. 926 MACKENZIE HIGHWAY HAY RIVER NT 867-874-2771 Toll Free 1-866-327-0717 www.monsterrec.com MONSTER NOW CARRIES FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION. Fishing Rods Tackle and a large selection of Hunting Knives also available DONT BE SASSEDBY A MOOSE BY MEAGAN WOHLBERG The battle over power de- livery in Hay River heated up last week as representa- tives from Northland Utili- ties Ltd. NUL turned the tables on the NT Power Corp. NTPC accusing their poli- cies of forcing the 30 per cent Northland blames Power Corp. for high Hay River power rates rate difference between com- munities in the South Slave. NUL vice president of Northern development Doug Tenney issued a press release early last week blaming the crown corporation and the territorial government for power rates in Hay River that are 0.31 per kilowatt hour kWh - 10 cents more than in Fort Smith. The current system is complicated and burdened with government policy that can only be changed when all players involved sit down and explore every option to reduce rates Tenney said. The current electrical sys- tem is governed by a policy that charges different rates based on location - whether in thermal or hydro com- munities - and proximity to hydro generation facilities. According to NUL Hay River is mandated to pay more for transmission costs which contributes to the rate disparity with Fort Smith. This is further com- pounded by the government- owned NTPC charging Hay River 30 per cent more than FortSmithforpoweraccord- ing to NUL. Current GNWT policy prevents this disparity from being corrected in any substantive manner. The minister responsible for NTPC Michael Milten- bergerwasquestionedexten- sively on the claims put forth by NUL in the legislature last week with Range Lake MLA Daryl Dolynny taking special interest in the matter. Dolynny asked why NTPC has been knowingly over- charging customers in Hay River since 2008 totalling roughly 1 million a year. The minister of NTPC and the premier have said many times during the ses- sion that the government has no intention to expro- priate Northland Utilities from the NWT. Its hard for me to believe that when this government has introduced government policy after gov- ernment policy and has pe- nalized Northland Utilities customers just because who serves them he said. Those assertions were backed up by Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley who said a 2008 Public Utilities Board PUBstudyfoundNTPCwas being compensated 130 per cent of costs for South Slave communities. Not only was this not cor- rected government ignored this fact increased their own legislativepoweroverthesup- posedlyarms-lengthPUBand crippled the PUBs ability to do their job with government feeissuedthisAprilBromley said. The directive limits the PUB to issuing rate adjust- ments of only one per cent or less with the result that NT- PCs 30 per cent overcharge is still true today will remain in place with only very minor adjustments perhaps for de- cades. So much for reducing cost of living. Dolynnyevenwentasfaras to accuse the government of market disruption imply- ing it was using policies to push NUL out of the territory and picking and choosing which communities benet most from NTPC subsidies possibly to benet Milten- bergers home riding of The- bacha Fort Smith. PUB sets rates minister The ministers response in legislature has been that the PUB sets the rates and that no secret nefarious ploys have been made behind the scenes. Miltenberger said a rate re- balancingprocessiscurrently underway to x a problematic systeminheritedfromthefed- eral government that is well supersededinmanycasesby therequirementforNTPCand the government to put money intothingstoprotecttherates forallpowerusersintheNorth- west Territories regardless of whoprovidesorwhodistributes the power including the 57 millionputtowardscushioning rates over the last four years. With some coaxing by Hay River North MLA Robert BouchardMiltenbergeradded thattheGNWTRateEqualiza- tionProgramsubsidizesNUL to the tune of half a million dollars per year to bring rates downinthefourNUL-serviced thermal communities. As well Miltenberger said NUL - an ATCO company based out of Calgary - makes 3 million per year in prot that leaves the territory while all of the money NTPC makes is reinvested in the NWT. Attempts by the Journal to arrangeaninterviewwithMilt- enberger were unsuccessful. Dolynny asked the same questions of Premier Bob McLeod who replied that Dolynnys numbers were incorrect. Im not sure where hes getting his numbers from but my understanding is its only a difference of one or two cents McLeod said of the rate disparity between Hay River and Fort Smith. DolynnyaswellasHayRiver MLA Jane Groenewegen ex- pressed disappointment that cabinet has refused to meet withNULtoworktogetheron bringingdownratesforcustom- ersashasbeenrepeatedlyre- quested by the company. This government vis a vis this minister has refused to sit down and communicate withaprivatesectorcompany thats been in the Northwest Territories for 60 years to see what they might bring to that discussion in developing an energy plan Groenewegen said of Miltenberger. PhotocourtesyofNUL A Northland Utilities powerline technician works on the electrical system in Hay River. Tuesday June 9 2015 3 ENVIRONMENT WILDLIFE Photos wanted for 2016 Fort Smith Pet Desk Calendar Filling up fast Get your pictures in soon Ifyouwouldliketohavephotosofyour petstakenarrangementscanbemade. Please call Chris at 872-5547. Becauseofthehighvolumeofrequests we are on a first come first in basis. Special consideration will be made for pets not in previous calendars. Please submit photos of living pets only. Thereisnofeetohavephotosinthecalendar. If you have any questions or need more information please call Chris at 872-5547 or email dewolfnorthwestel.net Deadline is August 31 This ad sponsored by the Northern Journal Miss Stache is a sophisticated and cute little lady. Isnt she just precious If you brought her home shed be so happy and give you cuddles. Please leave a message at 872-5543 for details. WESCLEAN NORTHERN SALES LTD. Ph 867 875-5100 Fax 867 875-5155 E-mail infowescleannwt.com web www.wescleannwt.com Avalon Cat Hair - long Size - medium Gender - female Avalon is a very loving and beautiful cat. She is spayed and is up-to-date with all her shots.If you think you have a home for a Avalon please call the shelter at 872-5543. Please leave a message at 872-5543 for details. WESCLEAN NORTHERN SALES LTD. Ph 867 875-5100 Fax 867 875-5155 E-mail infowescleannwt.com web www.wescleannwt.com Avalon Cat Hair - long Size - medium Gender - female Avalon is a very loving and beautiful cat. She is spayed and is up-to-date with all her shots.If you think you have a home for a Avalon please call the shelter at 872-5543. Please leave a message at 872-5543 for details. WESCLEAN NORTHERN SALES LTD. Ph 867 875-5100 Fax 867 875-5155 E-mail infowescleannwt.com web www.wescleannwt.com Avalon Cat Hair - long Size - medium Gender - female Avalon is a very loving and beautiful cat. She is spayed and is up-to-date with all her shots.If you think you have a home for a Avalon please call the shelter at 872-5543. SpayedNeutered Up-to-datewithroutineshots House trained Miss StacheFemaleAdult Black and white mix Looking for a new home New sh limits for Little Buffalo River not enough Mtis Fort Resolution Mtis request catch and release policy for river Crews wrap up work on other res near NWT highways Continued from page 1. Were still well above our normal aver- age Olsen said. So far this year NWT re crews have ac- tioned 27 res. Twelve are being actioned currently the majority of which is monitor- ing for value protection Olsen said. The Dehcho region has seen the most res at 21. Another 14 have burned in the South Slave four in the North Slave seven in the Sahtu and one in Inuvik. Of this years res 40 have been caused by lightning seven have been human-caused and eight were holdovers from last year - res that burned so deeply into the ground they survived the cold winter. Last weeks work to slow two res nearing roadinfrastructureweresuccessfullymanaged by ENR crews. The one re south of Behchoko on Highway 3 - the largest in the territory at 20000 hectares - is almost wrapped up and back to a monitoring stage. The other located 20 km east of Jean Marie River and just north of Highway 1 is now considered under control and crews are being demobilized. 12 res in WBNP There have been 12 res to date in WBNP. ThelargestofthoseisFire4a106500-hectare blazeformedbyseveralres18kmeastofGar- den River on the south side of the Peace River. Parks Canada incident management teams havebeendeployedtoGardenRivertomanage thereandsmall-scaleburnoutoperationshave takenplacetolimitspottinginunburnedareas. An incident management team and crews have also been brought in from other national parks to assist with wildre management. Moderate to high levels of smoke are antici- patedforthecommunitiesofGardenRiverFort SmithandFortChipewyanthroughouttheweek. The majority of WBNP res are in remote areas of the park and being monitored. ThereiscurrentlynorebaninWBNPbutall campresmustbelocatedindesignatedreboxes only. Visitor services have not been affected. A re reaches Hwy. 5 near Little Buffalo River Falls on Saturday 45-km west of Fort Smith. PhotoJasonCurrie By MEAGAN WOHLBERG Fisheries ofcials in the Northwest Ter- ritories have put new catch and possession limits in place for the Little Buffalo River and Resolution Bay but Fort Resolution Mtis Council president Arthur Beck says its still not enough to protect declining sh stocks. The federal department of Fisheries and Oceans DFO revised its limits as of April after consulting with the community of Fort Resolution about its concerns according to DFO spokesperson Rosaleen OMahoney. The new limits for the Little Buffalo River and Resolution Bay - the waters in a straight line between Pine Point and Mission Island on Great Slave Lake - set catch and posses- sion at the following from April 24 to March 31 2016 the daily catch limit for Northern Pike is 1 and the possession limit is 2 from April 24 to June 6 the daily catch limit for Walleye is 1 and the possession limit is 1 and from June 7 to March 31 2016 the daily catch limit for Walleye is 1 and the pos- session limit is 2. Previously the number of walleye al- lowed for catch and possession during the second half of the season was three and ve respectively. OMahoney said DFO reviews catch and possession limits annually and when con- cerns are raised by the community or formal requests for variation orders are submitted. Beck said the formal request was made through the Great Slave Lake Advisory Committee GSLAC on which he sits as a representative of the Mtis. But as of next year he wants to see the poli- cies around shing on the Little Buffalo set entirely to catch and release with barbless hooks due to concerns with illegal oversh- ing on the river. We put