Yellowknifer Feb. 3, 2021 Edition

Resto's Covid fine 'extremely troubling' to NWT chamber Business advocate criticizes $5,175 fine issued to Monkey Tree in letter to premier Online first at NNSL.com

Volume 49 Issue 89

WEDNESDAY, February 3, 2021

75 CENTS ($1 outside city)

GNWT fined $10k for wrecking bird nests

Super Brush Bros.

Sports NWT decides who will represent in Calgary $1.00 outside Yellowknife

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News YK company wants to broker vax sales

Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo

Andy Stewart, Mike Auge and Cory Holzer take a break from clearing brush at the Yellowknife Golf Club on Sunday afternoon. See more photos on pages 10 and 11.

"We acknowledge that barriers exist in pursuit of reconciliation (and there is) a lack of trust towards RCMP." –The NWT's ranking Mountie, Jamie Zettler, talked policing with MLAs, page 7.

2 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

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Yellowknifer is committed to getting facts and names right. With that goes a commitment to acknowledge mistakes and run corrections. If you spot an error in Yellowknifer, call 873-4031 and ask to speak to an editor, or email editorial@nnsl.com. We'll get a correction or clarification in as soon as we can.

News Briefs YCS superintendent Simone Gessler recognized Simone Gessler, superintendent of Yellowknife Catholic Schools (YCS) has received the 2021 Distinguished Service Award from the Northwest Territories Superintendents' Association (NWTSA).

The award, announced by YCS on Friday recognizes Gessler's 22 years of educational leadership in the NWT. Before taking her current position as superintendent, Gessler was assistant superintendent of learning with YCS, associate superintendent of learning, principal of Weledeh Catholic School and teacher at Weledeh and St. Joseph school.

"It has been a privilege to work with Gessler over the past several years," said Yvonne Careen, superintendent of the Commission Scolaire francophones de TNO. Adding to her accolades, Gessler will receive the provincial/territorial EXL Award at a Canadian Association of School Administrators (CASA) ceremony in July.

She's also in the running for CASA's 2021 Canadian Superintendent of the Year award.

– Blair McBride

New e-service for workplace incident reporting The Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission (WSCC) announced Monday that employers in the NWT and Nunavut can now report workplace incidents and injuries through their new online service WSCC Connect.

The new service will be "easier, faster and more secure," Debbie Molloy, WSCC president and CEO, said.

In announcing the new e-service, WSCC advised that reporting requirements have not changed. All workplace injuries, incidents or dangerous occurrences must be reported within three business days.

Other available services on WSCC Connect include requesting a clearance letter, registering a business and reporting unsafe work.

In the event of an accident causing serious bodily injury, death or a dangerous occurrence, employers must always call the 24-hour Incident Reporting line at 1-800661-0792 as soon as is reasonably possible, WSCC advised.

– Natalie Pressman

Inclusion NWT announce Winter Parenting Guide Inclusion NWT has launched a Winter Parenting Guide which is aiming to provide moms, dads and caregivers keep their children entertained until the spring.

The organization issued a news release last week which offers the new parenting resource online through its InclusionNWT. ca website.

The resource aims to take in creative activities, recipes and other tips for parenting from the community.

"Our parenting guide is meant to be experienced much like a chat one might have around the kitchen table with moms and dads," stated Abby Goodwin, youth facilitator with Inclusion NWT, adding that the guide "offers some creative ideas to occupy, distract, or redirect children so the adults can take a breath and have a cup of tea at some point during the day."

Parents are asked to submit recipes, games and other tips by email at youth@ inclusionnwt.ca up until Feb. 14.

– Simon Whitehouse

Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 3

fact file nwt covid-19 situation as of Feb. 2 Active NWT cases: 1 Confirmed cases: 32 Recovered cases: 31 Completed tests: 12,169 Negative tests: 12,121 Pending tests: 37

Scan for the latest GNWT Covid-19 statistics

Days since first confirmed case: 319 Days since last confirmed case: 1 Common symptoms: Fever, (60 per cent), muscle aches or pain (53 per cent), cough (53 per cent), sore throat (33 per cent), diharrhea (13 per cent), difficulty breathing (seven per cent) Source: Office of the Chief Public Health Officer

Two new cases of Covid19 in NWT, says premier Three other cases related to workers from outside territory, circumstances of new case in Fort Liard unclear reasons do the isolation. Wash your hands, wear your mask, keep your social distancing – it's our best defence," Cochrane said.

Ongoing wastewater surveillance in Yellowknife, Hay River, Fort Smith, Fort Simpson and Inuvik currently shows no anomalies, Kandola said.

one of the most complex all-encompassing vaccination drives in the country. Supply was always going to be strained, particularly The NWT has five active cases of Coviduntil additional vaccines reach market.

19, said chief public health officer Dr. Kami "But as Northerners we also need to Kandola on Tuesday. remember just how fortunate we are to have Three are connected to the limited outreceived the allocation we have so far. We'll break at a Gahcho Kué winter road site over still receive enough to vaccinate 75 per cent the last week, one is at the diamond mine Moderna vaccine delays of our adult population in a relatively short site itself and the fifth was found in Fort The Canada-wide delay in shipments of period of time and much faster than (other) Liard on Monday, Kandola told reporters at a news conference in the legislative assembly the Moderna vaccine will change the Covid- jurisdictions in Canada."

19 vaccination campaign roll out in the Despite the reduced third shipment, building.

All five individuals are doing well and short-term but vaccination clinics already NWT resident rotational workers at remote isolating, and there is no risk of community scheduled for this week will not be affected, camps will begin receiving their first doses Kandola said. of Moderna this week, a group that is prispread.

"Existing supply will be dedicated to oritized because they work with others from The new case in Fort Liard is a "workrelated exposure linked to out-of-territory second doses for residents and staff at long southern jurisdictions who might import Covid-19. travel" and not connected to the six cases term care facilities," she added.

"We're putting out an appeal to all the Health Minister Julie Green announced of the small community cluster that had recovered in the last week of January, Kan- on Friday that the delay would reduce the rotational workers who work in closed expected third shipment this week from camps. You work two to four weeks, with dola said.

Unlike that cluster of cases, the infection 7,200 doses to 4,700. The first shipment people coming straight from other provinces announced on Monday has a low risk of fur- arrived in the NWT on Dec. 28 and the where there are a large number of outbreaks.

You may be healthy, you may not consider second in mid-January. ther transmission.

Information on the fourth and fifth ship- yourself at risk, but please consider getting In response to an inquiry as to whether the latest case in Fort Liard was the result ments – due in mid-March – was not yet vaccinated because we don't want the virus to coming up to the communities," Kandola of someone not self-isolating properly or if available, Kandola said.

The federal government is in discussions said. they were given a special exemption to selfResidents of long-term care facilities and isolate in the community, Premier Caroline with Moderna on future shipments and the Cochrane said the case is still under inves- NWT's vaccination roll out could be re- their support staff began receiving their adjusted depending on the outcome of those second doses as of the last weekend of Janutigation. ary.

"If you travel outside the territory for any conversations.

One-hundred and twenty-five second "While this is disappointing, we all need reason, make sure that you ... do the selfmonitoring, if you are travelling for other to expect some bumps in the road. This is doses have been administered to residents and staff at Avens Manor in Yellowknife and at the Jimmy Erasmus Seniors Home in Behchoko, said territorial medical director Dr. AnneMarie Pegg, who also spoke at the news conference.

Second doses are scheduled to be delivered to long-term care residents and staff at Stanton Territorial Hospital on Wednesday, and at the long-term care unit in the Inuvik hospital and in the Fort Simpson Elder Care Home on Friday.

