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4 Tuesday April 28 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 Fostering economy through ingenuity wisdom leadership Large-scale developments are tempting when times are good but the sudden slow- down resulting shutdowns and loss of jobs are like a kick in the gut. High Level Alta. has a resource-based economy in the doldrums suffering. Pre- mier Jim Prentice in his bid for re-election is touting the need to diversify the Alberta economy moving it away from dependence on petroleum extraction. A government cannot simply wave a wand and make that happen. The realization and initiative have to emanate at the community level as well. La Crete Alta. 110 km east of High Level is thriving. It has a diversied economy with a base of agriculture plus a sawmill and numerous small-scale manufacturing en- terprises mainly family-based. About the same size as Fort Smith La Crete had ap- proximately 75 new housing starts last year and is even busier this year. All NWT communities are resource-de- velopment dependent and are hurting from low oil prices and minimal demand for min- erals. Furthermore as you travel further north the price of food and other commodi- ties increases incrementally as the high cost of freight and operations are added in. The cost of power increases as well to the point where it is unaffordable in many small com- munities. With fundamentals like that so expensive the cost of living in NWT com- munities is unbearable. With no economy and high costs the situation is untenable. The NWT government is committed to a resource-based economy. Led by the federal government environmental assessments have been minimized and permitting pro- cesses streamlined doing everything pos- sible to promote more resource develop- ment. The doors have been ung open the welcome mat is out messages are broadcast beseeching exploration companies to come dig drill and extract. Still few come. There is currently not enough demand for those products to incur the high operating costs in the North and still make money. As Alberta learned being dependent on a resource-based economy means a roller- coaster ride of highs and lows feast and famine. Large-scale developments are a windfall great when times are good but the sudden slowdown resulting shutdowns and loss of jobs are like a kick in the gut. Nobody wants that. The North has to come up with some- thing else to moderate those cycles. What other options are there for developing an economy Freight costs will eat into prot margins of any export commodity far from markets. There are too few people with too little expertise in the North to do anything on a large scale. Why not be like La Crete The NWT can learn from La Cretes community-based in- novation ingenuity and wisdom and seek new solutions for economic development that lower living costs in the process. To start reduce the need to import south- ern food. The more food that is grown lo- cally the more dependence will be displaced. Growing food creates jobs. That builds local economies and makes communities stronger. There are several converging social move- ments that help that cause. The 100-mile diet postulates that eating food grown close to home is much healthier and better for the environment. There is also a movement to- wards small-scale farming. One need look no further than the community greenhouse in Inuvik or the Northern Farm Training Institute in Hay River for examples of in- novation. Both were the vision of inspired individuals not an outgrowth of the main- stream economy. Despite the obvious po- tential they are still only regarded as hob- bies or recreation. Governments should be developing that as a way of life instead of focusing on resource extraction which will happen anyway if demand is sufcient to produce a prot. There is a need for new expensive power dams and diesel plants. If individuals were to produce their own electricity it would reduce that need. Many people would love to install solar panels or wind mills to sup- plement their electricity and reduce power bills. Every time someone did that it would mean less draw from the grid and a reduc- tion of need for central generating capacity. An ambitious few would generate a surplus that would be sent into the system further reducing the need for expensive capacity. Change like that could happen in a decade if incentives were put in place. Governments typically think big in pur- suit of economic development. That is the wrong approach in the North. Building com- munity-based economies is the way. Foster food and electricity independence to bring down the cost of living. Strong communi- ties are then better able to take advantage and minimize impacts if resource develop- ments do come along. Editor I enjoyed reading your article featuring Bob Bromley who provided a very deep and balanced view about the current process through which ITI is trying to release its draft fracking regulations without previous public consultation and refusing to discuss whether fracking in NWT should or should not go ahead to ITI it is already a done deal. I hope to see more balanced views like this in your paper in the future. You have just gained a new reader Jenn Broadbridge Yellowknife Bromley provides balanced view of fracking By AHS HEALTH PROMOTION Immunization Awareness Week April 25 to May 2 is an excellent reminder that immu- nization remains one of the safest and most effective methods to decrease the risk of ill- ness for you and your family. As recently as the early 1900s the major- ity of deaths in Canada were due to an infec- tious disease. Today less than ve per cent of deathsareduetovaccine-preventablediseases thanks to modern immunization programs. Unfortunately some diseases are making a comeback in part due to low immunization coverage rates. In the past year there was a measles outbreak in Quebec after unimmu- nized travelers brought back the disease with them. Measles was spread to vacationers at Disneyland in part due to the low rates of im- munizationamongvisitors. In2013outbreaks occurred in southern and central Alberta also brought back by unimmunized travelers. In the past decade we have also seen outbreaks of mumps across Canada with Alberta being a hot spot. In this outbreak one of the original cases was an unimmunized traveler. By following Albertas recommended im- munization schedule we can enjoy low levels of vaccine-preventable disease and prevent those diseases from visiting Alberta. All parents are encouraged to ensure their children are immunized on time. Immuniza- tion begins at two months of age and contin- ues throughout your life. It is also important that parents protect themselves and ensure their own immunizations are up to date. If you plan to travel outside of Canada it is rec- ommended you contact Public Health so they provide information and immunization to help lower your risks of becoming sick abroad. Immunization is safe and works by expos- ing a person to a dead or weakened germ. The immune system responds as if an infec- tion is occurring and creates protective cells and antibodies. It is this response from the immune system that helps prevent disease if a person is exposed to the full-strength germ later on. ImmunizationsareavailabletoallAlbertans through their local public health centres. Im- munizations that are routinely recommended for infants children and adults are available without any out-of-pocket cost. Babies children and adults deserve the healthiest life possible. Let us work with you in keeping you healthy by protecting you and yourchildrenfromdiseaseusingimmunization. More information on immunization can be found at www.immunizealberta.ca. More on how to access immunization ser- vices can be found at www.albertahealth- services.ca contacting Health Link Alberta at 1-866-408-LINK 5465 or by calling your local public health centre. Editors note Residents of the NWT can get information on immunizations at their local health centre at www.hss.gov.nt.ca or by calling the Ofce of the Chief Public Health Ofcer at 867 920-8646. This is Immunization Awareness Week PhotoDaliCarmichael The crackling echo of ice breaking up on the Hay River is a mixed blessing for local residents. Though it is a welcome sign of spring those who make their homes on its shores are on alert for signs of ooding. So far there have been no indications of ooding this year.