that in place but its not enough Beck said. We still have people coming there lling their coolers and going home because theyre not monitored properly. Beck put the idea forward as a resolution at the NWT Mtis Nations annual general meeting last fall in Fort Smith. The resolution which passed unanimously calls for a catch and release system for all non-resident non- Aboriginal and sport shers on the Little Buffalo River. A similar motion was passed at the GSLAC table as well. The proposal would mean sh could only be eaten for shore lunch. People wouldnt be able to leave withcoolersfreezers orjars of canned sh as has been reported at Little Buffalo. We still have to do consultation with the Fort Resolution Mtis and the band Deninu Kue First Nation sometime this summer so if it will go through it will only come into ef- fect next year Beck told the Journal. Beck is also trying to prevent jet boats from being able to travel on the river where nu- merous sh species spawn in the shallows. Whatshappeningisthejetboatsarespray- ing all the sh eggs all over the place he said. Beck said sh stocks in the Great Slave Lake tributary have been in decline since the cre- ation of the Pine Point mine in the early 1960s. There was so much sh in the Little Buf- falo River and also a lot of nice Northern pike it was not uncommon to catch a 25-lb Northern pike in the area before Pine Point moved in he said. While the Little Buffalo River Territorial Park has made it easier for more people to sh on the river Beck said enforcement has not increased alongside the boost in activity. Whats happened with DFO with all the cutbacks theres not enough money theres only two ofcers in the Northwest Territo- ries and ones in Yellowknife and ones in Inuvik. So its very very hard for the eld ofcers to patrol the whole Northwest Ter- ritories Beck said. What we have to do as Aboriginal people is take it into our own hands and work with DFO in sort of a monitoring sh-counting watch- dog. I mean they cant charge the person they dont have the authority but just being there would make a difference he said. OMahoney said DFO is working with local Aboriginal governments to further assess shing limits on the Little Buffalo River this summer through an angler survey and will continue consulting the public on manage- ment strategies. The Fort Resolution Mtis want a catch and release policy for sh on the Little Buffalo River. Fileillustration ENVIRONMENT WILDFIRES 4 Tuesday June 9 2015 The Northern Journal is an independent newspaper covering news and events in the western Arctic and northern Alberta. 2013 CCNA BLUE RIBBON CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2013 C M C A AUDITED The Northern Journal is published weekly by Cascade Publishing Ltd. Printed at Star Press Inc. Wainwright AB. Publisher................................................................................. Don Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.21 donnorj.ca Editor.........................................................................Meagan Wohlberg 867-872-3000 ext.24 newsnorj.ca Reporter....................................................................... Dali Carmichael 867-872-3000 ext.25 reporternorj.ca Comptroller ..................................................... Dixie Penner 867-872-3000 ext.23 dixnorj.ca Advertising.............................. Heather Foubert Hay River 867-874-4106 adsnorj.ca Administration............................................Jeremy Turcotte 867-872-3000 ext.26 adminnorj.ca Production Manager ......................................Sandra Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.22 sandranorj.ca Graphics........................................................Paul Bannister 867-872-3000 ext.27 graphicsnorj.ca Letters to the Editor Policy The Northern Journal welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and include a phone number so the author can be veried. Names will be withheld on request in special circumstances where the reasons are determined to be valid. The Journal reserves the right to edit letters for length libel clarity and taste. Opinions expressed in letters and columns are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. Advertising Deadlines Display ad deadline is Thursday at 400 p.m. Classied ad deadline is Thursday at 500 p.m. Email adsnorj.ca Subscription Rates Prices include GST. 47.25 in Fort Smith 52.50 elsewhere in Canada 105 in the USA overseas 164.30. EDITORIAL LETTER TO THE EDITOR Editor I spent some time thinking about the TRC and the residential school experience. While I was only a short-timer in residential school en route to time spent in foster care and then adoptionintotheDahlfamilyIcanonlywonder what my birth mother Mandy King nee Per- raultoftheWaubaskangFirstNation-daughter of Robert Perrault who served in the 141st Div of the Canadian army in 1918 must have felt having almost all of her children taken from her because someone within the government system felt she wasnt a capable mother. In all she had 13 children - eight of which I neverknewbutheardaboutovertheyearsand almostallofusandasIunderstanditweretaken fromheratvarioustimestobesenttoresidential schoolsinFortFrancesKenoraandelsewhere in northern Ontario and Manitoba. We were separated from each other at a young age and endured hardships of different kinds through theyearsbecausesomeofuswereprocessed differently. I ended up one of the lucky ones as one person who didnt really know me de- scribedmewithinthefostersystematayoung age312afterspendingarelativelyshorttime in Fort Frances yet I still had hardships of my own trying to adapt to my circumstances and ttinginwithbothanon-nativefamilyandcir- cle of friends as well as a non-receptive native social group. I was an outsider many times and in many instances still am. So now that the TRC has concluded Im left wonderingifanythingwillchangeforthebetter. Im left hoping that eventually those of us who enduredwhatwedidwillbewelcomedintothe families and communities we were torn from becauseofcircumstancesnotofourowndoing or whether or not we will always have to ght for a place at the dinner table so to speak. Ive sometimes been criticized for my lack of lan- guage skills land skills or cultural participa- tion but there are still lots of things I pass on to my children like how to cope with racism blatant or not and how to fend for yourself in an unsympathetic society that values money over cultural and linguistic wealth. Yet I en- dure. Yet I survive. Yet I will prosper. I am hopeful we can become stronger com- munitiesandfamiliesbecauseoftheseparations and the need to embrace each other in the face ofchangingtimesinthiscountry.Iamhopeful we can use the hardships we endured the rac- ism the abuse - even from our own people and familymembers-andtheostracizationtoteach ourgrandchildrenlessonsinlifenooneelsecan so that we can become stronger nations within our own lands. My grandfather great-uncle father and uncle served this country at a time when they didnt have the ability to leave their reserves without permission because they be- lieved that Canada was capable of great things whichIknowinmyheartitis.Iamhopefulthat weasFirstNationscanmoveforwardfromall thehurtsandpainsandbecomeasgreatasthey wantedustobe.IhopeintheireyesIhavelived a good enough life to be welcomed with open arms when it comes time for me to meet the ancestors.ItisthenthatIwilltrulyunderstand the tears of my mother and shake the hands of my grandfather with a deeper sense of pride foreverythingtheysacriced-willinglyornot. Roy Dahl Yellowknife Residential schools An unwilling sacrice The time of Senate reckoning is at hand The stench emanating from the Senate is unbearable. As if the sense of entitlement and extravagance fueled by taxpayer money were not bad enough it is obvious from the Mike Duffy court case and the way the Senate handles legislation that it is at best a pawn of the ruling Conservatives. Good work may be done by Senate commit- tees and there are undoubtedly well-inten- tioned diligent Senators who carry out their dutiesinawayrespectfultoCanadiancitizens but they are not the majority and unfortu- nately that type of thinking is not at all what dominates the role and purpose of the Senate. A Senate as we know it has no place in a modern democratic country. The sooner Can- ada is rid of it the better. That would have helped make it transparent and accountable ending the entitlement and extravagant ways of its members. The greatest champion of an evolved and improved Senate was Stephen Harper - before he became prime minister that is. When Harper was a young idealistic poli- tician he was opposed to the way the Senate worked and wanted to change it. He led the driveforanelectedsenatewhichhadthemost support in Alberta. When he became the op- position leader he was even more frustrated by the way the ruling Liberals were able to use the Senate to their own ends. Changing and adapting the Senate so it was accountable to the people by electing the Senators made sense. That was a way to make Canadas bicameral or two-house system of government into a workable truly democratic system. Most Canadians liked his plan to re- form the Senate. Unfortunately when Harper gained power he set aside his ideals. His zeal to stack the Senate with partisan appointees outpaced even his Liberal predecessors. The Senate as it is now is not accountable and has no oversight to ensure things are done right. In addition to the ever-present graft being revealed to Canadians in the series of ongoing trials of Senators it is obvious the Senate has become a fop manipulated by the ruling party in Parliament. It has no purpose other than to do its masters bidding. Unfor- tunately that master in the very authoritarian style of government running Canada today is the Prime Ministers Ofce PMO. Those directing the Senate are too often PMO staffers working in the background. The prime minister may ultimately hold sway but he is also very busy doing other things. The whole point of having two houses of government is that they counter-balance each other. If one is being completely controlled by theotherthatisclearlyproblematic.Ifasisthe casenowoneiscontrolledbyunelectedunac- countable bureaucrats that is a terrible thing. Having two independent houses of govern- ment that each provide checks and balances to theotherisanexcellentstructureforagovern- ment. The Senate should become elected and accountable to make that system work. That no longer appears feasible. The only other op- tion is to get rid of it but that would require revamping our entire system of government which would be no small feat. Canada is in a conundrum. Inthemeantimehavingunelectedadminis- trators with their own partisan agenda wield- ing so much power and having so much sway over the goals objectives and agenda of our government while at the same time control- ling the Senate is very dangerous. TheCanadianSenateiscopieddirectlyfrom the one in