IGLULIK
An Iglulik contractor is questioning why the Nunavut Housing Corporation (NHC) discarded loads of "perfect" construction materials at the local dump, and believes MLAs should be concerned too.

Contractors in Iglulik were surprised to find the Nunavut Housing Corporation dumped brand new building materials at the local dump in September, including exterior doors. The materials were left over from construction projects carried out between 2006 and 2012, according to corporation's acting CEO, Adam Gordon. - NNSL file photo

During a trip to the landfill, Ike Haulli, owner of Savik Enterprises, saw NHC employees throwing out electrical supplies, plumbing materials, drywall mud, hardware and more.

The materials were "like brand new," with some still in the original packaging, so residents started loading up their vehicles, said Haulli, adding he made three trips with his truck.

He estimates he walked away with $20,000 worth of supplies while fellow contractor Richard Turbine got about $50,000 worth of stuff.

"It was a waste of money for the housing corporation," said Haulli. "Hopefully it will be raised in the house when the next sitting starts."

Adam Gordon, acting chief executive officer for NHC, said the materials were discarded as part of an ongoing initiative to consolidate its inventory in various communities.

In Iglulik, NHC worked with the local housing corporation in sorting through 64 seacans this past summer. They kept enough materials to fill 32 seacans and pitched anything that was damaged.

They also discarded items that would have cost more to sell than they were worth. The corporation adhered to surplus procedures, similar to those followed by government, when determining what to get rid of, said Gordon.

"We were quite cautious as an organization and quite intentional about our efforts. We didn’t just throw out every nut and bolt," said Gordon.

"We feel the material we kept can safely be used in the future and if it happens to be surplus to our needs … it has a value associated that we can dispose of it through surplus sale or potential transfers to other government departments."

The excess construction materials in communities are left over from the days of the Nunavut Housing Trust, under which the federal government shelled out $200 million to construct public housing units.

At that time, the corporation purchased construction supplies in bulk and provided them to contractors. The practice created quite a few problems for NHC, including theft of materials, which are detailed in a document prepared by auditors from Deloitte and Touche. The audit was carried out to determine the cause of the significant funding shortfall faced by the Nunavut Housing Trust.

The corporation has since moved away from the practice of buying and supplying construction materials and now tenders based on a supply, ship and erect method.

"We feel this new approach we are taking will certainly address some of the issues that we’re facing right now," said Gordon. "I do appreciate this type of commentary and feedback we have received … We always look back at these specific situations to evaluate and then possibly modify our procedures in the future."

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