Whether the order of communities to receive the second dose will be the same as it was for the first dose will depend on the arrival of vaccine supplies and on the priority groups that remain to be vaccinated, said Pegg.

Cochrane closed the conference by saying that the NWT having the lowest number of Covid-19 cases in the country isn't the result of luck.

"Not only have we had a very competent chief public health officer and medical staff but our businesses, our NGOs, every resident has stepped up to protect us. We're not out of this yet. We're really close to the end. But please just keep abiding by the orders for a little bit longer. And hopefully ... we'll be able to get back to a normal life."

A total of 12,241 first doses of the ModBlair McBride/NNSL photo erna vaccine have been administered at clinThe risk of community spread from the five active cases of Covid-19 in the ics in all 33 communities of the NWT since NWT is low, said chief public health officer Dr. Kami Kandola on Tuesday at the campaign started on Dec. 31, said Green.

by Blair McBride

Northern News Services

a news conference.

4 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

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Department of Infrastructure fined $10,000 for disrupting threatened birds' nests Ironic that efforts to discourage interaction with birds ended up destroying nests: Crown

by Natalie Pressman

Northern News Services

The Government of the Northwest Territories' Department of Infrastructure (INF) was ordered on Jan. 28 to pay a $10,000 fine for disturbing migratory bird nests off of Highway 3.

Bank Swallows, a threatened species under the migratory bird act, typically nest on sand banks – both natural and artificial – such as riverbanks, quarries, sand/gravel mounds and road cuts. The birds dig burrows which lead to underground nests, often in colonies of 10 to nearly 2,000 nests.

Between May 30, 2018 and June 20, 2018, two employees contracted by INF unknowingly destroyed several swallow nests off of Highway 3 near Edzo.

The employees were hired to level piles on the highway as a means of discouraging interaction with the birds during construction season, they were not aware that they were irritating the nests in the process.

The disruption was discovered after a biologist with Environment Canada photographed the birds and multiple colonies in May. When

he returned weeks later, the swallows were gone and the colonies destroyed.

INF pleaded guilty to the offence on Dec. 9, 2020 and both the Crown and defence lawyers noted the department's co-operation in the matter and the steps they are taking to avoid future such circumstances.

Crown prosecutor Morgan Fane told the court that the matter is not an omission of responsibility on the department's part but strictly a liability offence. He said the irony is in the fact that if not for INF's efforts to discourage interaction with the species they would not have disturbed the nests at all.

Defence lawyer Roger Shepard told the court that since the case has been brought to the GNWT's attention, INF has hired a contractor and senior biologist to create a document outlining best practices for minimizing risk to migratory bird populations, their nests and their eggs.

The document will highlight general management of migratory birds with a specific chapter dedicated to Bank Swallows. The document, when complete, will be made available to the public on the

photo courtesy of Alan Vernon

The GNWT Department of Infrastructure will pay $10,000 after unintentionally disturbing Bank Swallow nests off of Highway 3. department's website.

Shepard indicated that they department is also working to create training materials to inform employees of the risks ahead of Swallow nesting season, as well as an onsite training for staff to properly identify the birds and understand practical next step – pausing their work, taping off a buffer zone, or bringing in a biologist for example.

Shepard said the department plans for the training

to be annual for relevant employees.

While these materials have yet to be finalized, Shepard said that "it is not the case that the department is burying

their head in the sand so to speak."

He said that prosecution is something that the government never hopes to incur, however, in this case "it has

spurred a lot of beneficial work."

The $10,000 fine was a joint position that judge Donovan Molloy accepted.

"This isn't a case where there was total indifference," Molloy said. But rather that "the problem was in the execution."

He noted INF's guilty plea as mitigating considering the time it is saving the court and the admission of responsibility.

Steve Loutitt, the department's deputy minister, sat with the government's lawyer in the courtroom.

"I take this matter very seriously," he said.

He told the court that INF takes responsibility for its actions and "recognizes that not enough was done."

He said that the department has taken steps and will take further steps to ensure an avoidance of these circumstances in the future.

photo courtesy of the GNWT

Making the Legacy Stanton building new

Renovations inside the Old Stanton Hospital Building, or Legacy Stanton, are well underway with the first floor to become the location of the outpatient, integrated primary care and facilities management area, said Department of Health and Social Services spokesperson Damien Healy. The renovations began in the summer of 2019 and are expected to be complete by the spring of 2022.

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Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 5

Treatment of food and beverage sector 'extremely troubling': NWT Chamber Business lobby group defends Monkey Tree in spat over health inspector

by Simon Whitehouse Northern News Services

The Northwest Territories Chamber of Commerce has come out in defence of the Monkey Tree Pub following the establishment receiving a $5,175 Covid violation ticket.

The Chamber issued a stronglyworded letter to Premier Caroline Cochrane stating that the organization is in support of the pub.

The Jan. 27 letter co-signed by Chamber president Jenni Bruce and executive director Renee Comeau states that the business lobby organization supports the allegation that the pub – and the food and beverage sector, more broadly – is being unfairly treated by Covid Secretariat health inspectors.

"From the feedback we have been receiving from our members, this is extremely troubling for the business community," the letter states. "It is upsetting that both as premier, and minister of the Covid Secretariat, this behaviour by the individual health Inspector is being perceived by the business community as being 'brushed off.'"

Bruce and Comeau both supported co-owner Jen Vornbrock's effort to ban the specific health inspector who issued the ticket from entering the premises. Vornbrock previously told Yellowknifer that the inspector has a history of harassing staff and contributing to an unsafe workplace.

"It is also concerning that the GNWT does not see the issue of a male in an authority position being aggressive and unprofessional to a sector that is 85 per cent female," Bruce and Comeau wrote. "This is being understood as "a she said/ he said'' situation, and until proven otherwise, we believe him and not her. Every individual has the right to a safe work environment free from harassment without the fear of retribution. This fundamental human right cannot be brushed aside."

The Monkey Tree Pub is scheduled to appear in territorial court on March 2 at 9:30 a.m. in relation to the charge.

Cochrane declined comment specifically to the pub case on Friday, noting that the issue is before the courts.

"It's important we protect the fairness for all involved in judicial inquiries, so I won't be commenting on details of the case," Cochrane stated.

However the premier provided a defence of her government's record working with businesses in limiting the spread of Covid-19.

"The NWT business community has done an exemplary job at adapting to the pandemic," Cochrane stated in an email last week.

NNSL file photo

The Northwest Territories Chamber of Commerce recently sent a letter to NWT Premier Caroline Cochrane defending the Monkey Tree Pub, which received a Covid-related ticket several weeks ago. The private business has said that it wants to ban a specific health inspector from entering the establishment due to allegedly harassment of staff and poor treatment of management.

"Businesses have played an important role in protecting residents from Covid-19 while providing important goods and services that NWT residents rely on.

"It is important for all business to comply with existing orders to protect their staff, their customers and the broader community. Any business not complying jeopardizes the relative openness of our economy, as an outbreak could result in the need for stricter measures."

Cochrane said the NWT's success in not having high rates of transmission of Covid has been largely due to work between the government and the private sector.

"Because we took strong, early action to protect public health against Covid-19, we are in a position today where nearly every business and organization can remain open even as the rest of the country moves into additional periods of lockdown," she said.

Although the Chamber's letter states that restaurant operators have been afraid to speak out due to a fear of retaliation, Cochrane has said the Covid enforcement arm has been fair.

"Our public health officers use a progressive enforcement model emphasizing education ahead of punitive measures," she said. "This

means unless there was imminent danger or a blatant violation, they would provide information and guidance to help bring an individual

or business into compliance.

"Except in extraordinary instances, we would not issue a charge to a business without first educating."

NNSL file photo

Premier Caroline Cochrane says she will not comment on cases before the court but reminds that "it is important for all business to comply with existing orders to protect their staff, their customers and the broader community."