Great Britain which is a remnant of the past when monarchs ruled and hereditary bloodlines were all-important. The authority of the Crown was manifest through the aris- tocracy. Honours titles and wealth were be- stowed on the favoured few while the people were chattel considered the property of what- ever nobleman whose land they were born on. All that changed with the concept of a dem- ocratically-elected government run by repre- sentatives of a majority of ordinary citizens. During the formulation of that new type of government the power of elected represen- tatives of the people in Parliament was offset by the Senate which was populated by lords and noblemen. Rather than an institution of sober second thought it was meant to be a stop-gap a nal refuge for the rapidly wan- ing power of the nobility put in place to con- trol the peoples government. As such it had nal say on all legislation and where neces- sary could even deny it. The Senate is the last vestige of the monar- chical system and is anti-democratic. That is reason enough to get rid of it. TherewasatimewhentheCanadianSenate could have been salvaged evolved so that it too was elected and represented the people. A Senate as we know it has no place in a modern democratic country. The sooner Canada is rid of it the better. PhotoJeffTurnerAuroraCollege Aurora College president Jane Arychuk presents the Mens Open trophy to Brad Tuckey at the close of the 17th annual Aurora Open Golf Tournament held in Fort Smith over the weekend. Other winners were Bob McArthur Senior Men Curt Snook Super Senior Men Barb McArthur Ladies Open Joan Bevington Senior Ladies and Dalton Beamish Juniors. Just over 50 golfers enjoyed the two days of competition. All proceeds raised at the event go towards the fth annual NWT Youth Symposium on at Aurora Colleges Thebacha Campus this week. Tuesday June 9 2015 5 COLUMNS 15 Years Ago... Big barge waits to get past rapids Once it gets past the Slave River Rapids another barge will be sailing between Hay River and Norman Wells later this month. The William Bradley is currently docked at Fort Fitzgerald waiting for the road weight ban to be lifted to 100 per cent on June 10. Issue June 6 2000 20 Years Ago... NWTel refused rate increase The CRTC has refused NorthWesTels recent proposal to lower long distance rates and increase local costs. The rate readjustment would have seen long distance rates drop by 40 per cent and local rates go up 110 per cent to about 17.50 per month. Issue June 7 1999 30 Years Ago... Grandin Colleges future in doubt Grandin College probably wont be opening next year because it is in nancial trouble says Bishop Paul Piche of the Roman Catholic Church. We can no longer afford the two supervisors two cooks and the heating and the food needed to keep it operating he told the Journal. Issue June 6 1985 ARCHIVES Northern Journal 2015 Join us online Like Northern Journal on Facebook and get the weekly news delivered to your feed FACEBOOK FEEDBACK Comments of joy and excitement ooded CKLB Ra- dios Facebook page on the weekend as Nadira Begg took back to the airwaves for the much loved Saturday request show for the rst time in almost a year. New GNWT funding helps CKLB radio back on the air Margaret Mabbitt can you please hookup The Town of Fort Smith NT PLEASE AND THANK YOU Low levels on Athabasca prompt requests for limited water withdrawals by industry Rob Schwartz Alberta Environment re- moved all requirements for any reference to maintaining instream ow needs from the water withdrawl approval process. The Alberta water management system now makes applications for industrial wa- ter an automatic process averaging 600 approvalsmonth for the last 3 years. The monitoring and policing of water use is non-existant and water access shortages will be delt with on a complaint driven pro- cess. It appears that Alberta Environment has adopted a water management policy that disreguards river health and viability as well as disreguard for longstanding in- terprovincial water ow agreements. In last weeks front page photo graduate Tim Bye was in- correctly identied as being from Fort Chipewyan. Bye is from Edmonton. The Journal apologizes for the error. CORRECTION By DAWN KOSTELNIK In the yard by our house was the warehouse and ga- rage. The warehouse stored excessrations food supplies. The garage was exactly what it sounds like. On the river we ordered food that arrived by barge once a year. On the sea we ordered food that ar- rived by ship during the open water season. A difference in food orders was that my mom would make out her own list of case goods etc. and have it shipped up the Macken- zie River by barge. In Cop- permine she had to order by A B or C army type rations. A ration was a combina- tion of food supplies that was determined necessary and nutritious for survival by the Canadian Military. In the warehouse were numerous cases of jam canned wieners and canned potatoes. Lots of the leftovers were things that no one wanted to eat. By hav- ing to order rations A B or C you could not get what you wanted or needed but this gave you what the govern- ment determined you should havesound familiar Who by choice eats canned wieners I can hear the ration gnomes from the south determining that those people in the North at the end of the world should appreciate that they are get- ting good civilized food. It is much healthier for them. It has to be way better than anythingtheycangetlocally YoushouldhaveseentheArc- tic Char that came wild from the Coppermine River We had water delivery to our homes. Water tanks are located in heated porches. Kids have wonderful imag- inations which need to be cultivated. Intelligent minds require stimulation and if its not readily available they will create their own amusement. It can be good stimulation it can be bad and it can be just plain hilarious. In the warehouse was case upon case of Tang. Tang is powdered orange-avoured sugar crystals that are made into juice. Orange and the wondrous new grapefruit Tang which was popular with the adults but not par- ticularly with the kids must have been considered essen- tial because the rations came with an abundance of it. My brothers were young boyswithgreatimaginations.It istoomuchtemptationtohave atankertruckfullofwatersit- tingbesideawarehousefullof Tang.Howcouldyounotwant tomakeatankerfullofTang They howled with laughter imagining the expressions on peoples faces when Tang owedthroughthetaps.What would it be like having a Tang bathTang-lavouredoatmeal couldbegoodunfortunately they were caught in the act of creating juice. I wish they had succeeded we in the North would still talk and laugh about it. As it is this story is legend. They had managed to dump sev- eral cases of the Tang into the tanker truck before they were caught and disbanded. The infamous Tang Gang. To be continued www.thewhitegirl.ca White Girl Whats In a Name By LONE SORENSEN Living and growing food in Yellowknife for 27 years has been an incredible learning journey.ForallthistimeIcon- stantly hear people say to not planttilltherstweekinJune whileissuingallsortsofwarn- ingsaboutfrost.Ichosenotto listen.NotonlyamIimpatient topickmyrstcarrotIamalso seriousaboutthegardenfeed- ing me for many weeks usu- allyfromthemiddleofMayto the middle of October. I plant as early as I can get my spade in one foot deep before it hits the frozen soil as early as the rst week in May. I plant po- tatoescarrotskaleandbeets. Evenmyhomegrownbedding plantsthatIstartinmyhouse inearlytomid-Aprilcabbages cauliower and broccoli get plantedatthelatestontheMay long weekend. Ihaveatrickortwothough mymostfavouriteNorthof60 growingtechniquethat isalso used by farmers and garden- ersacrosstheArcticcountries. EvenfarmersinGreenlanduse thistricktogrowpotatoesright besidetheinlandice.Itiscalled oating row cover and it is a materialmadefromanacrylic fabric specically for agricul- ture.Itismilkywhiteincolour and keeps out the cold wind protecting the plants on cold daysandnights.Theplantsare camping under there Floating row covers block 15 to 30 per cent of the light which leaves enough light for theplantstogrowwell.Laying theoatingrowcoverdirectly ontopofthesoilafterseeding the above mentioned vegeta- bles will warm the soil pro- tect your plants and put your harvest forward by three to ve weeks. If a frost or strong coldwindcomesalonglaterit is no big deal. By keeping an eye on the forecast on a daily basisandaddinganextralayer of this cover on the near frost or frosty nights the potatoes will be just ne. Even if the new leaves get a bit frost bit- ten they will just bounce right back and keep growing. Kale is another plant that can handle frost easily. Planting super early for all these years Gardening with Lone Fear frost no more and finish planting hasalwayspaidoff.Ieatpota- toes out of my garden as early as the rst week in July. Only oncehaveIlostarowofgreen beans to frost in early June. I replanted the very same day andstillhadlotsofgreenbush beans later on that year. For next year make sure you buy enough oating row cover for yourentiregardenplusalittle extra for the cold nights. Ifyouarestilllearningabout when and how to plant there are many ways to keep learn- ing. Croprotationisagoodgar- dening practice that will allow soil and plants to stay healthy. This means not planting the samevegetableinthesamespot aslastyear. When it comes to seeding read and follow the instruc- tionsoneachseedpackage.The generalruleofgreenthumb is to plant a seed as deep as it isbig.Asanexampleofthisa potatowhichisafewinchesin sizeusuallygetsplantedabout 3to4inchesdeep.Bytheway the potato is actually a tuber not a seed hence potatoes with eyes for planting are called seed potatoes not po- tatoseed.Amuchsmallerseed like a kale or carrot should be planted only a couple of mil- limetres deep. Seed spacing in a row var- iesgreatlyfromplanttoplant as does spacing between each row. There are several square footplantingguidesonlinethat showhowmanyplantsofvari- ous types can be planted in a one square foot space google it under images. I like rows but it is good to know that you can grow approximately 16 carrots per square foot after thinning though when seed- ing it is best to be liberal and plantalmostdoublethat.Car- rots like I mentioned should beplantedasearlyaspossible. Thespacebetweeneachrowof carrots should be a little over afoot.Onceyouhaveplanted remembertowatereverydayif it does not rain especially the carrotsortheymaynotgermi- nate properly. LoneSorensenisthefounder ofNorthernRootsandhaslived andgrownfoodinYellowknife for 27 years. 