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Monday, September 18, 2006
Job well done

It will seem strange not to write "Inuvik Mayor Peter Clarkson..." any more.

The longtime civic politician is stepping aside once his term ends in November. Elected mayor in October 2000, Clarkson has seen Inuvik through some challenging times.

His first term as mayor came with the beginning of the present natural gas boom.

Renewed promise of a pipeline brought new jobs and money to the Mackenzie Delta, driving up rent, eating up accommodations and putting demands on social programs, town infrastructure and services. It's a balancing act, managing expectation with what's feasible.

The outgoing mayor has been a vocal proponent for his town and its people, fighting power rate hikes in 2003 and acting as a driving force behind construction of the Inuvik Family Centre.

Council has been a stable, hardworking bunch, a lot of which is due to Clarkson's leadership.

Clarkson has always been popular with Inuvik's voters, topping the polls to win a seat on council in 1998 and defeating Derek Lindsay for the mayor's job in 2000.

Unopposed in 2002, Clarkson narrowly won re-election in 2004.

Although he says he's not interested in seeking higher office, it wouldn't be a surprise to see political parties knocking on his door before the next federal election or a campaign to get him to run for one of Inuvik's seats in the legislative assembly.

One thing is for sure, whether or not he ends up in politics again,, the people of Inuvik owe him and his family thanks for the years he has put into building the town.


The Tlicho Trail

After almost a quarter century, $200 million and an untold number of chipped windshields, Highway 3 celebrated its grand re-opening earlier this month.

A who's who of Northern leaders gathered in Yellowknife to mark the official finish of what was the last unpaved main highway in Canada. The only thing missing from the celebration was a naming ceremony.

It wouldn't be the first time an NWT highway gets a name. Already, we have the Dempster Highway, the Liard Trial, the Mackenzie Highway and the Ingraham Trail.

It's time for the territorial government to name its crown-jewel roadway and we suggest the Tlicho Trail. Highway 3 passes through Tlicho territory during its 300-kilometre jaunt around Great Slave Lake, making the name a natural. It would also honour one of the first true aboriginal self-governments in Canada; the Tlicho assembly, formed last summer, will provide the basis for land-claims agreements that could totally reshape the territories.

A historic road and a historic government. The two go hand in hand.


Power positives

It's hard to resist the temptation to scoff when Nunavut's energy minister saves citizens a whole 0.19 per cent of a proposed 6.1 per cent power rate hike.

Thanks to Ed Picco's intervention, Qulliq Energy Corporation will only be permitted to charge customers 5.91 per cent more starting next month.

Just the thought of a rate hike is enough to make most people cringe. But, dare we say it, it's time to give the power corporation and its minister a little credit.

Although the utility encountered numerous troubles early in its relatively short existence, it does seem to be heading in the right direction lately.

Last year, Qulliq's board of directors made a commitment to tighten its collective belt. It did just that, cutting costs in just about every area.

A report produced by independent consultants earlier this year lauded the energy corporation for the progress it has made since it debuted in 2001.

"(Qulliq) has made significant improvement in the management and operation of the utility. This is particularly true for the last 12 to 18 month period," the report reads.

The energy corporation's deficits are shrinking. The $4.99 million shortfall in 2004-05 was almost half of the loss reported in 2003-04. It was revealed earlier this month that Qulliq actually recorded a modest $1.7 million profit last year.

This happened in the face of soaring energy prices on a worldwide scale, largely due to the skyrocketing cost of fuel. Power rate increases in the double-digit range have been introduced to great outrage in other, more accessible parts of the country.

Let's face it, it isn't cheap to provide power in Nunavut, a vast and remote Northern territory. The reason consumers don't feel much more of a sting is because the government subsidizes power rates so heavily.

Picco and the Qulliq board cannot rest on their laurels, however. The energy minister has identified a true challenge in, as he said, breaking Nunavut's "addiction to fossil fuels." The idea of pumping less greenhouse gases into the atmosphere - even if Nunavut's volume is just a tiny fraction of the global problem - should resonate in the eastern Arctic, where climate change is having such dramatic effects.

Qulliq is already undertaking initiatives to capture residual heat and is in the planning stages for a hydro project. But these ventures only make a small dent in the consumption of diesel fuel.

Obviously, accomplishing the minister's stated goal of weaning the territory from fossil fuel will not be easy. Reaching that objective without breaking the piggy bank will be nothing short of remarkable.


Awareness key to saving seal hunt

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News


It was case of good news, bad news for fur trappers in the Kivalliq this past week, as the battle over seal hunting continues to wage in many parts of the globe.

The latest salvo fired by those who endorse banning the hunt came from European lawmakers who demanded the European Union ban seal products in Europe this past week.

The good news for Kivalliq trappers is that Canada's biggest market for sealskins, Norway, is not a European Union member.

The second piece of good news is that two of the more outspoken European critics of seal hunting, Sweden's Carl Schlyter and Britain's Caroline Lucas, suggested skins from a traditional Inuit hunt should be exempted from the ban.

That being said, it's obvious most people outside the North still lump traditional seal hunting in with the Atlantic seal hunt, which has received tonnes of bad publicity for the past three decades.

The second piece of bad news is that a good many people among the ranks of those opposed to seal hunting are militant in their thinking and have an all-or-nothing mentality.

To these folks a ban should be total, period.

The problem is further compounded by the fact there is precious little, if anything, in the world of economics that can match the impact of the publicity campaign launched by groups that want the seal hunt banned.

We've all seen them - big-eyed, gorgeous little baby seals getting their brains beat out by overzealous hunters on the East Coast.

