The federal watchdogs of fish habitat trumpeted their concern for the waterway in a letter to the Yellowknifer May 7.
The return of grayling to Baker Creek, right beside Giant Mine, has surprised everyone and the DFO letter was full of self-praise about the work they had done to encourage fish to return.
The last two winters, however, the Indian and Northern Affairs Canada hired a contractor to drill into arsenic vaults in the mine below. Early last week, Yellowknifer senior reporter Mike W. Bryant saw the mess left behind where a pumphouse had been built on top of the creek ice and later torn down.
There was oil-soaked wood, a tarpaulin, wire, fibreglass insulation and other gunk on the ice. An avid angler, Bryant believes the mess was right over the grayling spawning bed.
INAC had DFO's permission to do the work and says the grayling spawning bed was never at risk. However, gravel, possibly from the spawning bed, was visible on the ice, sucked up by the water pump.
DFO says it inspected the site and said they'll try to make sure it doesn't happen again, but we wonder why it would allow such work in the first place? Especially after all the work that has gone into bringing the fish back.
Guess we'll have to wait and see if the grayling come back this year to see if any more damage was done.
We applaud the return of Yellowknife detachment Mounties who wear out shoe leather as well as wheel rubber in the performance of their duties.
The beat cop has traditionally been the best way for law enforcement personnel to get to know the community.
Police can cover more turf when behind the wheel of their cruisers, but being able to pass out a friendly hello, to pick up on street gossip, and most important to be approachable by one and all -- this is how justice is not only put into action, but seen to be actively pursued.
Outside our office windows recently, we clearly saw the benefits of having "Sgt. Preston" on the sidewalk.
The constable was seen chatting up a variety of street types. They in turn approached and had what looked like cheery words with the officer. There was a comfort level there between two harsh realities: the need to enforce the law ... and the need to be understood while standing in the grey zone of the law.
Good things can only come from this.
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
It appears the job of burning Arviat MLA Kevin O'Brien at the stake has been passed on to Housing Minister Peter Kilabuk.
Just when it looked like O'Briengate had run its course, the Nunavut Housing Corp. moved in to address concerns it has with two of the four housing units it has leased with O'Brien in Arviat.
We're not going to dispute Housing Corp. president Peter Scott's contention that the timing of this action against O'Brien is purely coincidental, and has nothing to do with the charge against him earlier this year.
We do, however, put the odds of coincidence slightly lower than winning the weekly Super 7 draw.
But now, Kilabuk has promised to get to the bottom of this sordid affair.
Translation: state the amount of money O'Brien is being paid for two units that sit empty in an attempt to further sway public opinion against the former MLA before swooping in for the kill.
Deal above board
Regular readers of Kivalliq News know O'Brien's leasing agreement with the government was carefully screened by Nunavut's Integrity Commissioner before being approved.
That documentation is sitting quietly in clerk of the assembly John Quirk's office.
So, with no conflict of interest involved, we can't understand why the Nunavut government didn't ensure the units were occupiable before entering into the agreement.
Arviat units not alone
Also more than a little puzzling is all the ado about government housing units sitting empty in a community so desperate for housing, like Arviat is the only one.
When Kilabuk tables his information in the assembly about O'Brien's units, let's see him also table documentation on all government housing units sitting empty across Nunavut.
We'd like to see how long each one has sat empty and how much is being paid to each landlord by the GN.
Heck, considering the Arviat situation, we'd even like to see a report on how many others may be a tad below government standards.
Smells like sour grapes
We're also not overly impressed with some of Arviat MLA David Alagalak's comments concerning O'Briengate.
A long time rival of O'Brien's, it wasn't all that long ago Alagalak, himself, was quite interested in those Arviat lease agreements with the GN and was quite beside himself when they were awarded to O'Brien.
The O'Briengate matter has gone on long enough.
If the Nunavut government has legal recourse in its lease agreements with O'Brien, it should exercise them and bring a close to this sad saga.
And, should that be the direction it takes, we sincerely hope it treats the rest of its lease agreements the same way.
Editorial Comment
Jason Unrau
Inuvik Drum
With a 15-year-old taken into custody and released in connection with the fire at Samuel Hearne secondary school Monday morning, perhaps it is time to look at implementing a curfew in town.
While a curfew could never wholly prevent events such as what happened at SHSS, had there been one in place and enforced perhaps the high school's second tragedy in little more than a week could have been avoided.
Disgust probably best sums up the sentiment at the fire hall regarding the injury of a volunteer firefighter, who lost part of a finger while helping to put out the fire.
