Paul Bickford and Chris Hunsley
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (July 25/05) - A half-billion dollars has a way of attracting people's attention.

Such was last week's announcement by the federal government that it is prepared to establish a $500-million, 10-year fund to address socio-economic impacts of the Mackenzie Valley pipeline.

Roughnecks wrestle a pipe into place on an oil rig in the Beaufort Delta. While the $500 million federal offer is recognized as "a lot of money" by some, other leaders say it's not enough.

The fund is the result of an agreement between the federal government, the GNWT and representatives of the regions along the pipeline route - the Gwich'in, Kahsho Got'ine, Inuvialuit, Tulita/Deline and Deh Cho.

While saying the funding is a good thing, Chief Keyna Norwegian of Liidlii Kue First Nation in Fort Simpson thinks more than $500 million is needed.

"I don't think it's enough," she says.

Norwegian points out $500 million is not such an impressive total when spread over 10 years and divided among five regions.

The Deh Cho leadership will meet Aug. 2 in Fort Simpson to discuss the fund.

Also keen for a larger pot of money is Dene National Chief Noeline Villebrun.

"When you look at how much a doctor costs the territorial government right now, the health care costs and how much it costs to have police in our communities, $500 million really doesn't go far," Villebrun said in a press release.

Fort Smith Mayor Peter Martselos is awaiting to get more information on the fund, but said his town will be impacted by the pipeline. Martselos doesn't expect large amounts of money will flow to Fort Smith from the fund, but hopes that some will.

"We are far away from the action, but we can be impacted also," he says.

The impacts will likely include more people living in Fort Smith while working on the project, and more students attending Aurora College to train, he predicts.

Hay River is not on the pipeline route, but will be a service centre for the project.

"We certainly are affected by the pipeline and we hope the GNWT is representing our interests when it comes to funding," Mayor Diana Ehman says.

She says Hay River will be affected in a number of ways, including an increase in population and more homeless people coming to town looking for work.

Ehman adds $500 million can go a long way in a territory of just over 40,000 people. "It's a lot of money."

Fred Carmichael, president of the Gwich'in Tribal Council in Inuvik said the announcement was no surprise.

"This pipeline is the first step to the people getting an economic base and to becoming self sufficient," said Carmichael, who has been involved in the negotiations since the beginning.

Access and benefits agreements still have to be negotiated, and Imperial could then be responsible to provide services like training and employment, said Nellie Cournoyea, chair and CEO of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation in Inuvik.

"We still have to work on it, but this was a big step, a great step forward for the federal government," said Cournoyea.

Learn from past

With oil and gas development moving closer to fruition every day, Chief Walter Bayha of Deline has been spending some time examining the results of past projects.

"If we look at social issues that arose from the Norman Wells Project in the 1980s, Deline is still dealing with those problems," he said.

One of the community's biggest challenges will be finding permanent professionals, such as nurses and doctors, who can help over the long term to build a healthy and happy community.