6 Tuesday June 9 2015 POLITICS REGULATORY It is Spring clean up time in Fort Smith. Take your refuse to the curb call Town Hall 872-8400 and municipal crews will come to take it away for you - for free If you want to haul loads of refuse or garbage to the dump all tipping fees have been waived. In addition to cleaning up our community this special program is offered to encourage fire abatement. We are entering another severe fire season. This is your chance to Fire Smart your yard. Remove any flammable debris Take away any brush and small trees if you are close to the forest edge Remember the hazards are extreme. Contact Town Hall to see if burning is allowed. Be careful with cigarettes butts. Help make our community safer Find details on evacuation routes procedures directions check lists and preparedness on the first page of the Town of Fort Smith website under Emergency Info. www.fortsmith.ca For more information and advice on how to Firesmart your yard so your home is safer Call ENR district Mgr Daniel Allaire at 872-6425. LETS CLEAN UP OUR ACT Committee report assesses NWT fracking regulations Though the consultation period was origi- nally set for 90 days the government has ex- tended that period to the end of August or pos- sibly beyond due to calls for additional time. While the standing committee did not take a position on the polarizing debate over fracking their report gives a clause-by-clause analysis of the proposed NWT fracking regu- lations in comparison with the existing NEB rules for fracking NEBFR in the North. What the committee found was that while there were many new inclusions in the GN- WTs rules several pieces of the NEB rules had not been mirrored in the new regulations or if they were said to appear elsewhere in the NWT regulatory system did not have the same regulatory effect. What may be considered an enhancement by one stakeholder group may not be viewed as such by another notes the committee in the reports introduction. The new NWT regulations are supposed to enhance the NEB rules based on four Northern priority areas including base- line surface and groundwater information public disclosure of chemical additives air quality and enhanced pre- and post-fracture reporting and disclosure. Though much of the content is new com- mittee points out that in some cases related NEBFR content has been excluded from the draft regulations. Most notably in the section on public dis- closure of chemical additives the committee notes that previous comments made by pe- troleum resources director Menzie McEach- ern to Northern Journal mischaracterize the differences between the two sets of rules. McEachern had said Where the new reg- ulations differ from the NEB Filing Require- ments is that the NWT regulator directly asks an operator to publicly disclose the in- formation. The NEB guidelines asked if they are willing to do so. That claim is noted as incorrect by the committee. Both the NEBFR and the draft regula- tions require the applicant to indicate their willingness to disclose the report states. That said committee acknowledges the draft regulations build upon the NEB rules by requiring signicantly expanded infor- mation including the companys annual environmental and safety reports and re- quires the applicant to state reasons for re- fusing disclosure. However it remains unclear whether or not companies may choose to release only a portion of the listed information or to do so simply post-fracture rather than prior. When it comes to enhanced reporting and disclosure committee notes the lack of clarity around how the increased information going to the NWT oil and gas regulator OROGO - such as ambient air quality reports - will be made public and on what timeframe or how all the data being collected will be marshalled to establish an effective baseline framework. Some rules not mirrored It is important to note that where NEBFR items excluded from the draft regulations are addressed elsewhere in the regulatory framework e.g. in different regulations the regulatory effect is not necessarily the same committee emphasizes in its report. For example the NEB rules require compa- nies to provide evidence that their safety plan was developed in accordance with appropri- ate regulations - a section not mirrored in the new regulations. Committee notes that while safety plan requirements are included in the territorys existing Oil and Gas Drilling and Production Regulations this is not equiva- lent to requiring applicants to le evidence that their safety plan is compliant prior to being granted an Operations Authorization. Other examples include the removal of specic mention of boreal caribou from the requirements as well as excluded clauses on waste management and well suspension abandonment none of which are mirrored in the draft regulations and which appear only partially in the regulatory system if at all. The report also criticizes the prevalence of ambiguous terminology in the draft regu- lations where words like reasonable ad- equate applicable and signicant leave the intent unclear. Theregulatoryframeworkshouldbeclear the report states emphatically. Debunking language Apart from comparing the two sets of rules the report also uses existing literature on the subject of fracking to debunk some of the language used by the government in ed- ucating the public on the proposed regula- tions and calls into question several claims by the GNWT meant to reassure the public as reported by the media. For example the assertion that hydraulic fracturing has been used in Canada for de- cades clouds the reality that there are many variations on fracking and that the most PhotoJimAntoineTwitter A GNWT panel presents the draft fracking regulations to residents of Fort Simpson on Apr. 21. concerning type - horizontal fracturing - entered the mainstream only within the last two decades and marks a serious departure from past practices. As well the claim that hydraulic fractur- ing has never been linked to contaminated water again is not quite true according to the committee which pointed out that just because there is insufcient data to evalu- ate claims of contamination does not mean it hasnt taken place. Furthermore the committee said several comments made to media by GNWT ofcials werent accurate characterizations of the regulations or the ongoing review process. During public engagement in Fort Smith assistant deputy minister Deborah Archibald toldresidentsconcernedwithvoluntarychem- ical disclosure that the GNWT and OROGO were handcuffed by federal legislation mir- rored during devolution which includes a condentiality clause within the Petroleum Resources Act. However examining the current NEB pro- cedures and as discussed above this is not necessarily the case It is unclear whether OROGO will match the NEB in expressly requesting that operators waive their privi- leges committee reported. What may be considered an enhancement by one stakeholder group may not be viewed as such by another. Standing Committee on Economic Development Infrastructure By MEAGAN WOHLBERG The newly proposed regulations for hy- draulic fracturing or fracking in the NWT have been touted by the territorial govern- ment as an enhancement of the existing regulatory framework put in place by the National Energy Board NEB based on Northern priorities. ButjudgingbyanassessmentbytheStanding CommitteeonEconomicDevelopmentandIn- frastructuretabledinthelegislaturelastweek enhancement is in the eye of the beholder. The NWT put forth its own proposed reg- ulations for companies applying to carry out fracking in the territory in May. Since then a public engagement tour has been carried out in communities across the NWT and Aboriginal consultation is now underway. Tuesday June 9 2015 7 POLITICS ENERGY www.rmwb.ca IMPORTANT DEADLINE 2015 PROPERTY TAX PAYMENT DUE MONDAY JUNE 30 2015 Tax Notices were mailed to all property owners on Friday May 29 2015. Payments are due Tuesday June 30 2015. A Tax Installment Payment Plan TIPP is available for your convenience. You may find this an easy and cost-effective way of paying your annual tax bill. If you have not received your Property Tax Notice please contact the Taxation branch. Information regarding your Property Tax Notice and the TIPP program are available on our website at www.rmwb.cataxes or by calling 780-743-7900 or toll free at 1-800-973-9663. Payments are due June 30 2015 Regardless of circumstances Motions for fracking moratorium plebiscite shot down in NWT legislature By MEAGAN WOHLBERG Residents hoping for a moratorium review orplebisciteonfrackingweredisappointedlast week as members of the Legislative Assembly shot down two motions that would have given the public a say on whether or not fracking shouldbeallowedintheNorthwestTerritories. Hydraulic fracturing or fracking was a major topic of discussion in the legislature last week starting on Tuesday when the majority of regular members gave statements on the unconventional oil and gas drilling process and a petition of more than 1100 signatures calling for a full public review was tabled. That petition was followed by two separate motions on Thursday addressing public con- cerns over fracking the first of which put forth by Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley called for a moratorium on horizontal fracking for at least two years or until a comprehensive transparent and public review of the cumu- lative environmental social and economic risks and benefits is completed. Thismotionisareflectionofthevoiceofthe people of the Northwest Territories. They have written a petition phoned e-mailed demon- strated spoken at engagement sessions and petitionedagainallwithoutasinglenodfrom either the premier or the minister of Industry to indicate that their voices have been heard Bromley said of the motion that was seconded byMackenzieDeltaMLAFrederickBlakewho admitted to a change of heart on the matter. Iknowmyviewshavechangedoverthelast year and a half here but theres a lot of con- cern out there especially in my riding Blake said. All the water in this territory comes to the Mackenzie Delta. It comes right down the Mackenzie River from the Sahtu. My constit- uents are very concerned about what kinds of pollutantswillcomedowninthefuture.Theyre not thinking about today. We may make a few million in this territory over the next couple of years but what is that going to cost in the fu- ture to have our waterways polluted A second but separate motion brought forward by Yellowknife Centre MLA Robert Hawkins did not request a moratorium but instead called for a plebiscite to determine whether or not the NWT public is in favour of allowing fracking to take place in the territory. This is an important question for our time. So its not just about what we think we know about fracking its also about what we want to know from the public which is how do they feel Hawkins said. That motion would have bound the GNWT to carrying out such a referendum-like pro- cess but the results of the vote would have been politically non-binding. Both motions were voted down. In the case of the moratorium the motion was defeated 11-5. Those in favour included Bromley Blake Hawkins Frame Lake MLA Wendy Bisaro and Deh Cho MLA Michael Nadli. Those who did not support the motion com- mended the members for bringing it forward and fostering debate but called a morato- rium