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Speaker: I will now call the House to order. We will proceed at this ti=
me
prayers.
Prayers
DAILY ROUTINE
Speaker: We will proceed at this time with the Order Paper.
Tributes.
TRIBUTES
In remembrance of Margaret Thatcher
Hon. Mr. Pasloski: = Mr. Speaker, I = rise today to pay tribute to the Rt. Hon. Margaret Thatcher, baroness and former Prime Minister of Britain.
Leading her country from 1979 to 19=
90, she
is remembered for being
Her conservative fiscal policy guid=
ed
In 1982, she led
She was an iconic figure in her tim=
e in
politics. Not only did she influence
Mr. Speaker, I ask that all members= of this House join me in remembering and celebrating the life of Lady Margaret Thatcher.
Applause
In recognition of National Wildlife Week
Hon. Mr. Dixon: Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to ask my colleagues t= o join me in recognizing this year’s National Wildlife Week, which began on Sunday, April 7 and continues until Saturday, April 13.
National Wildlife Week is a program=
of the
Canadian Wildlife Federation to celebrate
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Hinterland Who’s Who, a national wildli= fe educational resource produced under the auspices of the Canadian Wildlife Federation.
We all have heard that distinctive loon-like music. Those 60-second television vignettes not only teach us abo= ut wildlife, but also provide an understanding of how each and every Canadian = can play a part in conserving it.
For too many Canadians, that vignet=
te is as
close as they will ever get to seeing a fox, an owl, a bear or even a ground
squirrel.
National Wildlife Week reminds me o=
f how
fortunate we are in
The management plan for the Aishihi=
k wood
bison herd in southwestern
The Yukon Wolf Conservation and
Management Plan released last May is intended to guide wolf conservation
and management throughout
We are proposing changes in five ke=
y areas
to improve government’s ability to respond to potential future animal
health issues in an effective manner. We are doing this because healthy
wildlife populations are important for harvesting, tourism, outfitting, and=
the
overall health of
The proposed changes deal with the = scope of the Animal Health Act, the role of the chief veterinary officer, com= pensation for losses arising from an order under the act, introduction of an appeal p= rocess, the evaluation of penalties and a few other things.
These changes would bring the act i= nto line with similar legislation in other Canadian jurisdictions to more effectively deal with the risks to animal health and food security as well as to suppor= t public health.
In closing, I would like to recogni= ze the Canadian Wildlife Federation which coordinates National Wildlife Week. The Canadian Wildlife Federation is dedicated to ensuring an appreciation of our natural world and a lasting legacy of healthy wildlife and habitat. Whether it’s through Hinterland Who’s Who or beautiful posters or classroom curricula, the CWF do an excellent job of informing Canadians abo= ut the precious resource that is our wildlife.
Before I close, Mr. Speaker, I shou=
ld also
add a shout-out of course to the Yukon Wildlife Preserve which is open agai=
n to
the public. I remind members that we are very close to the baby season at t=
he
Wildlife Preserve, which is a great time to go and see a number of b=
aby
species as they’re born in the spring.
Ms.
White:=
8195; I rise on behal=
f of the
Official Opposition to pay tribute to National Wildlife Week. National Wild=
life
Week began in recognition of the birthday of Jack Miner, a founding
conservationist in
To create a legacy such as Miner di=
d took an enormous amount of effort and courage. As the =
Windsor
Star wrote in 1993, Miner was a pioneer who changed the attitudes of a =
continent
against great odds. We should take this time to remember Miner’s lega=
cy
in preserving our wildlife and the habitats they live in. It is too easy to
forget the foresight and dedication it takes to protect our natural world f=
or
future generations.
In particular, we can honour Miner&= #8217;s work by fighting to preserve our current unspoiled areas, such as the Peel = watershed and, as a consequence, protect the wildlife within it.
The Yukon NDP is committed to prote=
cting
the wildlife of
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; I rise today on=
behalf
of the Liberal caucus to pay tribute to National Wildlife Week 2013. Nation=
al
Wildlife Week is celebrated in all parts of the world. As the Member for
Takhini-Kopper King just mentioned, in
Jack Miner spent his lifetime teach= ing and speaking on wildlife conservation, environmental techniques and the importa= nce of creating sanctuaries for the protection of wildlife. There are few places left on the planet where the impact of humans has not been felt. We have explored and left our footprint on nearly every corner of the globe. As our population and needs grow, we are leaving less and less room for wildlife.<= /span>
National Wildlife Week offers an opportunity to raise the awareness of the extraordinary animals that live around us and that we share our planet with, celebrate the wonderful world = of wildlife and the values of having healthy habitats.