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Mildred Hall students talk racism with Trudeau NHL's first Black player and famed hockey broadcaster also part of the conversation

by Blair McBride

Northern News Services

photo courtesy of Stewart MacNeil

Students in Stewart MacNeil's Grade 5-6 at Mildred Hall School connected by video conference with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the NHL's first black player Willie O'Ree and veteran hockey broadcaster Ron MacLean on Monday.

Students at Mildred Hall School on Monday learned about racism and resilience in a video conference with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Also involved in the conversation with students in Stewart MacNeil's Grade 5-6 class were Willie O'Ree, the first Black player in the NHL, and veteran hockey broadcaster Ron MacLean.

The Franklin Avenue school was among dozens across Canada to join the video conference, where O'Ree spoke about his experiences with racism while playing hockey from 1957 to 1979.

It's part of the Lessons from Willie program by Classroom Champions, a learning initiative that seeks to engage students through sports and teach effective classroom and life skills.

Student Jason Meyers was picked to stand up and ask of a question of Trudeau. "(I asked) what does Willie O'Ree mean to you?" Meyers said.

To the disappointment of the class, the audio in their connection cut out and they couldn't hear Trudeau's response.

While Meyers said he felt "let down" by the technical

glitch, it was still an exciting experience for him.

"Just knowing that you're talking to the prime minister and to the first African-American hockey player in NHL (was good)," he said.

Before the audio problem, MacNeil said his students got a chance to say hello to Ron MacLean and chat about their hometown.

"He had nothing but good things to say about Yellowknife," said MacNeil. "He talked about his connection with the Yellowknife Education District No. 1 board. He said he had a good time with our schools and at Sir John Franklin and he watched them play hockey last year when he was here for Hockey Day in Canada."

MacNeil added that Trudeau would later record his response to Meyer's question and send it to the class.

Mildred Hall was chosen for the conference because it's a participant in Classroom Champions, which pairs classroom across North America with Olympic, Paralympic, professional and NCAA athlete volunteers for year-long oneon-one mentorships to teach skills such as emotional learning, leadership, goal setting and perseverance, said spokesperson Genevieve Adams.

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Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 7

MLAs press NWT's top cop on RCMP issues 'Trust deficit' and systemic racism top of mind for elected officials

by Blair McBride

Northern News Services

Speaking to a standing committee technical briefing on policing in the territory Chief Superintendent Jamie Zettler, commanding officer of the NWT RCMP, faced questions on shortcomings of police services on Jan. 26.

Rylund Johnson, MLA for Yellowknife North, took aim at the RCMP, saying that it has a "trust deficit" in the North and asked if G Division has a higher proportion of rookie officers sent to remote locations and officers with disciplinary histories, such as an officer in Fort Good Hope who in 2015 pleaded guilty to sexual assault.

"I'll dispute that comment," Zettler said. "Our employees that come into the territory, we might get eight to 11 cadets come in over 12 months. None of them go to our small communities.

I would suggest that our level of service as an organization has decreased but mainly because across the country we've seen an increased number of resources brought in. Our members' service might be getting younger in service years but not because there's more rookies coming in."

"As for disciplinary area – we don't have a higher percentage of people with discipline (issues). I would say we have lower levels actually," Zettler said.

However, the commanding officer admitted that he "dropped the ball" with regards to the officer sent to Fort Good Hope. "(After that) we've put in further scrutiny but we get great members who come here. They're well trained, they do a great job," he said.

Switching gears, Johnson later commented that no-alcohol orders on suspects released from custody

are setting up people to fail if they already struggle with substance abuse issues.

"Over-policing practices criminalizes vulnerable populations. The vast majority of our release conditions are too onerous. We've seen some changes in bail conditions but it hasn't made it to the ground of policing. How are we changing RCMP release conditions?

They take up too much court time and we've gotten out of control with laying too many breach charges."

Kim Schofield, assistant deputy minister and solicitor general in the Department of Justice responded to Johnson's concerns by saying that in the pandemic the practice has shifted and there have been fewer people in custody and remand.

People released with conditions are being asked to refrain from drinking in public rather than refrain completely "(because with) people who have chronic substance issues it's hard for them to live up to those conditions," Schofield said.

Zettler said he agreed with Johnson, adding that release conditions should take public safety into consideration.

"That includes potential victims of offenses and each case should be looked at on its own merits to make sure the conditions of release are related to the offense. I think that the message that has gone forward is the opportunity to release offenders who can support it. That has created a reduction in our accused in Yellowknife," he said.

Thebacha MLA Frieda Martselos, who joined the meeting by phone, asked how the NWT RCMP are addressing systemic racism in the force.

Zettler said the RCMP are develop-

ing a clearer picture of the barriers in policing that lead to systemic racism by working with Indigenous partners and leaders on cultural understanding.

"Our recruitment process goes through continual review," he said.

"Certainly systemic racism has been flagged. We have to take a look at arresting process and address barriers that have impacted Indigenous citizens. We need to work with partners to see if our policies are working."

Martselos also said there is a "major gap" in communication between her home community of Fort Smith and the RCMP. "I agree with you that communications is something that no one will ever find the right level on," Zettler said. "The more we communicate, the higher the expectation is. It's something we'll always have to strive to work on. Communication gaps will probably always exist. We have to keep working on it.

"If anything goes off the rails it's because there wasn't enough communication. Even when we think we're communicating enough we realize it wasn't enough or it was misinterpreted. I'm committed to continuing working on communications."

Jackson Lafferty, MLA for Monfwi, pointed out that 12 communities in the NWT don't have police detachments, including the community of Gameti in his constituency that has been advocating for an RCMP detachment.

"The RCMP can provide more manpower but no detachment. Gameti wants a detachment. Could a detachment be set up in partnership? We should have detachments in all communities but we don't. Nunavut has detachments in all communities," Lafferty said.

GNWT image

NWT RCMP commanding officer Chief Superintendent Jamie Zettler speaks to MLAs in a standing committee meeting about policing on Friday.

"We have to keep in mind safety over money. How many lives do we have to go through before we establish any sort of facility? This will be an ongoing issue until things happen."

In response, Schofield said that building detachments and infrastructure is costly but that there would be further conversations on the issue.

Lafferty then asked which communities will be chosen under the First Nations Policing Program (FNPP) for nine police positions.

"We've had (FNPP) positions in Behchoko, Fort Simpson, Fort Good Hope and Inuvik," Schofield said.

"There was an allocation of 35 RCMP

positions across Canada. We were very successful, we received five out of the 35. I thought we did well considering our small population. (But) the criteria is it they have to go places with existing FNPP positions. Based on the need and service levels, two will go to the Tlicho region, one will go to Inuvik, one will go to the Sahtu and one to the Dehcho."

Zettler also addressed the issue of body cameras on officers and said there is a commitment to move forward with the project, though it will come with costs and more research is needed on how the technology would work in the territory.

Reconciliation a priority for NWT RCMP: Zettler Women in the force up, Indigenous hires down new data shows

by Blair McBride

Northern News Services

Chief Superintendent Jamie Zettler, commanding officer of the NWT RCMP, is telling MLAs that the force is undertaking work reach its goal of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.

"I believe G Division excels in (community engagement and cultural orientation) better than any other division in Canada," Zettler told MLAs in a standing committee on social development meeting about policing in the NWT on Jan. 29.

Yellowknife detachment staff attend camps to learn about Dene culture and history and all G Division employees must take online Indigenous cultural awareness courses to better understand cultural practices, he explained.

Reconciliation with Indigenous people is a priority for the NWT RCMP, whose goal is "to foster an environment of trust, collaboration and open communication with Indigenous citizens.