premature considering how new the industry is for the territory. Hay River North MLA Robert Bouchard added that the lull in oil and gas activity in the NWT makes for a natural moratorium making Bromleys motion a moot point. Industry Minister Dave Ramsay seconded that saying the GNWT has already commit- ted to Northerners to take the time needed to properly manage the resource. ThereisnooilandgasactivityintheNorth- west Territories today and we dont expect to seeanyforatleastthenextcoupleofyears.This pausegivesustheopportunitytolookatthesci- ence to look at best practices from around the world and to design a world-class approach to managingit.Timeisonoursideandweshould use that time to our advantage he said. The plebiscite motion was voted down 11-3. Hawkins Bromley and Nadli voted in favour while Bisaro and Blake abstained calling the move premature. The plebiscite would have been held before the fall election. Members of cabinet said the discussion on fracking has begun and continues. Wearealreadyengagedinapublicconversa- tionabouthydraulicfracturingandhavecom- mitted to taking the time we need to develop good strong rules about it rules that are in- formedbysciencebestpracticesandtheviews of Northerners said Premier Bob McLeod. Wehaveplanstocontinuethatconversation andtoengagewithNorthernersacrosstheterri- toryinthecomingmonths.Therewillbeplenty ofopportunitiesduringthepublicengagement for the people of this territory to express their views on the issue of hydraulic fracturing. We are already engaged in a public conversation about hydraulic fracturing and have committed to taking the time we need to develop good strong rules about it rules that are informed by science best practices and the views of Northerners. NWT Premier Bob McLeod PhotoJoshuaDoubek Shale gas fracturing in the Bakken play of North Dakota. Minister appoints NWT Mining Advisory Board members By MEAGAN WOHLBERG The names of the appointed members of the new NWT Mining Advisory Board MAB were announced publicly last Friday after completing their inaugural meeting in Yel- lowknife on June 3. The territorial advisory board on mineral exploration and development is composed of Mr. Brendan Bell of Dominion Diamonds Corporation of Yellowknife NWT chair Mr. Darrel Beaulieu of DEMCo Limited Partnership of Yellowknife NWT Mr. Rod Brown of Discovery Mining Ser- vices of Yellowknife NWT Ms. Leni Keough of Olivut Resources of Hinton Alberta Mr. Don Bubar of Avalon Rare Metals of Toronto Ontario Mr. John Kearney of Canadian Zinc of To- ronto Ontario. Industry Tourism and Investment Minis- ter Dave Ramsay said topics discussed at the first meeting centered on reinvigorating the NWTs mineral industry which is at a critical point due to a downturn in commodity prices. Those topics included assembling an ef- fective and efficient regulatory system the need for infrastructure that fosters develop- ment creating more awareness about the im- portance of mineral development to the NWT economy and promoting the NWTs mineral potential to possible investors. We need to ensure employment and busi- ness opportunities for our communities are realized from our resource-based economy whilecontinuingtoachievehighenvironmental and social standards. The MAB will help us to do that Ramsay said. So far the board has advised that the min- ister focus on a few key strategic priorities including drafting a leading edge Mineral Resources Act noting that the NWT is the only province or territory where such legis- lation is absent. As well the board recommended the min- ister focus on creating and implementing a public awareness campaign to build public support for mineral exploration. Ramsay announced plans to establish the board earlier this year as an outcome of the NWT Mineral Development Strategy. The volunteer board is to provide non- binding independent strategic advice to gov- ernment on the mining sector in the NWT. Brendan Bell of Dominion Diamonds is chair of the new NWT Mining Advisory Board. PhotocourtesyofDominionDiamonds INDUSTRY MINING 8 Tuesday June 9 2015 PhotosMarilynBolt-Marshall Paul William Kaeser High School students from Fort Smith march onto the track during opening ceremonies last week which celebrated 25 years of track and eld championships in the NWT and featured appearances from homegrown Olympians. Cassidy Ring of cole Borale wins rst in the 400m juvenile girls nal. She also took gold in the 800m 1500m and triple jump. Madison McPhee of Hay River wins in a tight nish against Dora-Faye Hansen centre and Camryn Soucy of Fort Smith in the midget girls 100m. McPhee was named Sport Norths 2015 Youth Female Athlete of the Year. Matt Hayward of Hay River competes in the senior mens high jump event. Ollie Johnson of JBT School in Fort Smith competes in the long jump. Girls from cole Borale show their team spirit at the 25th annual NWT Track Field Championships in their hometown of Hay River. Hay Rivers rst responders participated in a fun race event that saw competitors run with handcuffs around their ankles and while carrying reghting gear. NWT Track Field Championships cele- brate 25 years SPORTS RECREATION TRACK FIELD Tuesday June 9 2015 9 By DALI CARMICHAEL The familiar smell of campre smoke wafted over the Northern Life Museum and Cultural Centre NLMCC in Fort Smith over the past two weeks as Smiths Landing First Nation SLFN played host to a spring moosehide tanning camp. Instead of running the programing them- selves SLFN invited a trio of tanners from Fond Du Lac Sask. to teach interested locals how they carry out the traditional activity. Lena Adam her husband Lawrence and his cousin Elizabeth Marten spent almost two weeks in Smith for the tanning demon- stration. The last time the Adams were in Fort Smith was about a decade ago when they ran a similar program with inmates at the correctional facility. Since then they have traveled all over the prairie provinces and British Columbia sharing their skills. For years the Adams have been making theirlivingastrappersinthebushinnorthern Saskatchewan.NowLawrenceisgettingonin age and working as a taxi driver in the area but they still enjoy putting on the workshops. UsfromtheAthabascaregionwedothings using a different technique Lawrence said. Scrapingisdifferentandsmokingisdifferent. Instead of using moose brains to soften the hide following the labour-intensive eshing hair-removal and soaking - as is traditional for many northern First Nations - they smooth a thin layer of oatmeal lard and soap mixture over the hide before hang- ing it above a re to dry. The scraping and soaking process is done severaltimesafterthattogetthehidesmooth thin and easy to work with. When it comes time to tan the hide a wide but low-burning re conned by a large pot is ignited. The hide is then strung up to thin logs arranged perched against one another as they would be in a tipi. Instead of using rotten spruce chips to fuel the smoky re the visiting troupe gathers and burns moss. Ac- cording to them it is a low-risk low-burning alternative that is relatively easy to gather. I was raised in the bush and I learned from my parents and some of the old ladies said Lena. I can use it to make moccasins gloves jackets wallets you name it. In past tanning workshops hosted at the NLMCC groups of tanners signed on for two weeks of intensive labour carried out after quitting time during the workweek and from dusk until dawn over the weekends - making for especially long days as the time of the midnight summer sun approaches. Low turnout rates for this particular ses- sion prompted SLFN to call on their own to complete the project. From 10 a.m. until about 5 p.m. the group toiled on the hides. At that time those who had signed up for the activity would show up to scrape tan and clean until about 7 p.m. At the end of the course the hide was re- turned in its completed form to SLFN to be used by the membership for sewing projects. In addition to the course SLFN simulta- neously held a culture camp for the com- munity on May 30. Dry meat and sh were hung from raf- ters over a small re enclosed in a tent on- site. Outdoors local artists showed off their moosehide wares and visitors were invited to learn about the tanning process and try their hand at scraping. As a parting gift Lawrence made a bone- scraper to be used in future camps at the museum. Fort Smith museum teams up with First Nation for tanning camp with Fond du Lac flaire ARTS CULTURE TRADITIONAL SKILLS PhotosDaliCarmichael Barb Mercredi centre and Mary Schaefer scrape a hide under the watchful eye of instructor Lawrence Adam of Fond Du Lac Sask. Instructor Lena Adam wrings out a soaked moosehide. The hides were soaked and scraped numerous times to soften them. Members of the Smiths Landing First Nation and residents of Fort Smith take turns stretching the moosehide on Saturday as instructor Lawrence Adam gives pointers. The public was welcome to come to the Northern Life Museum and Cultural Centre on the weekend to make dry meat tan hides and work with beaver pelts. 10 Tuesday June 9 2015 ENVIRONMENT AIR QUALITY FEATURING ARTISTS SUCH AS ELDER MARY CARDINAL A TRIBE CALLED RED VERONICA JOHNNY JASON BURNSTICK THE JOHNNYS ART NAPOLEON STATE OF THE ART K.A.S.P. ASICI ELDER WINSTON WUTTUNEE GERALD AND GERRY POITRAS ISKWEW SINGERS DOMINIC ABRAHAM NORTHERN CREE JORDANN POITRAS MINA KELCEY PIERROT The NWT Cree Language Program gratefully acknowledges the financial contribution from the Department of Education Culture and Employment of the Government of the Northwest Territories. NEHIYAW NIKAMONAK OYOYOWAK OHCI NANASKOMOWIN CREE SONGSHOWLS FOR GRATITUDE Education Culture Economic Development AVAILABLE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD AT NEHIYAWEWIN.COM ON JUNE 21ST 2015 NATIONAL ABORIGINAL DAY MEKIWIN NIKAMONAK FREE ALBUM By MEAGAN WOHLBERG A new study on air quality in Fort McKay asserts the community in the heart of Alber- tas oilsands can breathe easy without fear for their health but the First Nation says the re- search only gives half of the story. A recent paper by Warren Kindzierski of the University of Alberta concluded air pol- lution in Fort McMurray Fort McKay and Fort Chipewyan is not a threat to public health after reviewing air quality data over a 15-year period. While the community feels fortunate to have that kind of long-term data Fort McKay First Nations senior environment and regulatory manager Daniel Stuckless called the study partial saying the pa- rameters monitored for may apply in larger city centres but do not take into consid- eration the unique reality of living amid the oilsands. Those contaminants are typically looked for in assessing air quality in major centres and commonly used across the world but theyre not really entirely appropriate just for the oilsands region and particularly the community that lives in the middle of the boreal forest amongst all this industry he said. Theres a lot more thats emitted from stacks or tailings pipes or off