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SAMBAA K'E/TROUT LAKE
It will be more than a year before planes begin landing on Trout Lake's new runway.

The runway embankment is one of the components of the new Trout Lake airport that the Sambaa K'e Development Corporation has been contracted to build. - photo courtesy of the Department of Transportation

Work to relocate the community's airport began in September 2009. Construction, which is behind schedule, is expected to be completed in the summer of 2013.

It's not unusual for big projects to take up to four years, especially if certain windows of opportunity are missed, said Delia Chesworth, the director of the airports division with the Department of Transportation. "These projects typically take a long time."

In the case of Trout Lake, the project has been complicated by the lack of all-weather road access and equipment problems. The department is also trying to maximize local employment, which means work on the airport is often scheduled around other projects in the community, she said.

To date, the airport site has been cleared and a road built. The Sambaa K'e Development Corporation has the contract to build a water diversion ditch that will keep water off the runway and to construct the embankment for the foundation of the landing strip.

Work remaining includes installation of runway lights, which has been planned for this summer, and the construction of the surface of the runway, said Chesworth. Material for that project is scheduled to be gathered during a gravel haul in early 2013. The community's gravel source can only be reached in the winter via an ice crossing.

Despite being behind schedule, the project is on target to stay within its $7 million budget, Chesworth said.

The new runway will be 2.5 km from Trout Lake which will allow for future growth in the community, Chesworth said.

At the new site, the runway can also be lengthened to 1,067 meters from 762 metres, which will allow different types of airplanes -- including pressurized aircraft -- to use the facility, said Chesworth. The current runway is also not in an optimal position for the prevailing winds in the community, something that was taken into consideration with the new alignment.

The community is benefiting from the relocation project, said Brenda Jumbo, the acting general manger of the Sambaa K'e Development Corporation.

Twelve residents have been working in shifts on the project. Half work from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The other half work from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m., she said. There are also an additional five residents who work on call.

In addition to employment opportunities, the project has also provided training for community members, said Jumbo. During the summer, the corporation employed ] students over the age of 17 who were trained to drive gravel trucks and operate tracked bulldozers.

"It's a good training opportunity for the youths here," she said.

The Sambaa K'e Dene Band is also considering a heavy equipment preventative maintenance course, Jumbo said.

Once the embankment and diversion ditch are completed, the band plans to apply for the gravel haul and crushing contract next winter. As of Feb. 7, however, work had been on hold for almost a month.

The excavator, the primary piece of equipment for the project, broke down during the second week of January. A mechanic, who came to the community last week, took one of the machine's parts to Hay River to be repaired. Work will resume when the excavator is running again, said Jumbo.

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