"We acknowledge that barriers exist in pursuit of reconciliation (and there is) a lack of trust towards RCMP," Zettler said.

"We require detachment commanders to reach out to

representative groups, maintain training requirements, update missing persons policies (and) increase involvements with communities."

The commanding officer said that reconciliation and diversity goals seek to have police services reflect the diversity of the NWT, however the data he cited shows a demographic divergence between women and Indigenous members of the force since 2017.

In 2020 about eight per cent of NWT RCMP self-identified as Indigenous, or 17 members,

down from 22 members in 2017.

About 20 per cent of the force – or 42 members – identify as women in 2020, an increase from the 30 members in 2017.

"This is an increase of 75 per cent since 2015," he said, though the information he presented only went back as far as 2017.

"It's an acknowledgement that these statistics change on a regular basis," Zettler said.

In the NWT, there is no independent police investigat-

ing body but Zettler pointed out "that doesn't mean RCMP doesn't have oversight."

"Oversight comes in the form of courts, legislative processes, inquests, media, civil processes, political debates, as well as the media," he said.

An internal policy was developed by the RCMP in 2011 for external reviews to fill the void from a lack of an independent investigating agency.

Additionally the federal Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC)

NT RCMP image

Data on reconciliation and diversity presented by NWT RCMP commanding officer Jamie Zettler shows that the representation of women on the force has risen since 2015, while it has decreased slightly for Indigenous members in the same period.

can handle complaints about policing services at local detachments or online by senior RCMP officers. Resolutions can be done informally or through a formal channels.

The RCMP aims to resolve complaints within 90 days of receiving them, Zettler said. In 2019 the NWT force took about 96 to clear up most complaints.

It took 109 days in 2020.

"I'd like to think that's associated to the pandemic," Zettler said. "NWT has the highest amount of informal resolutions done across the country."

There has been a higher volume of calls for police services each month since the Covid-19 pandemic began compared to 2019, particularly in Yellowknife.

"Police are being asked to deal more with social disorder offenses that don't necessarily involve criminal offenses.

(But) occurrence volumes have decreased," Zettler said.

It's possible Covid-19 is related to an increase in calls for family violence issues but that connection can't be confirmed yet, he noted.

8 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

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Residents' ballots will take the plunge We'll know by fall whether Yellowknifers pour cold water on the aquatic centre and its slide Northern News Services

The ice slide at Snowking's castle is going up with relative ease.

It's going to be a cinch to take it down, too: organizers literally just have to wait for the weather to do its thing.

The new loopidy-looping swervityswerving Six Flags-inspired, crowdpleasing water slide suggested for the replacement for the Ruth Inch Memorial Pool, less so.

The cost? $1.5 million. The debate? Brief. The devil? In the details still to be worked out.

The good news? That Yellowknifers will have the final say on the whole deal this October.

There already were a lot of details to be ironed out about the pool before this slide came along.

All we've heard about over the last year, besides the pandemic of course, is whether Yellowknife will get a 25-metre pool or a 52-metre pool. Apparently council has now settled on the smaller option but with more frills. Sort of like buying a smaller SUV with better features for the same or less money than the Canyonero in the corner of the lot that's caught your eye.

The issue:

A 'wow' sort of water slide

We say:

It's a slippery slope

Coun. Niels Konge seemed to be the only vocal councillor with more concerns for the athletic community and potential of the larger pool. He said he feels the smaller option may not fulfill the city's needs in a few years.

"The only reason we're considering a 25-metre pool is because we don't think the public will accept the cost and we just spent a million-and-ahalf dollars more for a slide," Konge said. "So we talk about disservice to the community, but building a pool that is not big enough right now would be a disservice to the community."

This SUV, however, has the potential to cost nearly $60 million. And like upgrading to premium fuel to take care of that four litre engine and the turbo that makes it feel a little more like a six, the city would

have to add lifeguards, two at least by the sound of it, to watch the super sliders. On top of that, council heard that there may also be water pumps for the slide that may need to be replaced every five to 10 years.

Coun. Robin Williams, and a few supporting councillors like Coun.

Steve Payne, thinks that the extrafrills water slide option will be family oriented and appeal to a wider audience, including an "off the street" element.

"The project needs to be right for everyone," Williams said.

Although Williams sees some potential for tourists to even and come enjoy the pool, a large piece of infrastructure like this should be built with the local community in mind.

Any decision about that level of borrowing, frills or no, belongs with the people who will end up paying for it, and almost certainly passing on some of that municipal debt to their children.

The threat of a federal election sometime this year looms in the shadows, but If the only fall vote in 2021 is about the pool, it will have been during an autumn well-spent in the capital.

commentary

Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 9

Concern over city's mining MOU

NNSL file photo

Ekati Diamond Mine. Last week Yellowknife city council signed an MOU with the mining sector. An MOU with an industry whose contribution to our environmental, social and economic wellbeing is questionable at best requires an assessment of whether the industry actually provides net benefit, writes columnist Nancy Vail.

Northern News Services are not taking the issue seriously.

Last week, Yellowknife city council disLet's be clear about the grave challenges cussed signing a proposed memorandum of (and yes, opportunities) we face from the understanding (MOU) with the NWT and climate emergency. Time is running out. And Nunavut Chamber of Mines that appears it is not just our future we are impacting by to border on a blanket endorsement of new our failure to act decisively on sustainable mines. energy and rapidly transitioning to a greenThe only other organization the city based economy, but the future of our children has an MOU with is the Yellowknife First and grandchildren. Of course, some operate Nations Dene. That MOU makes good under the misconception that the mining business, political and public relations sector will rejuvenate a deeply-wounded sense. However, developing an MOU with an economy. industry whose contribution to our environYet recall that over half of the mines' mental, social and economic wellbeing is workers come from other provinces and take questionable at best requires an assessment most of their pay home with them. Further, of whether the industry actually provides it is naive to think that the mines look for net benefit. The relationship needs intense accountants who will seek ways to pay more environmental, social and ecotaxes to any level of governnomic scrutiny, something that ment. No. From the mines' point seems to be far outside the scope of view – which are always looking for ways to send money to of a municipal government. their shareholders – that is not the I'm sure the city would agree sign of a good accountant. that this is not an agreement to be Remember that the mines are taken lightly. required to undergo, we hope, There is no doubt that mining strict and thorough environmental has a role to play in the economic reviews before they go ahead. development of the territories and Is the city planning to hire the the city going forward. notes kind of quality staff necessary However, while it is rarely a good time to champion mining from the trail to endorse or critique these new activities? now, when we are dealing with a Finally, let's not forget watchclimate change emergency that is Nancy Vail is a longtime Yellowknifer concerned with ing Alberta sink because it could hitting the North especially hard, social justice. not or would not get off fossil we must ask whether it is appropriate for the city to pursue such fuels when it was advised to do an open-ended strategy. that for decades. Even in the last several With the exception of Covid, no single years when workers in Fort McMurray pleaded for educational programs to learn new issue outside of climate change is more of a skills so that they could help transition into concern. We know that Canada is impacted by climate change twice as hard as any other a green economy, the government ignored them. Now that province is looking in apparcountry and that the North is affected twice ent desperation at developing coal mines – that again. We know that sea ice is melting at an alarming rate and that permafrost we can be smarter than that. deterioration is causing critical, even lifeThere are other industries that clearly threatening concerns for Northerners. Entire provide more positive benefits for all of communities such as Tuktoyaktuk are in dan- the city's residents, such as agriculture that ger of slipping into the ocean. Recognizing ensures food in the event of another chalthe contributions of the mineral development lenge such as the pandemic we are experiencing, eco-tourism for our hoped-for economic industry to this emergency, an MOU with rebound, or educational alternatives leading them is to be approached with considerable to a diversified economy that will help its caution and caveats. people in the changing times ahead.

