Monday, January 08, 2001
Dry camps are nothing new to resource companies operating in the Northwest Territories and elsewhere.
But the introduction of drug tests to screen job seekers sends a clear message and it's written in the hard language of the bottom line.
Anyone who wants a job in oil and gas exploration, or diamond mining must be clean and sober. And stay that way.
There is zero tolerance for drugs and alcohol in the industrial workplace.
Union officials and civil rights advocates protest that drug testing smacks of intrusion, but employers have a right to insist that workers clock in sober and ready to do a day's work.
Employers have run out of patience with workers who book off sick to nurse hangovers or muddle through in a haze and create more havoc than product.
Industrial work sites are filled with potentially dangerous situations that make booze or drug-addled employees a threat to themselves and their co-workers.
Tuktoyaktuk Mayor Ernest Pokiak endorses mandatory tests. Substance abuse is a problem in the Delta and Mayor Pokiak believes that testing will motivate abusers to take control of their lives and get a job.
Maybe, but it's just as likely that substance abusers will find themselves farther out on the margins than ever.
What's needed is a concerted effort to provide counselling and programs that can break the dependence on alcohol and drugs.
The territorial government's drug and alcohol treatment and counselling programs are in worse shape than our overburdened healthcare system.
If people are to be encouraged to take up the challenge of sobriety, either the private sector or government will have to be there to help.
Otherwise the drug testing may simply exclude Northerners who might otherwise make valuable employees, not to mention parents and role models.
Divide and conquer is a timeworn tactic of the federal government.
Witness the boundary conflict between Dogrib Treaty 11 and Akaitcho Treaty 8, a critical issue that drains First Nation resources while the federal government, which orchestrated the dispute, sits back and awaits the outcome.
But the times are a changing. Dogrib and Akaitcho leaders have forged a $30- million, multi-year joint venture to haul ore for BHP. Aside from the 20 jobs to be created, the deal is a launch pad for exploiting other economic opportunities, most notably with Diavik.
If First Nations can continue to transform divide and conquer tactics into discussion and compromise, they will neutralize one of the federal government's favourite weapons.
Borders are important, but economic development is essential.
It's time for a truce in the squabble over which organization can best represent Northern Metis.
It started when the Metis Nation voted to deny rights to members who acquired Indian status under Bill C-31. The excluded members boycotted board meetings and effectively crippled the Metis Nation.
A new organization, the Northwest Metis Council was formed. Charles Furlong, its president, says that the Metis Nation is a spent force and should be dissolved.
Not so, protests Bill Enge. He picked up the reins when George Morin left the Nation in turmoil and insists that it deserves continued funding from Indian Affairs and Northern Development.
The war of words does little to advance the interests of Metis people. It's time for a demonstration of leadership that builds consensus.
Dogs used to be essential to life in what we know call Nunavut.
They pulled the sleds that carried our food, belongings and sometimes our family members, and they could be eaten in times of trouble as well.
These days, when snowmobiles rule the roads and trails that cross the land, dogs remain prevalent. We still hitch them to sleds -- more for pleasure than necessity -- but for most they have become pets.
Unfortunately, they're often left unattended and wander the streets where they can be run over or catch a disease.
In Iqaluit, a dozen dogs are suspected to have contracted distemper. Eight have died and four are fighting for their lives.
It's a cruel disease that can spread quickly through entire canine populations. So, please, for your dog's sake tie them up and help stop the outbreak.
When snowmobiles go head-to-head with cars or trucks it is not difficult to imagine which has the advantage.
Two such accidents in Iqaluit sent snow machine operators to hospital on Dec. 23. That got Town bylaw and RCMP officers talking about what to do about sleds darting on and off roads and among other traffic in the community.
Snowmobiles are an effective means of transportation within city limits -- less expensive than a car and better able to tackle winter driving conditions. Booting them off Iqaluit's roads doesn't make sense.
Still, snowmobile drivers must be reminded to abide by the same laws as larger motor vehicles.
Instead of taking away an important element of Northern life, traffic laws that suit snowmobiles are a better solution. They may include training for young drivers, mandatory use of helmets, different speed limits, enforcement of hand signals ... the list goes on.
Health Minister Ed Picco should pay heed to the predictions made by a resident of Nunavut in this week's issue of News/North.
When asked to forecast possible events in the upcoming year, Iqaluit's Marcel Mason said the next 12 months would result in Nunavummiut becoming more active. He said, however, that it would not happen until certain services completely crashed.
He listed health as one of the first services to fall apart.
Mason is not a paid political consultant, nor is he one of those charming television psychics. But there is truth in what he says.
For the last 22 months, Picco has scrambled from fire to fire, throwing a few drops of water here and there.
When the Kitikmeot was critically short of nurses last summer, he transferred temporary replacements from the Baffin region to the west. That left barely enough warm bodies in Eastern health centres, but a least they weren't at immediate risk of shutting down.
And that's not the only problem.
The Baffin Regional Hospital is understaffed, women are being abused, alcohol and drug abuse is rampant, Nunavummiut are destroying their health with tobacco and far too many of our children are killing themselves.
Picco's resources are limited -- that's true. But unless he and his officials get at it, the services will indeed crash.
What the minister must do immediately is demand for his federal counterpart to come North to see the state of health care in Nunavut. If Health Minister Allan Rock refuses, Picco must go public. It might look and feel like dirty politics, but unless Picco finds a way to generate extra dollars to begin to find solutions, our problems will continue.
And grow worse.