tailings ponds that are not measured on a daily basis and are not factored into the assessment on good or poor air quality. Kindzierskis study analyzed the air for concentrations of sulfur dioxide nitrogen dioxide NO2 and fine particulates con- cluding that there has been little change in concentration from 1998 to 2012. The research suggests small increases in NO2 in Fort McMurray and Fort McKay were due to population growth rather than in- dustry and that the average air quality is comparable to that of other cities. There were no indications of air quality trends in Fort Chipewyan. There is a perception in the Athabasca oilsands region that air quality is poor ac- cording to Kindzierski. Air quality in the communities we studied is actually quite good when compared with larger cities in Alberta and around the world. The problem according to Stuckless is that Fort McKay is not comparable to other cities due to its close proximity to bitumen upgraders and tailings ponds. He said there are hundreds of chemical compounds being emitted from stacks and ponds that were not measured for in the study. Kindzierski wouldnt have 15 years of data for most of those contaminants. Most of them if they are measured are periodic or spotty at best maybe trial or short-term monitoring so its really hard to do a trend analysis with lengthy data gaps Stuckless said. We just dont know what the long-term effects are from some of these pollutants. Stuckless said the community has de- tected compounds through its own moni- toring that arent showing up in Environ- ment Canadas National Pollutant Release Inventory. Those are supposed to be self-reported by oilsands producers he said. So where are they coming from where are they form- ing If were picking up things are we catch- ing them in a state of flux or are we catching them because theyre being emitted and they werent previously recorded Health complaints by residents People in Fort McKay often complain of strong odours in the community and physi- cal symptoms believed to be related to air pollution from oilsands production. I know myself Ive experienced physical reactions to some of the events that weve had in the community like minor irritation of the throat and nose and mouth and eyes. Sometimes theyre annoying and sometimes theyre pretty severe that you want to get them checked out Stuckless said. There are also indirect effects where people change their behaviour he said choosing not to head out on the land or let their children outside to play but the largest concern is that residents feel they dont have enough information which causes stress. It doesnt give us a lot of confidence that the system is working and that Alberta is liv- ing up to this world class regulator image that theyre trying to live up to he said. Fort McKay withdrew from the Joint Oil- sands Monitoring Program over concerns with how First Nations are integrated into the program. For those same reasons they are also not part of the Alberta Environmen- tal Monitoring Evaluation and Reporting Agency the government organization re- sponsible for all environmental monitoring and testing with the province including air quality monitoring. Stuckless said they are now advocating for the improvement of government regula- tions emissions management and monitor- ing hoping to integrate health into the reg- ulatory regime. We dont expect that things are immedi- ately going to change because people can flip the switch but if were going to develop this resource around this community for another 50 or 75 years weve got lots of time to get the proper equipment in place and get the system right he said. Fort McKay air quality study lacking First Nation Emissions from an oilsands upgrader enter the atmosphere across the Athabasca River near Fort McKay. PhotoFrancoisPaulette Tuesday June 9 2015 11 POLITICS ABORIGINAL By MEAGAN WOHLBERG Leaders of the North Slave Mtis Alliance NSMA stood before a Federal Court judge last week to ght for their right to intervene in an ongoing court case that could have lasting impacts on the fate of Mtis in the Northwest Territories. The NSMA wants the ability to serve as an intervenor in a court battle between the Akaitcho First Nations and the government of Canada over Ottawas ongoing land claim negotiations with the NWT Mtis Nation NWTMN. The Akaitcho launched their case seeking to halt negotiations with NWTMN in early 2012 alleging that the eligibility clause for membership within the Mtis land claim Agreement in Principle overlaps with their own criteria and thus impacts their unset- tled land claim negotiations. That eligibility clause requires all NWTMN members to have either Cree Chipewyan or South Slavey First Nations ancestry. The Akaitcho worry that criteria overlaps with their own and could lower the compensation and land quantum they receive from Canada which is dependent on population. Two separate Mtis groups Enge While the case does not directly interfere withthe goings-onofMtisinthe NorthSlave NSMApresidentBillEngesaidthegroupwants to challenge assertions by the NWTMN that it represents all Mtis in the territory. He said the basis for eligibility in the NSMA isnotgroundedinIndianancestrybutMtis ethnicity as decided by the Powley test which establisheswhetherornotanindigenousgroup has section 35 Aboriginal rights in an area. Theyre attempting to broaden the scope of their land claim based on ancestry Enge said. But that is not who we are. We are com- prised of ethnic Mtis and thats more than Indian ancestry thats things like music lan- guage and culture. ThatdifferentiationisimportantEngesaid because the Akaitcho suit claims there are no Mtis in Akaitcho territory rather they allege allMtisarereallyAkaitchoFirstNationswho should be part of the Akaitcho claim. We have a direct interest because we want to ensure our rights as Mtis are protected Enge said. Canada NWTMN opposed Canada and the NWTMN have both op- posed the NSMAs request to intervene in the lawsuit saying the North Slave Mtis - including Enge - are not a distinct in- digenous group but are in fact eligible to become beneficiaries of the NWTMN land claim. Canada in collusion with the NWT Mtis Nation have shamefully tried to swindle the North Slave Mtis Alliance of their her- itage to subsume them into a land claim and we get nothing for it Enge said. Its old-style colonialism at its worst. Enge said the NSMA has already proven it is a distinct entity separate from the NWTMN through a recent court victory against the territorial government wherein its members won the right to harvest cari- bou in the North Slave and were given sev- eral tags for hunting the Bluenose-East herds and ceremonial harvesting tags for the Bathurst. If the NSMA is granted intervenor sta- tus Enge said it would be a powerful rein- forcement of the groups claims to indige- neity in the North Slave and possibly force Canada to create a separate land claim ne- gotiating table something for which the NSMA has been legally fighting for years. Securing intervenor status would help us demonstrate that the NWT Mtis Na- tion does not represent North Slave Mtis Alliance members and does not have a mandate beyond the South Slave Enge said. We want the court to understand that there are ethnic Mtis in Akaitcho territory and protect that. North Slave Mtis seek right to intervene in Akaitcho trial Filephoto 6.8103 in x 6.3125 in North Slave Mtis Alliance president Bill Enge says his membership is not represented by the NWT Mtis Nation and wants to be able to argue that in court. Say it in 25 words or less for only 3.50 Extra words are 20 centseach.Businessclassifieds are 10 for 30 words and 25 centsforeach additionalword. Email your advertising to adsnorj.ca or fax it to 872-2754 or call 872-3000 ext. 26 FOR SALE FIREWOOD. Cus- tom cut sizes - split green dry bagged. Wood Gasification Outdoor wood boilers. Delivery from Fort Smith to Hay River Yellowknife. Contact Dave at 867 872-3435 or cell 872-0229 or email dhehnnorthwestel. net. UFN FORT SMITH CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING BLANKET CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Blanket advertising reaches all 122 weekly newspapers in Alberta and the NWT with a combined circulation of over a million readers. Call our Northern Journal sales desk at 867-872-3000ex.26fordetails. 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SERVICE DIRECTORY If you operate a business and need affordable advertising call the Northern Journal. Find out how to have your business listed in our Service Directory. Call 867 872-3000 or email adsnorj.ca. Northern Journal Directory Get your name out there Auctions ADVERTISE PROVINCE WIDE CLASSIFIEDS.Reachover1mil- lionreadersweekly.Only 269 GSTbasedon25wordsorless. Call now for details 1-800-282- 6903 ext. 228 www.awna.com. UNRESERVED AUCTIONS - Wednesday June 10 Wes Kirk Newbrook. Phone 780-576- 2280. JD 7510 5580 hours JD 3140 NH 1432 discbine Ezee- On14B. disc1981Fordtandem bale truck B. King B. processor JD 566 baler. Saturday June 13 -TomParsonsAbee.Phone780- 398-2311. Buhler 2145 FWA 2005 GMC diesel Haybuster 256 2012 - 24 Featherlite S. trailer. Sunday June 14 - Ray Mackay Waskatenau. Phone 780-656-8005. JD 5095M 62 hours JD 970 168 hours 2009 Ford45Kleatherstitcher.Tues- day June 16 - Don Saranchan Vegreville.Phone780-632-1349. 