We have pleaded with the federal government and other parts of Canada to be aware We do need to think about our economic of the changing conditions which threaten and environmental path going forward; but the North and if this action is pursued, it let's do it in a way that shows how progreswould give the impression that we, ourselves, sive we are, not the opposite.

We asked you! with Simon Whitehouse editorial@nnsl.com

What are you doing to take advantage of the additional daylight?

Kaitlyn Lavoie "Not a whole lot because I've been spending much of my time taking online classes."

Tom Wallwork "Taking more walks after work. We get to walk the dog more."

Darryl Cook "Not much because I'm working in the office all day."

Graham Hodges "We were driving out to Ingraham Trail and Prosperous Lake. The daylight helps us get out and back much easier."

Brittany Wourms "Just hanging outside longer. Anything is better than being in side all the time."

Emma-Lynn Beckwith "I get to play outside longer."

Express yourself: Write a letter to the editor

Letters should be short and to the point. No longer than 500 words, please. Your letter should be relevant to our readers. Emailed letters are preferred. Include your full name and a phone number, as we verify authenticity of all letters prior to publication. We may edit your letter for grammar, length (for our print version) or any potential legal issues.

Email your letter to: editorial@nnsl.com with the subject line: Letter to The Editor Or by regular mail: Yellowknifer 5108 50 St., Yellowknife, NT., X1A 1S2 Attn: Editor

Brush-clearing drive

10 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

photo story

golf club Feature

by Simon Whitehouse Northern News Services

The Yellowknife Golf Club may be sleepy during the winter months, but last weekend much work was done to get it up to par for users.

Friends of the club were cleared brush on the 12th green on Jan. 31 with an aim to create a clearer view.

"We typically will do some maintenance and cleanup in the winter," said club president Shaun Morris. "A couple weeks ago, a crew were cutting all the cattails in the water (which are) hazards that we can't access in the summer.

In this case, the crew was clearing out the area behind the 12th green to open up the view of Long Lake."

Within a few hours, six crew members cleared a significant amount of brush that they said would be given to community members who need extra firewood.

Cory Holzer and Jeff Oldfield help each other carry a tree to the brush pile.

Brad Ruptash, with chainsaw in hand, spent part of Sunday afternoon cutting up fallen trees.

photo story

Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 11

Jeff Oldfield hauls a fallen spruce tree toward the brush pile.

Andy Stewart, Mike Auge and Cory Holzer take a break on Sunday afternoon.

Damien Healy hauls a piece of brush away.

Cory Holzer makes a Herculean lift of a birchwood piece and directs it toward the brush pile.

Andy Stewart saws a tree and watches it fall at the 12th green, near Long Lake.

Cory Holzer holds a birch trunk as Andy Stewart saws it into smaller pieces.

Andy Stewart mans the chainsaw turning troublesome birch into stumps at the golf course.

Marty, left, helps clear some brush with Chuck following close behind.

12 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

news

Aven Pavilion likely to receive council approval Questions put to council on decision-making authority, access road, and density concerns for new seniors complex

by Simon Whithouse

Northern News Services

A 102-unit project to provide much-needed seniors supportive and independent housing is on the verge of being approved for development as the majority of Yellowknife council showed support for the proposed Aven Pavilion on Monday.

The issue returned to this week's governance and priorities committee meeting after being introduced by the AVENS project team last week. Because of the zoning designation of the lot, approval for a conditionally permitted special care facility is required by council before a development permit is granted, according to the zoning bylaw.

Most councillors indicated they were in favour of moving the project forward and letting city development officers finalize negotiations with the AVENS project team in ensuring it meets all zoning bylaw regulations, including a maximum height of 12 metres.

Colin Baile, a Matonabee Street resident who spoke during the meeting, expressed his "profound" concern about the building – largely having to do with the laneway, but also sun-shadow impacts, council's legal role versus city staff in approving such major projects and potential density effects in the surrounding neighbourhood.

"In addition to the excessive interference this development will have on our access to sunlight, there are several other issues, any one of which should cause council pause

in approving this application," Baile said. "When taken together, the cumulative negative impacts that this development will have on the neighborhood is profound.

"AVENS pushed forward with the largest possible development, which on its face is dismissive of every one of our concerns we raised over four over six years ago."

Daryl Dolynny, CEO of AVENS, said much of the feedback from neighbours should be expected.

"Much of this was anticipated, and for AVENS this is an important community project, and frankly an important project for the territory because we are a territorial facility," Dolynny said. "It is a big project and we understand because we are building in a downtown type of location that there is a lot of work to do in dealing with things like zoning and land-use plans and density and parking."

The central contentious point concerning the project, council heard again this week, remains the proposed access road called the Matonabee Laneway.

Addressing the access road remains a serious challenge to an otherwise much desired project by neighbours, council and the community at large, city officials acknowledged during the meeting.

Sheila Bassi-Kellett said the city feels the laneway cannot support increased traffic flow and that a different plan needs to be developed.

"The laneway is of great concern to city administration," she said.

Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo

Hermina Joldersma, a Granite Apartments resident, and Matonabee neighbour Judy Murdock, show the narrow width of the Matonabee laneway that is being proposed as the access point for the planned Aven Pavilion.

"We're concerned with the size.

We're concerned with it as the main access point for the Aven Pavilion, and we've been in discussions with AVENS on this as we look to seek an alternative.

"One of the points that we've discussed is the potential to develop a road that meets the standards as a road and meets the standards for access for emergency vehicles – for large vehicles – to come in from Gitzel. This is one consideration that we have at this point in time, and that roadway would be, of course, two lanes and could enable traffic to flow back and forth into the new Aven Pavilion."

Upon approval next week, Mayor Rebecca Alty said the city's development officer will have to ensure the project meets the zoning bylaw.

Once that happens, the project will be posted for residents to review for 14 days.

If residents oppose the project, they can then appeal it to the Development Appeal Board, which can take up to 90 days to reach a final decision.

Only Coun. Shauna Morgan was hesitant to approve Monday's recommendation, as she asked for further information from a traffic impact study for the neighbourhood.

"For me to feel comfortable

approving this as a conditional use, I would like to see a final agreedupon version of the traffic impact study first," she said. "I don't think that that's an unreasonable ask to withhold our official approval until the outcome of that process gives us some assurance that adequate solutions are being put in place."

A final vote on the building use is scheduled to take place at the Feb. 8 council meeting.

The proposed $39-million project would be backed by $34 million from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and $5.1 million from the GNWT's Department of Health and Social Services.

news

Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 13

YK company seeks to broker vax sales 'I want these vaccines to go to Canadians,' says Great Canadian Boreal Enterprise owner

by Blair McBride

Northern News Services

A Yellowknife company is ready to help speed up the delivery of Covid-19 vaccines for provinces and territories – if more willing buyers step forward.

Clean energy firm Great Canadian Boreal Enterprise (GCBE) has stepped into the role of vaccine broker, acting as a middleman between vaccine producers and provinces, territories and countries looking to buy vaccines.

Through connections with the supply chains of pharmaceutical companies worldwide, the local company gained access to the vaccine broker network, said Kirby Marshall, one of the owners of GCBE. Marshall is also the founder and CEO of IT company Global Storm.

The vaccine broker network centres on a spot market, a transaction system in which commodities are traded for immediate delivery.

"In history, they happen to grow around large events, and this one is no different," Marshall said. "A vaccine manufacturer – let's say it's Pfizer – can't get rid of it right away so they would try to sell it to the spot market. Companies are familiar with dealing with large amounts of products and moving them around the world. Typically a manufacturer or distributor would get in touch with a broker. They then make a connection to a buyer and they can only be sold to a sovereign nation (or provinces and territories), not companies."

