Evidence of meeting #50 for Natural Resources in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was program.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
What's the key to them seeing that light? What do you need to have first?
4:25 p.m.
Project Manager, Wawasum Group LP
I truly believe that if you do both, they go in hand. The community sees that there is going to be a pellet plant developed there and there are going to be 45 jobs there. The training will start and the training will continue. I think it needs to be the overall picture.
One of the problems that I spoke about briefly—again, I'm not criticizing any program, but it's just the way the programs are developed—is the fact that we start to get moving here and all of a sudden there's a lull in the program because you have to go someplace else and deal with new people when you're trying to get funding. You have to re-explain and rework it. Let's have a system that's consistent so that morale and momentum are built and continue on, and they don't stop.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
As you think about the development of the pellet plant in your community, do you have advice for other communities as they look at ways to transform their industry and what they ought to be doing?
4:25 p.m.
Project Manager, Wawasum Group LP
I think they're going to run into the same difficulties and the same problems that we did. We're going to get it done. Unfortunately, it's going to take longer than we ever imagined.
That's what we're saying to this committee. Let's develop a process that gets away from that. Let's have it go.
As I said in my presentation, we have community members, and you go there, you talk to them, and you tell them what you want to do. The community has had to invest in regard to getting fibre commitment. They had to invest actual dollars to ensure they have that, and now they're asking where the pellet plant is. It has been three years now and there's still no construction. Again, it's part of the process that's there. We could tell other first nations communities to do the same thing that we are doing, but I believe that unless the committee and federal government take a serious look at it and say, “Let's fix the system, let's make this a reality, and let's make it happen”.... I think that's the biggest message.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Thank you.
Mayor Brown, when you look at the agreement between the six first nations and Resolute that you've referred to, are there any lessons in the way the agreement was come to or negotiated and developed that we could learn from, or that other communities could learn from, particularly in relation to the need to have more of the kinds of things that Mr. Hanlon was talking about and the need to have more first nations involved?
4:25 p.m.
Mayor, Town of Atikokan
I guess the thing is that we're working at it as partners with the first nations. The first nations need jobs and need the economy just like we do, and they're very interested in that.
When Resolute and the first nations signed the memorandum of understanding back on February 11 in Thunder Bay, it was a great day. I think it will provide employment for all the first nations in the area, and that's basically the same thing we want. I think we have to include them and keep working with them as we move forward.
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Mr. Labbé, you heard the comments about education and change. In addition, you, yourself, mentioned the importance of improving productivity.
How do you think the government could be involved in this? What is the industry's role in improving productivity?
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Wave if you can hear us.
You can raise your hand if you can hear us.
Can you hear us now?
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
All right.
Let me turn back to Mayor Brown.
In terms of the state-of-the art sawmill that you now have, are you able to tell us about some of the aspects of that sawmill? What makes it state of the art and what is it about that, that will make it more competitive?
4:30 p.m.
Mayor, Town of Atikokan
I know for a fact that, for example, it has the most up-to-date planer as part of it. They are actually going to truck the wood from Ignace to Atikokan, which is about 145 kilometres one way, to be planed in Atikokan. I don't know all the details of the mill itself, but we've been told it's state of the art and it's the most modern one probably in Canada.
As I said, it's going to be Canada's newest sawmill.
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Mr. Hanlon, in terms of the first nations that you're familiar with, what involvement do you see those first nations having in research and development and innovation in forestry, and if it isn't sufficient, what should change there?
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
If you don't think it's adequate in terms of their involvement, how can we change that?
