The linchpin of NWTSA国际影视传媒檚 climate change fight efforts looked weak to some MLAs at a technical briefing on March 12.

That project, the Taltson Dam expansion, is supposed to account for 44 per cent of NWTSA国际影视传媒漵 obligation to cut emissions by a third of its 2005 levels by 2030, as per CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 commitments to the 2015 Paris climate accords.

The expansion would be 64 kilometres north of Fort Smith on the Taltson River, and would almost triple the current hydro capacity of the NWT.

However, some MLAs were leery of the projectSA国际影视传媒檚 prospects.

Inuvik Twin Lakes MLA Lesa Semmler was one of them. She wanted to know how she could be sure her constituents would benefit. Even if the project went ahead, she said, SA国际影视传媒淚 know that line ainSA国际影视传媒檛 going to come all the way up there.SA国际影视传媒�

Other Beaufort Delta work, meanwhile, has stalled under GNWTSA国际影视传媒檚 climate plans. The $40 million wind project in Inuvik, green-lit in 2018, has been tangled up in delays, Semmler noted.

Facing high power costs, residents were also considering switching back to diesel from trucked-in gas, Semmler said.

John Vandenberg, assistant deputy minister at department of infrastructure recognized the delays, but said it was now before the GwichSA国际影视传媒檌n Land and Water Board and GNWT expects the project to go forward.

SA国际影视传媒淲e donSA国际影视传媒檛 have that type of spend (compared to the Taltson expansion) planned for the Beaufort Delta,SA国际影视传媒� he said, continuing to say there were no projects that would achieve the same reductions of the dam.

The project would also connect to about 70 per cent of NWTSA国际影视传媒檚 population and resource development in the Great Slave Lake area, stabilizing costs, Andrew Stewart, director of energy for the Department of Infrastructure, added.

SA国际影视传媒淲e have a lot of eggs in one basket in forecasting Taltson to pick up on (reducing) our GHG emissions,SA国际影视传媒� Yellowknife Centre MLA Julie Green said. SA国际影视传媒淭hat project has not proven to be financially viable at the point.SA国际影视传媒�

She wanted to know what the government would do if the expansion fumbled. Stewart, in response, said targeting industrial emissions like expansion would was key to the territorySA国际影视传媒檚 efforts.

SA国际影视传媒淚 say this with all due respect: I hope thatSA国际影视传媒檚 keeping you up at night,SA国际影视传媒� Green said, meaning incorporating industry into emissions control.

Frame Lake MLA Kevin OSA国际影视传媒橰eilly also raised concern. For him, the project would take an inevitable dive.

SA国际影视传媒淚 donSA国际影视传媒檛 think itSA国际影视传媒檚 a question of if, itSA国际影视传媒檚 a question of when. Look, thereSA国际影视传媒檚 no money,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淗ow many buyers do we have signed up? Zero.SA国际影视传媒�

With no buyers, and no business case, he said, there had to be contingency plans now.  OSA国际影视传媒橰eilly proposed alternatives like carbon offsets, and renewable diesel, in case the Taltson project didnSA国际影视传媒檛 go ahead.

OSA国际影视传媒橰eilly also had issues with a proposed $21 million Whati transmission line connecting to the North Slave grid. Slated for 2022, the line would only connect one community, he said, adding that it coincidentally went past the Fortune MineralsSA国际影视传媒� Nico mine site.

SA国际影视传媒淔or the cost of this, I think we could get mini hydro in three Tlicho communities,SA国际影视传媒� he said.

Stewart told him any mini hyrdo would be in the ballpark of $30 million, adding that the line goes past a potential hydro site, but not near the Fortune Minerals site. The line would mean a community off diesel, he said.

Whati, Fort Providence and Kakisa (the latter two are both to get a similar line by 2022 for $26 million) are the only communities that could be feasibly connected to the grid at this point, he said.

Thebacha MLA Frieda Martselos was more positive on the Taltson expansion, saying the project would bolster the territorySA国际影视传媒檚 economy, and boost access to renewable energy.

The project was the only way SA国际影视传媒渢o put us back on the may and start building our economy in a balanced way with the support of Indigenous groups, she said, in reference to possible Indigenous ownership.

Hanging over the discussion were residentsSA国际影视传媒� high power bills, and increased expenses as the NWT faces the brunt of climate change.

From 1958 to 2018, the average temperature rose by 2.5 degrees in Hay River and 5 degrees in Inuvik, a GNWT slide from the presentation stated.

Those costs are just the beginning, according to Yellowknife North MLA Rylund Johnson, whoSA国际影视传媒檚 advocated declaring a climate emergency in assembly.

In the discussion, he underlined the urgency of the climate crisis and potential billions in infrastructure costs that come as result as permafrost slumps and other damages take their toll.

SA国际影视传媒淚t affects every single infrastructure, peopleSA国际影视传媒檚 foundation on their homes SA国际影视传媒� even if we meet global targets,SA国际影视传媒� Johnson said.