By the nature of spot markets, and due to the fact that most vaccines must be stored at very low temperatures, the purchase process goes fast. It lasts as along as eight hours and as short as minutes, Marshall said.

"A factory might produce some vaccines and have them ready to go. So a buyer needs to react very quickly. With Pfizer they have to be stored at -80 C and used in weeks.

They can't sit around. These are hot commodities," he said.

How to buy a vaccine The process starts when the broker receives information about a shipment of vaccines, their price and targeted delivery date. Once the broker finds a potential buyer, it asks for an email that expresses interest in the sale. The seller expects the broker to vet the buyer to ensure their interest.

The buyer then writes a letter of interest, which reserves the shipment for them. They're then given such information as the product source, lot numbers, expiration dates and a sales purchase agreement.

The shipment is validated by an inspection company like SGS, Marshall said.

Payment for the shipment goes into a third-party escrow account and after the inspection report is cleared by the buyer, the payment is released and the vaccines are shipped.

One deal that Marshall started to work on in January was for six million doses of Pfizer at $11.56 per dose.

"We had about eight hours to close the transaction. When we said we couldn't meet that deadline, it was gone. It went through another broker. It was sold in less than one second."

In its capacity as a broker, GCBE

has not yet closed any vaccine deals out of the more than 100 countries it has reached out to over the last few weeks, Marshall said. It has been in contact with 30 others.

He currently has access to three shipments of AstraZeneca vaccine and one shipment of Pfizer.

The AstraZeneca is in three separate loads. One of 180 million doses at $13.50 per dose and another of 40 million doses at $15.51 per dose.

Both are available immediately.

A third contains 66 million doses at $6.43 per dose and is available in two to three weeks.

AstraZeneca's vaccine has not yet been approved for use by Health Canada.

The Pfizer shipment consists of six million doses at $14.47 per dose and is available immediately.

How to almost sell a vaccine Of particular frustration to Marshall is the struggle to broker vaccine sales with Canadian jurisdictions.

"Canada has bought five times more than we need but the vaccines are delayed," he said. "A tranche came up of six million doses of Pfizer for immediate delivery at $11.57 per dose (in January), which is an extremely good price. We then reached out to two provinces we were talking to. They came back and said 'no.' I got rather upset because ... to me, it was just small-minded bureaucrats who are in doubt and not able to see beyond what's in front of them," Marshall said.

Even though Public Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand said on Jan. 12 that the federal government isn't trying to stop provinces from purchasing their own vaccines or PPE, Marshall believes Ottawa is "strong arming" provinces and territories against looking at the private market to procure their own vaccines.

Anand made those comments in response to Alberta Premier Jason Kenney saying he would look into securing deals with vaccine manufacturers who don't have agreements with the federal government.

"We're Canadian. I've been running small businesses for 40 years.

I want these vaccines to go to Canadians. We're being stymied at every turn. The federal government won't even talk to us. Complete wall. At least some of the provinces are talking to us. We're just not able to break through the fear and doubt that this can't be real.

"I believe if our information got in front of Doug Ford or Jason Kenney. they would be able to make their own decisions. Right now those decisions are being made by their bureaucrats. I don't even know the reason why they wouldn't want to proceed. We're talking about Canadians' lives. I know of no other reason that Ford could come up with other than 'We didn't know about this, (but) now we can make up our own mind.' This is too important not to at least look at, and we're trying.

I have one guy who made over 30 phone calls to the Ontario government."

Damien Healy, spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Services' vaccine rollout, said the GNWT relies on federal procurement for its vaccines.

However, he did not respond to an inquiry as to whether the government would consider buying vac-

Great Canadian Boreal Enterprise image

A conceptual image shows the proposed Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing plant, an 18,581-square-metre facility located in the Edmonton International Airport. cines independently if that meant more could get to the NWT sooner.

'Complete nonsense' Marc-André Gagnon, an associate professor of social and health policy at Carleton University in Ottawa, regards the vaccine brokerage as "complete nonsense."

Even if a broker can sell vaccines to a province or territory at a price lower than the federal government would pay, doing so goes against the priorities of public health. Ignoring those priorities risks allowing the virus to further spread and mutate, he contended.

While Gagnon said it's understandable that provinces want more autonomy and are feeling frustrated with the uncertainties related to vaccine delivery delays, if provinces and territories buy vaccines independently it would pit them against each other.

"If we end up playing the same (vaccine nationalism) game inside Canada as on the international level, we'll have the richest provinces paying more and getting them faster," Gagnon said.

"We've been in this game before.

The way we do procurement for patented drugs, in the past, drug companies played provinces and territories against each other. Ontario was more advanced with negotiations. (Companies) would give the largest rebate to Ontario so they start reimbursing the drug faster and then it puts pressure on other provinces.

We ended up with some provinces getting lower rebates. Then there's pressure from your own population.

"Since 2010, the Pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance was saying we were being fooled around by drug companies. They developed the alliance to negotiate collectively to make sure everyone got the same price. It's an agreement between provinces to avoid competing against other provinces and working together. But if you get out of this agreement it might go way beyond Covid vaccines. It would scrap the agreement made 10 years ago that allowed significant rebates for patented drugs. It would destroy the coalition and bargaining power that Canadians had with drug com-

panies."

GCBE is also pursuing a project to build Covid-19 vaccine production plants in Edmonton, Arkansas and Alabama.

The proposed plant in Alberta would be a 18,581-square-metre facility at the Edmonton International Airport and the two smaller plants in the southeast states would be 9,290 square metres each.

"Our manufacturing project is predicated on getting a large Covid19 order from a vaccine maker or from COVAX," Marshall said.

COVAX is the global consortium led by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and international vaccine alliance organization Gavi,

NNSL file photo

Kirby Marshall, an owner of Yellowknife-based company Great Canadian Boreal Enterprise, has designs on building vaccine manufacturing plants in Edmonton, Arkansas and Alabama. that seeks to bring governments and vaccine manufacturers together to ensure countries have access to Covid-19 vaccines.

"Our goal is to manufacture vaccines at cost. We just want that order to build the plant and to pay for the operational expenses and supplies while we make the Covid-19 vac-

cine."

Most of the manufacturing share to produce 400 million doses could be handled by the plant in Edmonton and once the order size is large enough the two others could come online.

Marshall estimates the threefacility project would cost around $900 million and the money for it could come from a bankable financial instrument from COVAX that would be backed by the WHO. "Nine-hundred million dollars is a lot of money but it's not a lot compared to the value of what is produced," he said. "We want Canada to give us (almost) $1 billion so we can build a plant in Canada and hire hundreds of Canadians and generate millions in tax revenues.

We will generate vaccines to give to COVAX, Canadians and the world.

Is it better to outsource or for Canadians to build it? The second is better, of course."

GCBE has spoken with federal bureaucrats about the production facility plan but made little progress.

Marshall worries that only one or two months remains in the window of opportunity for the idea, as new plants are being built elsewhere in the world and soon no more manufacturing capacity will be needed.

"With one little check of the box the federal government can turn that around. We can start manufacturing in nine months. We can have output starting in nine to 12 months. Canada can certainly make the decision to support vaccine manufacturing in Canada," he said.

In principle, Gagnon supports the GCBE plan and said that for years he has been calling for more domestic production of vaccines.

"We need to develop public manufacturing capacity," he said.

"At least to protect the provinces or the country against problematic corporate strategies, and to help in case of shortages. (But) if we try to do this now it would be very complicated. It's not just about building an assembly line with a lab and start producing something. The expertise to do that is very important. But it's very hard to do right now without the collaboration of the drug companies."