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Fast.In- expensive.DebtrecoveryAlberta collection to 25000. Calgary 403-228-13001-800-347-2540. EASY DIVORCE Free consul- tation call 1-800-320-2477 or check out httpcanadianlegal. orguncontested-divorce. CCA Award 1 Paralegal. A BBB Reputation. In business 20 years. Open Mon. - Sat. Community reporters and columnists wanted The Northern Journal is looking for community reporters and columnists. Tell us your stories. We want to know what is going on in your community. Send photos too. We pay We also want columns and commentary. If you have an area of expertise like hockey or volleyball birds or animals living on the land or maybe you just want to spin yarns about life in the North then we want you to write about it and send your work to us. We pay We are also looking for discerning Northerners who can write about perspectives on Northern life. Politics education colonialism culture the indus- trialization of Canadas Northern wilderness - what is your passion This is your chance to speak out Do it now send it to us. Advertising sales person needed in Yellowknife The Northern Journal is seeking someone who lives in Yellowknife and can work part time at ad- vertising sales. Past sales experience preferred. A combination of salary and commission would be negotiated. Cartoonist wanted for Northern themes The Northern Journal is seeking a cartoonist - someone who can draw images that entertain and incorporate social and political commentary. Please contact us editornorj.ca EMPLOYMENT TENDERS AND LEGAL NOTICES Tuesday June 9 2015 13 VISIT WWW.NORJ.CA EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY The Fort Smith Housing Authority has an opening for the position of a CASUAL OFFICE EMPLOYEE. The Administrative Assistant will be responsible for the accurate and timely completion of a variety of administrative tasks required to support the Fort Smith Housing Authority office manager and staff. Applicants must demonstrate a strong accounting background including experience with an automated financial system preferably Simply Accounting. This position also requires that the applicant have strong organizational and communication skills. You will need to be a collaborative team player and be able to coordinate and interact with multiple people and activities. To be successful in this position you will bring a minimum of one to three years of previous experience in an administrative role along with a completion of post-secondary education in office administration or an equivalent combination of education and experience. A Diploma in management studies would be an asset. A valid class 5 Drivers License is required. Rates of pay are under review and will be in accordance with the FSHA Collective Agreement effective April 2015. Closing date for this competition will be Monday June 22 2015 at 449pm local time. Please submit your resume and cover letter under confidential heading to Amber Harrington Manager Fort Smith Housing Authority P.O. Box 1287 Fort Smith NT X0E 0P0 Phone 867 872-2646 Fax 867 872-4450 E-mail Amber_Harringtongov.nt.ca A copy of the job description is available at the above address. A satisfactory criminal records check of selected applicants may be required. We thank all those who apply however only those applicants selected for further consideration will be contacted. Eligibility lists for similar positions may be established. INVITATION TO TENDER The Fort Smith Housing Authority Office will be accepting sealed tenders for the below projects at 89 King Street Fort Smith NT until June 19 2015 at 300 p.m. Local time. 2015-06 Metal Roof Installation - 3 Units 2015-07 Metal Roof Installation - 1 Unit 2015-08 Shingle Replacement - 2 Duplexes 2015-11 Shingle Replacement - Sunset Chalet 2015-16 Electrical Upgrade - 5 Units Tender documents are available at the Fort Smith Housing Authority Office at 89 King Street Fort Smith NT. For additional information please contact Dan Higgins Maintenance Foreman Telephone 867872-2311 Fax 867872-4083 Lowest or any tender not necessarily accepted. The Business Incentive Policy of the GNWT shall be in effect for all the above projects. Local for these projects refers to the community of Fort Smith. EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY The Town of Fort Smith is seeking to fill one full- time Water Plant Operator III position to assist with the operation and regular maintenance of the Water Treatment Plant Water Distribution System Wastewater Collection System and Wastewater Treatment Facility. The qualifications include a Grade 12 or equivalent education Level 3 Water Treatment Certification or related training would be an asset. Applicants must possess a valid NWT drivers license and air brake endorsement would be considered an asset. The deadline to submit applications is June 12 2015 3 p.m. local time. The job description is available at www.fortsmith.ca. Qualified candidates are invited to forward their resume to Michael Richardson Director of Municipal Services Town of Fort Smith Box 147 174 McDougal Road Fort Smith NT X0E 0P0 Phone 867 872-8400 Fax 867 872-8401 Email receptionfortsmith.ca Town of Fort Smith Water Plant Operator III SO008801 SO008801 3 wide version 3.75 wide version What stroke takes away our researchers ght to get THE Race TO SAVE LIVES NEEDS YOU. What stroke takes away our researchers ght to get back. By donating when your neighbour knocks on your door during Stroke Month youll help to fund research excellence and create survivors. 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Wethankyouinadvanceforyourinterest.Afterreviewingapplicationsonlythoseselectedforaninterviewwillbecontacted. Industrial Fire Fighter - Day Rater Qualification Class35Driverlicense Currentwithin30days DriversAbstract NFPA1081NFPA1001 CurrentH2SAliveTicket CurrentFirstAidTicket PetroleumSafetyTrainingPST Experienceisanasset Medic - Day Rater Qualification EMREMTOFA3ACPregistered ValidClass5DriversLicence Currentwithin30days DriversAbstract CurrentH2SAliveTicket CurrentFirstAidTicket PetroleumSafetyTrainingPST Experienceisanasset SUPER SIZE ITSUPER SIZE IT PHOTO BANNERS UP TO 36 WIDE AS LOW AS 3FOOT2 872.3000 207 McDougal Rd. Fort Smith NT cascade graphics EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY LICENSED TECHNICIAN STETSON HINTON GM 363 GREGG AVENUE HINTON ALBERTA This second generation family owned and operated group of automotive dealerships is currently looking for a licensed Red Seal Automotive Technician in our busy service department. Able to work Mon - Fri 8am - 5pm and alternating Sat 9am to 4pm. Red Seal certifiedJourneyman Attitude reflecting good work ethic and quality workmanship Starting wage 36.50hr GM Paid Training and signing bonus for GM Certified Experience REQUIREMENTS DETAILS Please forward cover letter and resum to servicestetsonhintongm.com EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY LICENSED TECHNICIAN STETSON HINTON GM 363 GREGG AVENUE HINTON ALBERTA Thissecondgenerationfamilyownedandoperatedgroupofautomotivedealershipsiscurrently looking for a licensed Red Seal AutomotiveTechnician in our busy service department. Able to work Mon - Fri 8am - 5pm and alternating Sat 9am to 4pm. Red Seal certifiedJourneyman Attitude reflecting good work ethic and quality workmanship Starting wage 36.50hr GM Paid Training and signing bonus for GM Certified Experience REQUIREMENTS DETAILS Please forward cover letter and resum to servicestetsonhintongm.com 3 wide version 3.75 wide version 12345 12345 3 wide version 3.75 wide version 12345 www.mccannsbldgmovers.com A variety of sizes and styles available Please call 403-279-6395 or visit www.mccannsbldgmovers.com Buildings for Sale - To Be Moved Buildings for Sale - To Be Moved 12345 12345 3 wide version 3.75 wide version Place your ad in this newspaper and province wide with a combined circulation of over 800000 for only... 995plus GSTHST Value Ad Network Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association toll free 1-800-282-6903 x228 email andreaawna.com or visit this community newspaper the most outofyouradvertisingdollarssqueeze Place your ad in this newspaper and province wide with a combined circulation of over 800000 for only... 995plus GSTHST Value Ad Network Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association toll free 1-800-282-6903 x228 email andreaawna.com or visit this community newspaper the most outofyouradvertisingdollarssqueeze ram-value-ad.indd 1 72511 1230 PM 14 Tuesday June 9 2015 ENVIRONMENT CLIMATE CHANGE Maries friends and family are Relaying because Marie has cancer. WHO WILL YOU RELAY FOR By MEAGAN WOHLBERG The seemingly inescapable drought suck- ing moisture from forests in the Northwest Territories could be the product of a lazy meandering jet stream made wobbly by climate change. Mike Flannigan a professor of wildland re at the University of Alberta and former weather forecaster for Environment Canada said recent research suggests the band of fast- moving air that directs high and low pressure NWT res Changing jetstream wreaking havoc on weather systems around the globe is being impacted by the rapidly warming Arctic. Climate change research is suggesting that its becoming more wobbly or lazy and meandering because of the temperature difference between the equator and the North Pole Flannigan said. That differ- ence drives the jetstream and were warm- ing faster at the high latitudes than at the equator so its weakening and getting to be like a lazy river. Flannigans hunch comes from a recent study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research which found that excess heat in the Arctic is weakening certain at- mospheric dynamics like zonal winds and eddy kinetic energy. Whatitmeansisthatweatherpatternsarent being broken up by the usual storms and are instead getting stuck. When the jet stream meanders it parks itself. Last summer you had an upper ridge over the Northwest Territories almost all summer long which usually means hot dry weather Flannigan said. Weve seen this in the past - were familiar with upper ridges and re activity - but usually it doesnt last the whole summer like it did essentially last year. InSwedenhesaidamassivere-thesizeof which hadnt been seen in 40 years - persisted throughout the summer last year because of a large unmoving upper ridge over the coun- try that saw hot sunny weather with no rain. The same was true of the NWT and other parts of western Canada last summer Flan- nigan said. It also meant that certain areas were stuck with rainy low pressure systems. Thats the unusual part that they think is tied to this lazy jet stream phenomenon he said. Some areas got ooding but other areas got drought. More warming more res Though Flannigan said he cant predict this summers weather with any certainty he said active re seasons tend to come in clumps and all indications so far show this years in the NWT will be intense. Weve never had this much re activity this early in my recollection he said. This is unknown territory to have res - intense res - in May. Usually the re season is July. Astheworldwarmsthroughclimatechange Flannigan said re seasons will get longer bring more lightning and draw more mois- ture from vegetation for which current lev- els of rain cannot compensate creating drier fuels for res to consume. Allfutureprojectionssuggestweregoingto get the warming but precipitation is going to stay about the same roughly Flannigan said. Wacky weather re tornados Not only are the res burning deeper and larger than ever before but the extreme com- bination of hot dry windy weather is caus- ing res to take on new characteristics that make them more dangerous for crews to ex- tinguish according to Flannigan. Drier fuels prolonged drought means the potential for very high-intensity res which will have re whirls re tornados very ac- tive spread spotting - where rebrands are carried aloft by the wind and dropped a ki- lometre or two in front of the re and start a new re Flannigan said. Sometimes theyre so intense we get something called a pyroCb which is a re- generated thunderstorm he said noting the NWT has already been exposed to these. Last year Yellowknifers were overcome with apocalyptic black clouds that poured soot-laden rain across the city. Flannigan said such wacky weather could be the new norm. This is what the future may hold. I tell people that weathers really wacky but its going to be even wackier and crazier in the future Flannigan said. PhotocourtesyofNASAGoddardSpaceFlightCenter PhotocourtesyofOregonDept.ofForestryMarvinVetter A lazy