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Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to sound environmental stewardship and the sustainable development of natural resources in the North. As part of this commitment, and in accordance with the federal Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act and several land claim agreements, the government is responsible for facilitating and publicly releasing an Environmental Audit every five years. 

An independent contractor completed the 2025 NWT Environmental Audit earlier this year. It reviews how our environmental rules work, the reliability of the information we use to make decisions, how we monitor the effects of development, and how the government has responded to past audit suggestions.

An Audit Steering Committee, made up of Indigenous, territorial, and federal representatives, helped guide the process. They worked together to set the goals for the Audit and provided advice along the way.

Earlier this week, I tabled the 2025 NWT Environmental Audit, and I am pleased to report that the Audit found the NWT’s regulatory system continues to improve. No significant new concerns were identified and reported progress on many of the previous issues raised in the last review.

However, it also pointed out some challenges. We need better data to track barren-ground caribou. We also need to make cumulative impact monitoring information more readily available in areas where there is development, as well as continuing work on land use planning, settling land claims, and involving communities.

Mr. Speaker, the GNWT will track its progress in response to the recommendations made in the 2025 Environmental Audit through internal reporting and by coordinating across departments. We will ensure transparency and accountability, and we plan to implement recommendations using existing resources whenever possible.

This work strengthens our regulatory system and helps build public confidence that the GNWT and our partners are making informed, balanced, and evidence-based decisions to protect the land, water, and wildlife of the Northwest Territories.

Mr. Speaker, these efforts bring us closer to fulfilling our mandate to ensure safe communities, healthy ecosystems, through collaborative partnerships with Indigenous governments and Indigenous organizations.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.