Fort Simpson (Dec 12/03) - Fort Simpson is moving toward allowing camps and bunkhouses within municipal boundaries, but other NWT communities have been living with that reality for many years.

Kevin Diebold, the former mayor of Norman Wells, said larger camps, like the ones proposed in conjunction with a Mackenzie Valley pipeline, or even a number of smaller camps will inevitably result in "immense" wear and tear on municipal infrastructure. Water treatment plants, sewage plants and local roads will all be degraded sooner, he said.

"So you have to charge (industry) a certain fee. The fee has to be different from the fee you charge municipal people. You don't want to be taking it out of the taxpayers' pockets," said Diebold, who also operates a camp in Norman Wells.

Although oil and gas companies may offer to construct buildings or facilities for the municipality's use, Diebold cautioned that those facilities will require the municipality to assume power, heating and maintenance costs. Having industry repair existing buildings or establish roads or parks may be preferable, he suggested.

In Fort Liard, the hamlet has been providing water and sewage services to the Beaver Enterprises base camp for years. The site can accommodate up to 500 workers. Although Fort Liard's water plant has the capacity to meet the demand, an issue arose when water pressure dropped every morning around 8 a.m., according to John McKee, the senior administrative officer.

"It cut us down below our fire levels that are required to be maintained," he said. "We just put in an extra storage tube to avoid that."

The community's fire chief and the fire marshal have reviewed the camp's emergency procedures in consultation with Beaver Enterprises' safety officer, McKee noted.

"We've had no real problems with it," he said.

"They've been fairly cooperative in addressing any issues we've raised."

The hamlet disposes the camp's solid waste but it had to prevent other industrial companies from using the community's landfill because it was filling up too fast, McKee acknowledged. Fort Simpson's landfill only has room for one more pit until a new site is acquired. The estimated cost of a new dump is $1.3 million, according to village documents.

In Tuktoyaktuk, a community similar in size to Fort Simpson, camps were common during the oil boom in the 1980s. They have since made a comeback. Senior administrative officer Debbie Raddi said the biggest impact has been on water delivery and sewage disposal, but she also noted that social problems increase with the influx of people and money.

"That's normal with any community," she said.

Tuktoyaktuk doesn't have restrictions on alcohol but it doesn't have a liquor store either. There is a liquor store in Inuvik, however, which is accessible by winter road.

In Fort Simpson, restrictions on alcohol purchases are due to be lifted in October, 2004.