It's tug-on-the-heart-strings fodder for those in the south who don't understand how vastly different traditional seal hunting is in the Arctic. And, it's incredibly effective.

However, effective as these groups may be, the Nunavut government and our top Inuit organizations have to become more vigilant in their efforts to sway public opinion in the territory's favour.

In fact, one group that has made tiny inroads during the past few years in the battle for public opinion are the instructors and students in the Ottawa-based Nunavut Sivuniksavut (NS) program.

NS students and staff have had several exchanges with seal-hunt protesters on Capitol Hill.

And, they made enough of an impact that a few protesters actually put down their signs and went home.

While only a few were that enlightened, inroads were made in terms of fostering a better understanding as to the importance of the traditional hunt to Inuit.

The Nunavut government and our top Inuit organizations have the resources to make a much-greater impact on the international scene.

But it can't be an infrequent approach. We need to work hard at getting the information out on the value and importance of the traditional seal hunt to Inuit.

Only through better understanding will the traditional hunt be permitted to survive.

Unless, of course, somebody can teach a codfish how to talk.

Then we'd finally have an effective means of exposing the true nature of those cute little seals.


Fewer people, better neighbours

Editorial Comment
Philippe Morin
Inuvik Drum


When I lived in Ottawa, I attended a University with 20,000 students.

Every morning, I would catch a bus with 100 other people and stand shoulder to shoulder for an hour-long ride.

Above all else, no one talked; we followed the unspoken rule of the big city, remaining stoic and perhaps listening to headphones as we ignored each others' presence.

I mention this story because Inuvik seems so different.

While I have only lived here for two months, I have found it's easier to make friends and meet people in this community.

This is a combination of good design, plenty of recreational activities,

and especially the small population, which makes interaction easier.

Here's a short list of the things that make Inuvik a great place to live.

Let's start with public spaces, such as the Inuvik Family Centre, Legion Hall, Midnight Sun Recreational Complex and Centennial Library.

Whether you're looking to play squash, skate or read comic books, there is a lot to do in this town.

And best of all, most of the facilities are rarely crowded.

While you'd never yell "hello!" to a group of 30 strangers, it's usually polite to at least nod if there are a few people in the same room.

It's funny how human interaction - rather than forced aloofness - comes from the absence of crowds.

A second benefit of Inuvik's smaller population is that leagues are always looking for members.

Whether you are interested in quilting or hockey, there are always societies who'll welcome any newcomer.

Those of you who attended community registration night on the 12th will know what I mean.

Sometimes, just being interested in a sport will get you treated like a star player.

With places to go and things to do in Inuvik, another pleasant effect are the repeated run-ins.

While leagues and facilities provide chances to meet people, the town's small size allows chances to see them around.

Someone you might see at the library or pool one week will inevitably cross paths at with you the next.

Eventually, you can't help but say hello, because you've seen this person about eight times at similar places.

It might seem like a strange notion, but people meet more people in small towns than big cities.

Furthermore, Inuvik's public spaces and recreation programs do more than provide hockey or quilting or darts.

They are a starting point to a better community, and ultimately make people feel better on many levels.

It seems the smaller the community, the more appreciated its individual members become.

- Regular Drum editor Dez Loreen is on vacation and will be back covering Inuvik at the end of September.


Territories water rich

Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum


Sitting in constituency meetings held by MLAs or MPs is always an enlightening experience.

Water was on the minds of the people at the recent Keepers of the Water gathering in Fort Simpson.

Many aspects of water, spanning from water as a human right to water as a substance which should be preserved were discussed by specialists and regular people alike.

Living in the Deh Cho, it's almost hard to see what all the fuss is about. All the communities in the area are located by a source of water. Communities including Wrigley, Fort Simpson, Jean Marie River and Fort Providence are beside the Mackenzie River, which is so large it seems like it can never be exhausted. If you fly out of the communities you will find even more water located in small lakes as far as the eye can see.

The Northwest Territories and Nunavut cover 34 per cent of Canada's land mass and contain 18 per cent of Canada's lake area, according to Environment Canada. Even more impressive is the fact that 60 per cent of Canada's fresh water drains north.

Like the rest of Canada, the Northwest Territories is in an enviable position on the world stage with regards to water access.

Approximately 97.5 per cent of the world's water is salt water. The remaining 2.5 per cent of fresh water has to be shared by the world's rapidly growing population, currently numbering more than six billion.With only seven per cent of the world's land mass, Canada holds an impressive nine per cent of the world's renewable water supply.

What all these numbers mean is that in the Deh Cho there is more than enough fresh water for everyone. There is lots of water to drink and prepare food with. There is also lots of water for outdoor activities such as boating.

The water also provides sources of food by serving as a habitat for fish and water birds. It also acts as a source of water for animals such as moose and caribou and the vegetation they require.

While the abundance of water in the area makes it easy to believe there will never be a problem this is not the case.

Elders at the watershed conference shared stories about signs that the water is already changing. Fish are not as abundant as they used to be and the water can be the wrong colour, including having a glassy film on its surface.

Things are changing and the effects are being seen and will continue to be seen in the North.

While many of the issues relating to water start in the more industrialized south and flow north, it doesn't let northern residents off the hook. The benefit of having so much water at our doorsteps also brings with it great responsibilities.

In everyday activities people can do little things to help. Helpful tasks can be as simple as bringing garbage home while you're on a boat trip or ensuring that when you refuel your engine you don't spill gas into the water.

While larger solutions will be needed to address major sources of pollution, everyone can do their part to be a keeper of the water so the North can continue to enjoy its bounty.