14 yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021

fact file

Yellowknife burger week participating restaurants and burgers

Fatburger – Back country bacon mushroom cheddar burger $14 – $1 donation to Food First Foundation Big and juicy 1/3 lb Alberta angus beef patty topped with two slices of Canadian cheddar cheese, maple bacon, grilled mushrooms, mayo and mustard, on a toasted brioche bun. Dine-in, takeout and delivery.

Copperhouse Eatery & Lounge – Staycation burger $15 – $3 donation 6 oz beef patty, guacamole, crisp prosciutto, smoked gouda, cherry ketchup, lettuce, and homemade pickle on an Ace bakery bun. Meatless farm patty available. Dine-in, takeout, and delivery.

Vegetarian option available Dancing Moose Café – Mushing mushroom Swiss burger $14 – $1 donation Homemade beef patty with swiss cheese and mushrooms.

Homemade carrot-onion-flaxseed patty available. Dine-in and takeout.

Vegetarian option available The Monkey Tree Pub – Aurora firecracker $12 – $2 donation House-made beef patty topped with lightly spiced BBQ sauce, cheddar, bacon, Cajun crispy fried onion, battered fresh jalapeno, mayo, red onion, lettuce, tomato and pickle, on a brioche bun. Dine-in only.

Woodyard Brewhouse & Eatery – Isolation burger $19 – $3 donation Fried beer-brined chicken breast, Swiss cheese, fried pork belly, slaw dressed with beer mustard and covered in maple chicken gravy, all on a waffle bun. Dine-in and takeout.

Ja-Pain Bakery – Spectacular zangi burger $10 – $1 donation Deep-fried chicken marinated with ginger sauce on JaPain's special butter roll. Dine-in and takeout.

Stake Restaurant – Frozen lamb-burg-ini $12 – $2 donation House-made lamb patty topped with pepper relish, goat cheese, lemon aioli, red onion, lettuce and tomato, on a brioche bun. Dine-in only.

The Black Knight Pub – Long knights burger $19 – $3 donation Double-decker bison patty with house-made special sauce, lettuce, tomato, house-made pickles, fried onions, aged cheddar, and applewood smoked bacon, on a three-layer sesame seed bun. Dine-in and takeout.

Source: Sonia Idir

news

Burger Week brings the sizzle to YK City's restaurants share their best grilled delights for second year

by Simon Whitehouse Northern News Services

Yellowknifers have been rushing to bite into the city's best burgers as part of the second annual Burger Week, Jan. 27 to Feb. 6.

Sonia Idir, a communications professional with the Government of the Northwest Territories, came up with the novel idea last year after living in Halifax and experiencing the Nova Scotia capital's similar festival.

"I came up with Burger Week," she said. "I moved from France to Halifax in 2015 and I lived in Halifax for two years.

Every March, they have a Halifax burger week.

"I went there with my friends or my roommates and it was one of my favorite events there. So when I moved here to Yellowknife in 2017, I kind of missed it and I wanted to start one."

Burger Week is quite popular among restaurants in Halifax, where proceeds are directed to Feed Nova Scotia, a food security organization, Idir explained.

In Yellowknife's case, money raised will go to the Food First Foundation.

Last year the festival raised $3,427 for the Yellowknife Food bank and 1,734 burgers were sold in 10 participating restaurants.

Idir said she's comfortable with event organizing and has had a great time putting the activities together again this year. She felt it was a brilliant

Simon Whitehouse/NNSL photo

"I would like to buy a hamburger." Sonia Idir, founder of Yellowknife's Burger Week displays the participating Isolation burger at the Woodyard on Jan. 30.

The culinary festival runs through to Feb. 6. way to promote local businesses in Yellowknife.

"For me there were three main things, the first of which is that it is a fun event for residents to do – they can try a new burger," she said. "Also, it's for a good cause as the charity is the Food First Foundation ...

and then, third, it's really good for the businesses because it gives them more customers and more revenues."

On the closing day of the festival, there will be a draw announcing the winning burger.

Participating restaurants will let Idir know how many hamburgers are sold during the festival so that it can be calculated how much money will go to the Food First Foundation.

Tes Onrdrack, Food First Foundation coordinator, said she's very grateful for Idir's initiative and Yellowknifers buying burgers.

"We feel so lucky to have been chosen as the recipients of Burger Week proceeds this year," said Onrdrack. "We are currently supporting 41 NWT school food programs, includ-

ing eight Yellowknife schools, and the funds will help us help schools continue feeding their students in need."

"Burger sales have been completely nuts," said Monkey Tree pub co-owner Jen Vornbrock said.

"We are going through a crazy amount of beef. Last year went really well and I think a festival like this gets new people out and kind of makes it fun for people because it creates entertainment where people can hop around and go two to three places a night. It raises money for a good cause too."

Yellowknifers who participate in Burger Week will have an opportunity to win prize draws that entail stays at Blachford Lake Lodge, the Explorer Hotel and Aurora Village.

news

Yellowknifer, Wednesday, February 3, 2021 15

NWT Human Rights chair wants to 'deroad prejudices' Commission is using its Facebook page to share stories of BIPOC Canadians

by Natalie Pressman

Northern News Services

Since 1995, Canada has been honouring the history of Black Canadians with Black History Month.

After a year of protests, rallies and turmoil, Charles Dent, chair of the NWT Human Rights Commission said it’s especially important to highlight the challenges faced by Black, Indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC).

He said Canadians might point to rallies and division when it comes to our American neighbours and conceive it to be a problem somewhere else, but that “our society still has this as a big problem.”

“We need to find a way to address that and not just sweep it under the rug,” he said.

While February is officially Black History Month, Dent said it is important to recognize the struggles of Indigenous people and other racialized communities as well.

“Discrimination isn’t just applied to Black people it applies to a lot of people who are racialized so we want to recognize that it’s a broader issue,” he said. “So Black History Month is not only to honour and recognize the struggles that Black

people have faced but also that they’re not alone.”

Until the end of the month, the NWT Human Right Commission is using its Facebook page to share stories of BIPOC Canadians and highlight “the contributions, struggles and challenges that Black people of colour and Indigenous Canadians have undergone.”

The Commission is putting a focus, Dent said, on positive stories to highlight role models from Canadian history.

He said the use of Facebook as their primary platform is key to engaging dialogue.

“Our goal is to try and get people to think about racism, what they can do to fight racism and to get a positive spin on how we approach it,” Dent said.

“One of our big goals is to improve relationships between different communities because there is only one race, the human race.”

For the first time, the Commission is also hosting a scavenger hunt where residents can answer 12 Black History Month themed questions for a chance to win a prize. Interested participants can download the scavenger hunt clues from the NWT Human Rights Commission website.

The Black Lives Matter protest that took place in Yellowknife in June 2019.

BACupNorth, a Blackled Yellowknife based nonprofit, is celebrating Black History Month by promoting Black-owned businesses in the NWT, highlighting the accomplishments of African-Canadians, and sharing recommendations for films on Black history and culture.

“Black people have been instrumental in shaping our nation’s history, culture, language and lifestyle. This month, and every month, we should recognize and celebrate these contributions,” the organization wrote on the Facebook page.

“We want to recognize the contributions that Black

Canadians have made to our history,” Dent said. “Too often if you don’t talk about it, it allows things to be ignored.

Dent expressed the importance of seeing diverse groups represented in media and using the Black Lives Matters protests “as an opportunity to talk about what happens when we don’t see that representation.”

Though he acknowledges the work ahead, by elevating Black History Month as a means of featuring BIPOC Canadians, Dent said the Human Rights Commission “is hoping to deroad prejudices.”

Increase in alcohol sales, decrease in shelter stays

Protective measures during pandemic have had wide-reaching effects, government acknowledges in wellness report

by Natalie Pressman

Northern News Services

Alcohol sales have risen and so too has alcohol-related medical care during the pandemic, according to a recent territorial government report.

