Evidence of meeting #37 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was climate.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
The people have the ability to decide. Your responsibility is to get their views. This is supposed to be a parliamentary democracy. Well, let's make it work like one. We're in trouble if it's not working as a parliamentary democracy.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
Well, I think your presence here today, Mr. Erasmus, talking before this committee, indicates clearly that the will of this committee and the will of Parliament is to hear from all Canadians. I think this is the process we're engaging in right now.
I would like to ask you a question in regard to the bill. I think both Mr. Tulurialik and Mr. Erasmus have already said that you haven't had the opportunity to read the bill we're discussing before the committee today. It's only 13 clauses long. Could either of you tell the committee what date you were informed you would be appearing or what day you were first approached to appear before this committee to make a representation before this committee? Do you remember what date you were approached?
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
I was asked to appear last week.
Member, Kitikmeot Inuit Association
I was asked last week as well. I cannot confirm exactly what date.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
You haven't had a whole lot of time, but the issue remains the same. Is that correct?
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
Did you have an opportunity to read Bill C-377, which was basically the precursor to this bill from a previous Parliament? Do either of you remember ever reading Bill C-377?
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
You know what? There are so many bills. And I'm a Bill myself.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
I can't remember one from the other.
I remember Bill C-31. That's the one that was to deal with our citizenship.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
That's a different bill altogether and a different issue.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
That one stays in my mind more than anything.
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
I have a question for you, and I'll just preface it a little bit. I've spent quite a bit of time in Canada's north. I worked at Great Bear Lake, right on the Arctic Circle, when I was a younger man. I was able to take in the vast beauty of Canada's north. It was absolutely fantastic. It seems to me that there is a lot of potential in Canada's north. It certainly is a harsh environment. It's a harsh climate to try to survive in. I remember, at that time, over 20 years ago, the weather being quite inclement. When we would go out on the lake there would still be ice on the lake in the early part of July. And of course we were off the lake by September because the winds would pick up and it was not safe to be out on that lake.
One of the things that has occurred to me is that I would think, because of the harshness of the climate and the difficulties there, that adaptation would be a more important and pressing issue. If you take a look at what's been said by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, even if we were to hold our own levels of greenhouse gas emissions right now, which no economy will be able to do, it would take at least 50 years to see a change in the current trend we're seeing in the change of climate.
Knowing that, knowing that holding our own is still going to take 50 years to turn around, wouldn't it be more important for aboriginal communities and northern communities to put more emphasis on adaptation? I'm just wondering if you think Bill C-311 addresses any of those adaptation measures that would be so important for northern communities.
Member, Kitikmeot Inuit Association
That kind of caught me off guard.
It's complicated. I can't really say much on that. Let's go ahead with Mr. Erasmus.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
Well, we see a lot of potential in the south, too. They have a big population down there. The difficulty is that the water comes north. As downstream users, when the water comes north, we are affected. It's pretty hard to adapt when the effluent from....
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
In all fairness, we're talking about a bill that deals with gases in the air.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
That's Fort McMurray, is it not?
Conservative
Blaine Calkins Conservative Wetaskiwin, AB
No. We're talking about greenhouse gas emissions. That's what Bill C-311 is.
I understand there are issues and concerns with water. The committee is currently engaged in a study on that, and we've been interrupted by this bill in finishing that. I'm not going to deny that it's a serious issue, but I would like to get back to the whole issue of whether folks in the northern communities would not rather see investments that were going to produce concrete results for adaptation, rather than investing millions and millions and billions of dollars in hopes that greenhouse gas reductions will somehow stop climate change.
Regional Chief, Northwest Territories, Assembly of First Nations
To me, it doesn't make sense to do--
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
Excuse me. Unfortunately Mr. Calkins' time has run out, so if Mr. Tulurialik and Chief Erasmus could give just a very short response to his question, then we'll keep moving along.
Joe, did you want to go first?
Member, Kitikmeot Inuit Association
It's kind of hard to comment on that area. I'll talk a little bit about the forest fires. There are forest fires down in the south, and it comes up into the north. Way up in this area we can smell that haze and fire smoke, exactly the same way that there's a lot of pollution going on in the south and it affects us in a way, too. With the look of the clouds, the rain, and the vegetation, you can tell after a rain that it affects us in some way.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
Okay. I'm going to actually have to keep moving along here, to be fair to the other members of the committee.
Mr. Calkins, you asked when was the first time this panel had been invited. That was October 22, when we contacted all the different organizations representing aboriginal people to appear.
We'll keep moving along.
Mr. Scarpaleggia, you have the floor.