Monday, March 26, 2001
It seems everyone but the federal government is excited about developing natural gas reserves in the NWT.
The territorial government has a plan. Aboriginal groups are lining up to take ownership of a pipeline to take the gas south and producers have spent millions to get exploration rights in the Mackenzie Delta.
So far, however, the only sign the government knows what's going on was an off-the-cuff election statement by Prime Minister Jean Chretien that appears to favour an Alaska highway route to get American gas south, a policy that does little to develop the Canadian North.
We're still waiting for a definitive statement from Ottawa about its intentions regarding a resource that will bring billions of dollars in benefits to Canadians.
The silence is deafening.
The tuberculosis epidemic that ravaged Nunavut 40 years was so terrible, some people are still afraid of even being tested.
Nunavut's TB co-ordinator Susan Strader is doing her best to put a friendly face on battling the age-old Northern killer. She is using compassion and information to encourage people to get tested.
That's a good thing, because as TB continues to be a threat, only ongoing education and vigilance will ensure it doesn't once again kill people.
In the Northwest Territories, a recent death from TB has put renewed emphasis on prevention and diagnosis. In Nunavut, we must not let fear rule. People no longer disappear when they go for treatment, they get better and come home -- but only if they get tested.
Whose duty is it to protect the North? The federal government?
Apparently not, or at least the last round of budget cuts to military budgets and equipment seems to paint that picture.
When Col. Pierre Leblanc was commander of the Canadian Forces Northern Area Headquarters, from 1995 to 2000, he called for increased sovereignty measures in Canada's Arctic.
Leblanc is now retired. In a guest column (Arctic is left unguarded, News/North, March 19) he outlined, yet again, the North's vulnerabilities -- airliners criss-crossing above us, the Northwest Passage open to foreign sailing vessels and the potential for environmental disaster.
Where are the search and rescue resources in the event of an air crash? Where are the resources to guard against illegal polar bear hunters who can wander onto Ellesmere Island from Greenland and disappear without a trace?
How do we know the lucrative nuclear waste disposal business is not going to exploit the secrecy and economics of the Northwest Passage which may soon be open to navigation, according to the scientific community?
So, if the Canadian government fails to do its duty to protect the North, who will? Well, we know the Americans will, at least for themselves. There have already been American icebreakers venturing into Canadian waters and diplomatic rumblings about the Northwest Passage being an international jurisdiction.
Imagine Nunavut and Inuvialuit communities having their waters and sea animals subjected to the environmental threat posed by commercial shipping routes?
Leblanc may be dismissed as an alarmist but the signs of global warming are there. If we wait for the worst to happen before acting, it will be too late.
Nunavut MLAs, at the very least, should be debating the issue and pressuring the federal government to get serious about the future of Canadian sovereignty in the North.
The people of Kugluktuk must keep the community's suicide hotline running. Since 982-HOPE started last year, there have been fewer suicides.
That success must not be thrown away.
The couple who currently run the hotline are moving on and they're looking for someone new to step in. The task is not for the faint of heart. It requires fielding late night phone calls, a great deal of caring, empathy and patience.
That said, dozens of residents have undergone the training needed to make an honest go of responding to the cries for help.
The answer to this will not be found on the outside. This is one of those times the community must come together to make a better place to live.
As last week drew to a close the federal government issued a self-congratulatory message that it will spend $32 million to battle tuberculosis in developing countries.
What about the North?
TB made its mark on the Northwest Territories 50 years ago.
Medical experts thought the disease was vanquished, but several years ago it became evident that TB never really went away. Effie Blake's death last summer confirmed that.
The passing of the Fort McPherson teacher and grandmother also revealed that despite the fact cases were popping up, medical practitioners in the Northwest Territories were not ready to take on the disease.
Medical staff at the Inuvik regional hospital failed to diagnose Blake's TB. An expert called in to investigate called TB rates in the territory "unacceptable" and made 26 recommendations to improve the situation.