The Department of Health and Social Services (HSS) first hypothesized that the approximate 20 per cent liquor sales increase was due to stockpiling for fear liquor stores might close down. However, the surge in alcohol sales seems to be ongoing. The report notes that alcohol consumption can exacerbate feelings of loneliness and increase symptoms of anxiety and depression. Excessive drinking can also increase the risk of family violence and child neglect.

The most pronounced increase in alcohol-related medical visits came in June, with twice as many visits as the year prior.

Before the pandemic, alcohol possession restrictions were already in effect in 11 communities, and prohibited in five. To mitigate the risk of liquor consumption in

recent months, five additional communities have introduced temporary alcohol prohibitions.

The GNWT's report on the overall well-being of residents during Covid-19, released in January, examines child maltreatment, family violence, mental health and addiction in 2020 compared to 2019.

Last May, HSS established a working group to examine the social impacts of Covid-19 protective health measures.

The report shows a decrease in admissions to shelters in 2020 compared to previous years. While this may appear to indicate a decline in need, HSS notes that "when individuals are under constant surveillance from their abuser, they are less able to reach out for help and to get to safety if need be."

Confusion over whether shelters have remained in service, and reduced capacity may also have contributed to the reduction in clients.

The document also notes that more residents have been visiting health centres

for anxiety in April, June and July and there were more depression-related visits in April and June.

In the report, HSS states that while the data have been valuable to inform actions, "more time and more data is needed to draw any definite conclusions and to inform longer-term planning and action."

In the short-term, HSS said it plans to continue reporting on these and other indicators, "and to work closely with our partners in other GNWT departments to promote a holistic and wrap-around picture of the social situation within the NWT." "The GNWT recognizes that the protective measures that were implemented to reduce the spread of Covid-19 earlier this year had an impact on all NWT residents," HSS Minister Julie Green said.

"For some, it has impacted their mental health and well-being. We will continue to monitor and address any gaps in service delivery while responding to this pandemic."

NNSL file photo

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Sports & Recreation Sports hotline • James McCarthy Phone: (867) 873-4031 • Email: sports@nnsl.com • Fax: (867) 873-8507

A weekend of winners Five territorial curling champions crowned at Yellowknife Curling Centre

by James McCarthy

Northern News Services

For the first time in what seems like forever, a new rink will represent the NWT at the Tim Hortons brier in March.

We didn't know who it was going to be until this past weekend at the Yellowknife Curling Centre.

Greg Skauge will skip the 2021 edition of the NWT at this year's Canadian men's curling championship inside the bubble in Calgary as he and his rink of Tom Naugler, Brad Patzer and Robert Borden defeated Glen Hudy in the NWT Men's Curling Championship on Sunday afternoon. It was a best-of-three series to determine the winners and it was Skauge who came out on top by a score of 8-2 in the third and final game to claim victory.

Skauge won the opening contest on Saturday, 13-5, before Hudy came back in the second contest, 8-6, to force the decider, where Hudy shook hands after six ends.

"I think they saw how sharp we were playing (in game three) and felt they wouldn't be able to come back," said Skauge.

Jamie Koe, who has been Team NWT ever since the territory got its own spot beginning in 2015 had been representing the territories as a whole since 2009, bowed out

before the event began owing to concerns about deadlines and withdrawing from the tournament. He stated he would be on hand to shake the winners' hand, no matter who it was, and he made good on that promise.

Safely, of course.

"I got the handshake," said Skauge. "We sanitized before and after just to make sure."

With the ticket punched for Calgary, the work begins on making sure all of the I's are dotted and T's are crossed before heading down for the big show.

But Skauge is still excited to make his first trip as skip of the NWT. "It hasn't totally sunk in yet and it may seem a bit windaided with no Jamie Koe in there," he said. "It's going to be such a cool experience ahead of us and getting the opportunity to play against all of those other teams is going to be a thrill."

Before heading to Calgary, Skauge and company will have to provide a negative Covid-19 test 72 hours before departing. A second test follows upon arrival in Calgary followed by a third test after day five of the event.

The foursome won't get the chance to sight-see or do anything social while in Calgary as they will be in their rooms in between playing or practi-

cing. Any food they eat will be consumed either from the hotel or from delivery services such as Uber Eats.

That's no problem at all, said Skauge.

"We're a bunch of guys who hang out here in town and we all get along," he said. "Being together in hotel rooms won't be anything that will put us off."

Even though it may seem like a daunting task on the ice for Skauge, he is going with two players who have multiple years of Brier experience in Naugler and Borden, who played with Koe for several years and were part of the 2012 rink which made the playoffs that year.

"That's going to be huge," said Skauge. "I'm sure I'll talk with Jamie and Kerry (Galusha) to get an idea of what to expect but having Tom and Robert is going to be a big help."

On the women's side, Kerry Galusha will be heading back to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts later this month as she won the NWT Women's Curling Championship on Sunday.

Galusha and her rink of Shona Barbour, Margot Flemming and Jo-Ann Rizzo beat the junior girls rink skipped by Cassie Rogers, 10-6, in the championship final.

Unlike the men, the women had a three-team round-robin

James McCarthy/NNSL photo

Kerry Galusha delivers one of her skip stones during action in the NWT Women's Curling Championship at the Yellowknife Curling Centre on Saturday. to determine the finalists with Galusha winning both of her games over Rogers and Sarah Stroeder while Rogers beat Stroeder to claim the second spot in the final.

The NWT Senior Women's Curling Championship was also part of the festivities of the weekend with Sharon Cormier and her rink of Cheryl Tordoff, Marta Moir and Norma Jarvis coming out on top over Maureen Mil-

ler in the best-of-three series between the two rinks by scores of 9-2 and 9-1 respectively. It was a successful defence of the title Cormier won one year ago.

Cormier said she was not expecting to win by such large margins.

"We usually have tight games with Maureen," she said. "That wasn't typical and I was fully expecting it to go to a third game."

Of the 18 points Cormier scored, she stole 14 of them and she said it all came down to everyone on her team playing as well as they could have.

"Maureen had a couple of misses and we were able to capitalize on them," said Cormier. "It made my job as a skip a lot easier; I threw a lot of guards and skips don't normally throw that many guards."

Cormier won't be heading out to the Canadian Senior Women's Curling Champion-

ship until December and by that time, things could be a little easier when it comes to hosting events.

The location for the seniors isn't known yet but Cormier is hopeful it won't be cancelled like it was last year.

"I haven't heard any word on whether it's happening or not," she said. "You wonder with seniors and the masters because they're rolling out the vaccine and it's the older folks who are priority. We'll just have to wait and see – all we can do."

Speaking of the masters, Ed Sattelberger won the right to represent the NWT at the next Canadian Masters Curling Championships, scheduled for November in Winnipeg, as he beat Hudy and his rink in a best-of-three, two games to one, while Stacey Stabel won the NWT Women's Curling Club Championship by beating Miller two straight in a best-of-three.

sports & recreation

Sarah Stroeder is all concentration as she delivers one of her skip stones.

Sharon Cormier takes a peek at her just-delivered rock.

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Natalie Kelln cleans the line for the rock.

Rocking the house all weekend curling Feature

by James McCarthy

Northern News Services

The Yellowknife Curling Centre was a happening place this past weekend as five territorial championships were up for grabs.

The NWT Men's, Women's, Senior Women's, Masters and Curling Club Women's Championships all took place over the course of four days and here's some of the action from between the sheets.

Franz Dziuba, left, watches the rock as Brian Kelln watches the line.

Margot Flemming, left, puts down the brush as Shona Barbour watches the line.

Megan Koehler looks up for the line.

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