YELLOWKNIFE (August 31, 2012) – Premier Bob McLeod met with Dehcho First Nations Grand Chief Herb Norwegian on August 27. This was the first meeting between the two government leaders since Grand Chief Norwegian’s election in June. The agenda included devolution, the Wildlife Act, land use, and the flood in Nahanni Butte.
FORT MCPHERSON (August 16, 2012) – The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT), the Gwich’in Tribal Council (GTC) and the Gwich’in Renewable Resources Board (GRRB) signed the Gwich'in Forest Management Plan: A Framework for Forest Management in the Gwich’in Settlement Area in Fort McPherson this morning.
The plan was signed by GTC President Robert A. Alexie, NWT Minister of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) J. Michael Miltenberger and GRRB Interim Chair Eugene Pascal.
YELLOWKNIFE (July 30, 2012) – The 2012-2017 schedule identifying species to be assessed to determine if they are at risk has been released by the Northwest Territories (NWT) Species at Risk Committee.
The Species at Risk Committee reviews the species status assessment schedule every year and revises it as needed.
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June 7, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, the NWT is experiencing hot, dry conditions and the forests across most of the NWT are critically dry. The fire danger ratings in the North Slave, South Slave, and DehCho regions are at high or extreme and the NWT is in the midst of an early fire season. We have had increased fire activity over the past week and are presently dealing with a number of problematic wildfires within these regions.
May 31, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, wildlife is valued by all people in the NWT and contributes to our well-being and economy. A new Wildlife Act is needed to effectively manage wildlife in the Northwest Territories. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has prepared a draft of the proposed new Wildlife Act for public review and comment. This draft was developed with extensive input from Aboriginal organizations, wildlife renewable resource boards, residents, industry and other stakeholders.
May 30, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, in 1997, the governments of Canada, the Northwest Territories, Yukon, Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan signed the Mackenzie River Basin Transboundary Waters Master Agreement. When we signed, our governments agreed on the principles for co-managing the Mackenzie River Basin’s water ecosystems. We also made plans for signing bilateral agreements between each of our provinces and territories.
February 14, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, Members of this House and the people of the Northwest Territories have made it clear that we need to complete a new Wildlife Act.
We need legislation that incorporates the most current tools for wildlife management. This is vital to conserving our wildlife populations for current and future generations.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has developed a process to address outstanding issues and to revise the proposed new legislation accordingly.
February 13, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, the people of the Northwest Territories have a stake in the on-going development of the oil sands. Protecting our land and water from potential downstream impacts of development in Alberta is critical.
The Joint Canada-Alberta Implementation Plan for Oil Sands Monitoring is a solid first step in addressing the concerns raised by Aboriginal peoples, scientists and concerned residents, both upstream and downstream, of impacts of the oil sands development on our waters.
February 9, 2012 - Mr. Speaker, the sacrifices of the barren-ground caribou harvesters during the past several years have not been in vain.
Recent surveys indicate the Porcupine herd has increased from an estimated 123,000 animals in 2001 to 169,000 in 2010. The population estimate of the Bluenose-East herd has increased from 65,100 animals in 2006 to 98,600 animals in 2010.
Recent surveys point towards a stabilization of the Cape Bathurst and Bluenose-West herds - though overall numbers remain very low.