It is one thing for a member to be injured in the line of duty taking on an accidental fire, but the fact that this blaze appears to have been intentionally set means that our brave volunteer firefighters were put in harm's way on what would seem a thoughtless whim.
In a previous editorial, I argued against setting a curfew for Inuvik's youth, taking the line that police and the municipality are not -- and should not -- be put into the role of surrogate parent. However, if parents are not willing to step up to the plate and public property and human lives are at risk from the behaviour of the wayward youth, then perhaps it's time to rethink things.
The collapse of SHSS's foyer roof brought out a lot of positive response from the community.
For example, teachers put in extra hours making sure students had homework material and the enthusiasm of our town's conscientious student population eager to get their hands on those resources was refreshing.
However, the flip side was that for a chunk of SHSS's student body, their school's unexpected closure didn't really matter as many in that lot had skipped more than half the year anyways. To make matters worse, now a student at the school has been charged with setting the fire.
High truancy rates, coupled with ongoing vandalism concerns -- that most recently burned up the high school gym -- indicate that there is a real discipline problem with much of the town's youth.
As there doesn't seem to be any way to shake parents responsible for these problematic kids out of their neglectful slumbers, then keeping the little rascals off the street looks to be the only course of action.
And while we're at it, something needs to be done to address the uninspiring attendance records at the high school. Perhaps a school-hour curfew during the weekdays -- whereby all youth would be expected inside the walls of our public education institutions during class time -- should be implemented as well.
All too often much time and energy is expended looking at ways to cater to the needs of our youth and it's about time the community addressed its own well-being and future prosperity. Allowing kids to attend school when they feel like it and run rampant through town at all hours does nothing in this regard.
Unless, of course, Inuvik is willing to put its future in the hands of a generation of lazy, irresponsible and criminal-minded youth being fostered here under our very noses.
Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum
Motorists across North America are up in arms over gasoline prices.
Because the recent spike at the pumps comes in advance of a federal election, the cost of gasoline has become a campaign issue. The Conservatives have pledged to remove the GST on the federal excise tax, in other words get rid of the "tax on a tax." That sounds great, but it will only translate into a savings of about one cent per litre. Big deal! Is that the best our politicians can do?
Underlying this outrage is North American consumers' false notion that we are entitled to relatively cheap gasoline. Where is that written in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms? Other than the U.S., most industrialized nations pay considerably more for fuel than Canadians.
I can't help but recall the words of a university professor who pointed out that we go into a store and pay more than a dollar for a litre of bottled water or pop and think nothing of it. But when we are expected to pay that amount for gasoline we're resentful.
Feeling gouged by gas prices, everyone wants to point the finger of blame. Over the years, the provincial and federal governments have held a number of inquiries into allegations of price fixing by oil companies. Did any of those inquiries ever find a guilty party?
Oil is a precious commodity in limited supply. Market demand continues to grow, and nobody seems to be able to dictate production rates to Middle Eastern producers (OPEC).
So it looks like we'll all have to swallow hard when we pull up to the pump. Just remember not to take it out on the poor cashiers. They have no control over the world forces at work, they're just trying to make a living.
Cans, bottles, wrappers and bags were the most common pieces of refuse left in the spring wasteland of Fort Simpson prior to Saturday. That was the day that dozens of residents came together for a community clean up.
It's a scene that plays out in most if not all Deh Cho communities this time of year.
Of course people are responsible for much of the rubbish but, as one astute picker-upper noted on Saturday, ravens (and dogs) are also contributors because they rip garbage bags open in search of food.
Regardless of who's to blame, it's frustrating to not only have to pick up wrappers, chip bags and bottles, but to find each in tiny pieces adds to the aggravation.
What possesses some people to think of the world as their trash can? Although more receptacles around the community would be helpful, there are many instances where people toss junk onto the street or sidewalk in full view of a garbage can.
If there's any upside to the thoughtless littering, it's that the oodles of debris unite neighbours in a common cause to get rid of it. There really is a sense of community to the event.
On the downside, the empty lots and fields -- some scoured twice in thorough efforts on Saturday morning -- were showing signs of fresh litter by late in the afternoon.
Same time, same place next year, everybody. There will be plenty more work to do.
In the May 17 edition of Nunavut News/North (Tootoos sue Brandon police) it was incorrectly stated that the shotgun and ammunition Terence Tootoo used to take his own life were his own.
In fact, the shotgun and ammunition were owned by Robert Roy, a defendant named in the Tootoo statement of claim.
News/North apologizes for any embarrassment or misunderstanding the error may have caused.