meandering jet stream is thought to be responsible for extreme weather like droughts and ooding and is due to a warming Arctic. A re tornado rips through the forest in Oregon in 2013 as part of a massive re complex similar in size to those in the NWT last summer. Intense re behaviour is becoming more of a norm through climate change. Tuesday June 9 2015 15 Protectingthe environment creatingprosperity. OneyearagotheGNWTassumedresponsibilitiesforawell-developed environmentalprotectionandregulatorysystem. Ahealthywell-managedenvironmentwillsustainallNWTresidentsandisthe foundationforahealthylife.Ourintegratedco-managementsystemprotectsthe economicsocialandculturalwell-beingofallresidents.Investmentsinmanaging ournaturalresourcestogetherpayoffinthehealthofourpeopleandthestrength ofoureconomy. Theregulatorysystemwenowmanagebalancesourcommitmenttorealizeour economicpotentialinallregionswhileprotectingthelandandenvironmentthat hassustainedourpeopleforgenerations. TheresourcesectoristhesinglelargestcontributortotheNWTeconomy.Mining hascreatedmorethan28000jobsandproduced46billioninmineralssince theearly1930s.Ourterritoryhasworld-classoilandnaturalgasreservesandhas hadanactivepetroleumindustryforalmostacentury. TheGNWTiscommittedtoworkingwithAboriginalgovernmentsNWT residentsandindustrytorefinetheregulatorysystemtoreflectnorthern prioritiesandprovidegreatercertainty. April 1 marked the one-year anniversary of Devolution in the NWT. In the first year there were 7 water licences signed by a GNWT minister all in less than 45 days 2196 active mineral claims 8 projects funded under the Mining Incentive Program 5 new environmental management programs being delivered by the GNWT Fort Smith Seniors SocietyFort Smith Seniors Society ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 130 p.m. Tuesday June 23 2015 Seniors Room - Rec. Centre All seniors welcome By MEAGAN WOHLBERG The NWT chapter of the Council of Cana- dians says Northerners need more rigorous monitoring and reporting when it comes to ConocoPhillips well inspection and aban- donment plans in the Sahtu region. The company recently submitted an ap- plication to the Sahtu Land and Water Board SLWB to cap eight wells on its lease south of Norman Wells this winter. Those include the two horizontal wells hydrauli- cally fractured in the winter of 2014 and the two vertical wells drilled in the winter of 2013. The company also wants to offi- cially abandon its four groundwater evalu- ation wells drilled to support the explora- tion program. Once the wells are capped ConocoPhillips plans to inspect them in the spring of 2016. In the absence of any problems the wells will be inspected once every ve years or until the company decides to close them for good. According to Lois Little of the Council of Canadians that level of monitoring is not sufcient. Our main concern is that ConocoPhillips is walking away and we dont know what they are leaving behind she said. While the company agreed to disclose all of the chemical additives used during its fracking operationsin2014Littlequestionedthetrans- parency of disclosure sites like FracFocus.ca which allow trade secrets to be withheld from submissions. ConocoPhillips well closure plans cause concern Further self-reporting does not replace public accountability by a recognized pub- lic authority. This registry also doesnt re- quire reporting on volumes left onsite and in the ground or on produced uids. So we are totally in the dark on what toxic materi- als are being left behind she said. The groups other concern revolves around a perceived lack of monitoring and public reporting. We know the myths about fracking well casings. About seven per cent of them leak and leakage rates increase as they age Little said. Monitoring every five years is just not good enough especially given the lack of public knowledge about these casings in this type of terrain and climate and about migration of frac fluids into the groundwater. Overall there is a lack of transparency and accountability in this project. This is what happens when projects are approved with- out environmental assessment she said. The Council sent their input on the appli- cation to the SLWB last week recommend- ing full public disclosure of the total volume of fracking uidschemicals that were used recovered and left in the ground during both exploratory drilling programs. They have also requested full public dis- closure of the produced uids that may have arisen from the wells with a changed chemi- cal composition due to possible reactions oc- curring during the fracking process. Apart from disclosure the Council asks for a rigorous plan with respect to the regular monitoring and reporting of groundwater quality in the vicinity of the four exploratory wells and a plan for immediately responding to a well casing leak. ConocoPhillips was approached for com- ment but did not respond as of press time. The application is open for public comment until June 12 at 959 p.m. MST. PhotocourtesyofConocoPhillips Don and Sandra Jaque of Fort Smith are pleased to announce the engagement of our son Aaron Jaque and Laurence Rivet-Gareau daughter of Diane Gareau and Pierre Rivet of Montreal Que. The celebration of their marriage will take place August 8 2015 at Les Jardins de lAchill Millefeuille near Mont Tremblant Que. INDUSTRY OIL GAS ConocoPhillips plans to cap all four of its exploratory wells located south of Norman Wells this winter. After a spring inspection the company plans to inspect those wells once every ve years. 16 Tuesday June 9 2015 By MEAGAN WOHLBERG The unsung heroes of public service in the Northwest Territories were honoured last week with awards of excellence from NWT Premier Bob McLeod dedicated to individu- als teams and partnerships showing innova- tion and engagement in their roles. Among the top teams recognized was theNWT Wildland Fire Operations team which spent weeks battling the massive Birch Lake complex along the main transporta- tion artery to the territorys capital dur- ing last years record-breaking fire season. Associate director of forest management Frank Lepine accepted the award along with his fellow managers at the NWT Fire Centre but dedicated the honour to those with boots on the ground. Its not just for the managers its for all of our staff everybody from the fire- fighters to the clerical staff officers etc. Lepine said. Obviously we dont fight fires from an office. Those people on the ground there are the ones who really deserve the recognition. Lepine said last years fire season was physically and mentally challenging for fire crews who despite fatigue man- aged to protect the highway transmis- sion lines nearby communities and other infrastructure. Weve gone through really difcult sea- sons before but last season was particularly difcult because people had to put in mega hours.Oursafetyconcernsweregoingthrough the roof because people were working such Premiers Awards show pride in public service erehtserehtserehtserehtserehts Dn Sin Yati usklke Tin Yati Chipewyan Dictionary CONGRATULATIONS to Brent Kaulback at the South Slave Divisional Board of Education and the Elders and community of Lutsel Ke who worked so diligently on the Lutsel Ke Chipewyan Dictionary for being honoured with the Premiers award. The team who received the Premiers Collaborative Award It was an honour being a part of this excellent project Lutsel Ke Contributors Alfred Catholique August Catholique Bertha Catholique JC Catholique John Catholique Madeline Catholique Albert Boucher Sarah Basil Boucher Joe Desjarlais Vicky Desjarlais Madeline Drybone Mary Rose Enzoe Jim Fatt Mary Fatt Angie Lantz Alfred Lockhart Chief Felix Lockhart Joe Lockhart Celine Marlowe George Marlowe Madeline Marlowe Pierre Marlowe Emily Saunders Raymond Sonfrere 867 872-3000.207 McDougal Road Fort Smith NT cascade graphics long days and the manager Rick Olsen had to really clamp down on people and say Go away take the weekend off and recuperate. It was a real issue last year for us Lepine said. With this re season shaping up to be as intense as the last Lepine said the manage- ment team is working hard to avoid that kind of fatigue and said the recognition by the premier is encouraging. People can take comfort that whenever there is smoke or some wildre going that they see were usually already there we have people on the ground and evaluating the situation so after a lot of years it is good for us to get some recognition but its also what we do for a living Lepine said. Our culture isnt designed around heroism its designed around safety. Along with the re team the GNWTs rat- ication team for the Deline nal self-gov- ernment agreement was given recognition as well as the the Highway 3 Forest Fire Traffic Management team the Wellness Court implementation team and the project development team for the Mackenzie Valley Fibre-Optic Link. The partners working on education re- newal in the NWT received an award for col- laboration as did the Lutsel Ke Chipewyan dictionary project a collaboration between the South Slave Divisional Education Coun- cil SSDEC and the elders and residents of Lutsel Ke. SSDEC assistant superintendent Brent Kaulback said he felt privileged to be part of the project and thankful to the premier for recognizing its signicance. My work with the elders on this project was an incredible experience. They com- mitted fully to the task of documenting and preserving their language and have left be- hind a lasting legacy. The Lutsel Ke diction- ary will last for generations to come Kaul- back said noting the poignant timing of the awards with the closure of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission TRC. The TRC report commented on how mission schools took away the language and culture of indigenous people but also mentioned that schools today can play a big part in restoring that cultural iden- tity he said. This project is one exam- ple how a community and the school can work in partnership to strengthen culture and language. Other award winners included Sarah Cook with the Yellowknife Health and Social Ser- vices Authority for the individual category and Sabrina Broadhead from the department of Health and Social Services for the Dave Ramsden Career Achievement Award. Peter Vician deputy minister for Industry Tour- ism and Investment became the rst recipi- ent of a new award celebrating excellence in public administration. Government Service Ofcers across the NWT were also recognized for their work providing day-to-day services to residents. I invite members to join with me in thanking our public service employees for a job well done McLeod told the leg- islature. Their energy drive and com- mitment to implement and achieve our priorities are evident throughout the en- tire public service and together we have accomplished much. PhotoMeaganWohlberg NORTHERNERS PUBLIC SERVANTS Frank Lepine director of forest management with the GNWT dedicated the Premiers Award to the NWTs re crews.