As a result, the NWT health department redrew its TB battle plan. Rates for tuberculosis in the territory are five to 10 times the national average. The health department's initial goal was to bring the incidence of the disease to national levels by 2010. The new plan advances the target date to 2005.
The fight against TB will take energy and resources. Health services in the North already suffer from a cash shortage created by the inequities in the federal per-capita funding formula.
Ottawa is aware of the problem, but has made no move to correct the situation. The North elected three Liberal members of parliament in the last election.
It's time for them to speak up on this issue.
Joe Dragon's life lessons made the recent Mackenzie Regional Youth Conference a rewarding experience for all who attended.
Hockey took Dragon from his home in Fort Smith, to junior hockey in Grande Prairie and then Cornell University on a sports scholarship.
The transition wasn't easy, and a less determined person would certainly have failed.
Above all, Dragon was honest with himself.
When he hit a rough patch in his studies, he had the humility to understand that he needed help and the courage to ask for it. When injuries ended his hockey career, he turned his full attention to obtaining a university degree.
Joe Dragon could have pursued a career anywhere, but he came home. His example makes the North a richer place.
Editorial Comment
Malcolm Gorrill
Inuvik Drum
Policies used here regarding aboriginal peoples may someday be implemented in Russia.
At least, that could happen if one Russian senator has his way.
Ilya Rozenblyum, a member of Russia's Federation Council, visited Inuvik recently as part of a delegation involved in an international exchange program.
The officials, who also visited Yellowknife before journeying to Ottawa, wanted to see how people in Canada's North live.
Rozenblyum was particularly interested in how aboriginals in the area are faring compared to their counterparts in Russia. There, the Small Numbered Peoples are interspersed throughout Russia's north, and their economic condition has become even worse since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Rozenblyum would like to change that, and said creating agencies comparable to the Inuvialuit Development Corporation might be part of the solution.
The senator said Moscow must do something other than hand its Small Numbered Peoples just enough money to survive, but not enough to build upon. Rozenblyum also admitted that changing the system would not be easy.
The senator's sentiments are a reminder that some things, like economic hardship and inequality, are universal.
Stress management
Some students at Sir Alexander Mackenzie school are learning from visitors.
Cpl. Jeff Hurry and Cpl. Tim Beland of the Inuvik RCMP are guiding Grade 5 students through the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program.
Students are covering topics like what causes stress, and how taking alcohol or drugs can interfere with one's ability to cope.
Such knowledge could serve the students well in the near future, and getting to interact with Mounties in class will probably benefit them too.
A spirited bunch
Last week's cold weather didn't stop local residents from having some laughs.
It was Spirit Week at Samuel Hearne, with lots of activities taking place. The Snow Queen pageant was a fun affair. Also a treat to take in was the Hearne-a-Palooza, which featured several different acts performing a variety of activities, right from singing to drama games.
St. Patrick's Day inspired lots of entertainment. SAMS held a kids carnival, and a dinner was held at the small family hall. That event featured good food, traditional music and dancing.
Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum, Fort Simpson
Aboriginal Pipeline Group representative Doug Cardinal suggests that American politicians' support for the Alaska Highway natural gas pipeline route is shortsighted.
Although that route would temporarily provide more jobs and spinoffs for Americans, it would more expensive to build. According to a study by the Canadian Energy Research Institute, the Alaska Highway route would cost an estimated $2.5 billion more than a Mackenzie Valley pipeline with a link to Alaska's Prudhoe Bay.
Producer groups eye profitability very carefully, Cardinal noted.
Fellow APG representative Harry Deneron agrees that it's the producer groups that the Aboriginal Pipeline Group must woo. They are the ones with the expertise and experience, and they will ultimately be the ones getting the gas to market.
Cardinal suggested that the proactive approach taken by the NWT's First Nations will play in their favour, whereas most Yukon and Alaskan First Nations have not been adequately consulted.
