Monday, May 25, 1998
The economic complexities of division surface with the debate over the fate of the NWT Power Corporation.
The Western Arctic has the most power customers and lowest costs while Nunavut has higher costs and huge social needs. Industrial efficiencies may carry a lot of weight in the West but they may occasionally have to take a back seat to Nunavut's political priorities, such as local hiring and job training.
Should the Power Corp. assets be divided on numbers alone or should history and need be taken into account? How could the Power Corp. be expected to function as a single entity when its two shareholders are also major customers with entirely different ambitions?
These kinds of questions will be brought up time and time again on many aspects of division. Sometimes the answers will be yes, the two territories have similar goals and can work together. In other instances it may well make more sense to make a clean break and set up two distinct organizations.
The Union of Northern Workers decided to form two different unions after division. Then cooperation will be voluntary and for mutual benefit rather than a forced relationship with constant bickering over differing goals.
In the run up to April 1999, there will be the temptation to shift responsibility. In the West, bureaucrats may be anxious to get anything to do with Nunavut off their desk just for the sake of having a clean desktop.
In the East, when things gets tough and expectations are not met, politicians may spend more time blaming the territorial government than working on the problem from their end.
The public must understand the smoother the transition to two governments, the better off everyone will be.
That means the West must be prepared to keep their present territorial system intact until the Nunavut government no longer needs assistance. Eastern politicians must resist the temptation to make political points at the expense of goodwill toward the West.
Eastern bureaucrats must maintain a good relationship with their Western counterparts. Such a spirit of cooperation will create the happy result of having the two new territories emerge stronger than they were before as one.
Nunavut leaders are expected to dispense with the controversial Keewatin Pilot Project this week in Yellowknife. Only after division will the plan to turn over millions of dollars in capital to the regions be revived.
After months of opposition, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs realizes it has no choice but refer the plan to the Nunavut government. Had the GNWT said this earlier, it would have saved a lot of time and the debate could have been focused on examining the plan's merits instead of fighting against the timing of it.
The KPP is another example of the GNWT promoting a project for a region that will no longer be their responsibility in less than a year. Why?
Last week's outbreak of forest fires in the South Slave region confirms that forest fire season is now upon us.
While we've so far been immune from the horrendous damage fires are causing to our neighbors in Alberta, we also know that anything's possible in the North when it comes to forecasting the weather.
One comfort is knowing that last year's lull in activity offered not only a surplus in the forest fire budget, but it gave forest management officials the chance to experiment with controlled burning in risk areas, and lots and lots of training.
Before Greenpeace and other animal rights activists continue with their campaign to protect the seal, they should take a look at the whole picture.
Their well-publicized, endearing images of the marine mammal have caused a great deal of needless harm to Canadian Inuit and their way of life.
In order to protect Inuit traditions, more people need to join Iqaluit resident Aaju Peter in her efforts to wake up and educate the activists.
Greenpeace's misplaced commitment is hurting more than it is helping. Keep in mind the Inuit and the seal hunt have been around a lot longer than Greenpeace.
Millions of snow geese are wreaking havoc with Central Arctic ecosystems, their numbers buoyed in recent years by expanding habitat -- corn and rice farms -- in the central U.S.
Over in the South Slave, meanwhile, biologists are worried about too many diseased bison that might contaminate healthy herds. Hey -- whatever happened to endangered species? Aren't we supposed to be wiping them out on a daily basis?
Well, yes, we are. But human meddling can lead to wildlife overpopulation just as it can to extinction. We just have to watch what we do very carefully, and try not to put the blame anywhere but on our own shoulders. Mother Nature doesn't negotiate.