If the Alaska Highway route overcomes its obstacles and gets approvals, the consensus seems to be that the NWT won't lose out entirely. The Mackenzie Delta has nearly six trillion cubic feet (tcf) of proven natural gas reserves. Another 53 tcf are estimated to exist in the Delta area, according to Cardinal. There are also gas-rich lands around Colville Lake, Norman Wells, Cameron Hills, north of Wrigley and Fort Liard, he noted. Therefore, there is potential for many pipeline tie-ins.
Cardinal is confident that both pipelines will ultimately be needed as the American's reliance on natural gas is already enormous and continues to grow at a rate of roughly two per cent per year.
In the meantime, one lingering concern seems to be that the Mackenzie Valley route could be delayed if the Alaska Highway route gets the green light first. Not only would there be a shortage of labour, and possibly equipment, there is a question of how much gas prices would be devalued when Alaska's Prudhoe Bay gas reaches the market. It might be a temporary drop, but there are other huge off-shore natural gas developments that will also be on-stream in the coming years, feeding the expanding demand for natural gas. Nobody really knows how the price may fluctuate.
If it comes down to a battle of wills between the producer groups and politicians, it will be most interesting to see the outcome of this issue -- an issue that will greatly impact upon the NWT's future.
Far and away
There has been a recurring theme in a number of stories over the past few weeks, that being the importance of education and travel. Senator Nick Sibbeston, a university graduate, has criss-crossed this country from one end to the other on numerous occasions.
Last week, Fort Smith's Joe Dragon, another university graduate, spoke of the importance of academia and journeying abroad.
Robert Loe, a high school student from Fort Liard, also got a taste of international exposure while attending the Youth of the Americas conference in Quebec City earlier this month.
It's not all a pretty picture, but there is plenty to be gained by learning first hand what this world of ours' has to offer. And, as Dragon pointed out, you can always come home again when you feel the need.
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
The unfortunate situation in Chesterfield Inlet concerning Evelyn Autut resulted from a number of different influences.
We agree wholeheartedly with Dr. Keith Best's assertion that a family conference during Autut's health problems would have gone a long way towards curbing the family's anxieties in watching a loved one suffer.
That being said, the situation also casts a harsh light on some of the problems with health care in the Kivalliq region.
We, by no means, wish to downplay the tremendous contribution our nurses make to health care.
Being understaffed and overworked is not a cliche to their profession, it's a reality.
However, as dedicated and professional as they are, nurses are not doctors and, all too often it appears the line between doctor and nurse is blurring in our region.
The Chesterfield incident conjures up memories of last year's situation in Arviat, when a young girl came perilously close to death after being sent home from the local health centre.
That girl was ultimately medevaced to Winnipeg with severe kidney problems which almost claimed her life.
An "investigation" was also conducted into that incident and the same Dr. Keith Best ruled the nurse involved exhibited good clinical practice and sound judgement in her assessment.
While phone consultations are necessary in the North and do enhance our limited medical resources, they are a long way from what Dr. Best refers to as a doctor "eyeballing" a patient.
Best himself admits complications with Autut's health made assessments by phone consultation very difficult for physicians in both Rankin Inlet and Churchill.
We're not disputing that under current conditions, the nurse involved followed proper protocol in doing everything she could to assess Autut's condition.
As, we're sure, the Arviat nurse did last year.
However, neither Dr. Best nor Health Minister Ed Picco can deny in both occasions a much more serious ailment was overlooked which almost claimed a life.
The bare-boned fact of the matter is our health system is overtaxed and under resourced. Period.
And, while we're sympathetic to a point with Picco's dilemma of competition for medical professionals, salary scales, housing, etc., -- we've reached the point where action has to start replacing excuses.
The present boundaries of "good clinical practice" in Nunavut appear to be more geared towards heading off potential lawsuits than ensuring proper care and diagnosis of patients.
And, unless Picco comes up with a way to attract more doctors and increase our nurses-to-patients ratio, it's only a matter of time before a bereaved family tests the validity of the good clinical practice guidelines in a court of law.