In
It is only by raising awareness abo=
ut our
Canadian — and, in particular,
National Wildlife Week raises the a=
wareness
of our need to ensure that our wildlife populations and their habitats in t=
he
area of
We would like to offer our congratu=
lations
to the Canadian Wildlife Federation for their 50 years of conserving and pr=
otecting
our Canadian wildlife and its habitat, and a hearty thank you to our conser=
vation
officers and staff for all of their efforts to protect our wildlife. We must
all strive to become better stewards of our planet, ensuring that wildlife,
plant life and their habitat are protected so we can achieve a peaceful and
sustainable future for generations to come. Your actions can and will make a
difference.
Mr.
Elias:=
8195; I also rise to pay tribute to National Wildlife Week. Canadia=
ns and
Yukoners in particular are very fortunate and enjoy an abundance of natural
wilderness areas that are populated by many species of wildlife, many of wh=
ich
are on their way to our territory, as we speak, from as far away as =
The event is centred on April 10 =
8212;
the birthday of one of
Miner pioneered the practice of ban=
ding geese
and other waterfowl to track their migratory patterns. In 1904, he establis=
hed
a wildlife preserve near
The Canadian Wildlife Federation ex=
plains
that National Wildlife Week is “an opportunity for Canadians to celeb=
rate
our country’s natural heritage and play a supportive role in its
conservation.” The Canadian Wildlife Federation is encouraging us to =
go
out and explore the bounty of our landscape by participating in a national
event called Walk for Wildlife.
By walking through our wilderness a= reas, we will not only experience health benefits and stimulate our natural curiosity, we’ll also develop a new understandin= g of the natural world around us. It’s an opportunity to reestablish our understanding of the fact that we share our environment with many other cha= rismatic megafauna and small creatures, from the massive grizzly bear right down to the pesky mosquito. I encourage my colleagues and members of the public alike to pay tribute to National Wildlife Week by stepping outside into our wilderness, even just for a short while, and reconnect with the wild world around us.
In recognition of National Poetry Month
Hon. Mr. Nixon: I rise today on behalf of all membe= rs of this Assembly to pay tribute to National Poetry Month.
National Poetry Month was first ina=
ugurated
by the
For many, the iconic image of the p= oet is someone with paper and pen in hand, eyes watchful, ears listening, creative thoughts centred on the beauty of language put together in such a way as to capture a feeling, a thought and expression, or a place. For some poets, it’s high drama; for others, it may be comic relief. For anyone who l= oves poetry and the elegance of language, it is an inherent passion that cannot = be ignored and must be nurtured.
Many Yukoners have the heart of a p=
oet. One
such poet was Robert Service. Robert Service wrote what he called
“popular ballads”, such as The Shooting of Dan McGrew an=
d The Cremation of Sam McGee. His first bo=
ok, Songs
of a Sourdough, captured the flavour and es=
sence
of everyday life that was commonplace in
For the poet, j=
ust as it
did for Robert Service, literary inspiration can come from anywhere at any
time. Of course we can’t forget some=
of
the great poems from Jack London that are so popular with our German visito=
rs,
like Gold and The Klondyker’s D=
ream,
just to name a couple.
The Yukon
The next Whitehorse Poetry Festival=
will
take place this summer and will once again be the gathering place for poets=
and
appreciative audiences to be inspired under the midnight sun. As Minister of
Tourism and Culture and on behalf of this government, we are very proud to
support
This government has provided funds =
through
programs such as the touring artists program and the advanced artist award.=
We
support individual poets to create new work, learn with their mentors, work with editors and to present their work at profess=
ional
venues throughout
Books, anthologies, literary journa= ls and magazines all feature the work of our contemporary poets. Today we’re very proud to honour those poets whose work resonates with readers througho= ut the world.
April is National Poetry Month. I e=
ncourage
everyone to look for author readings, book festivals and book displays that
celebrate
Speaker: Introduction of visitors.
INTRODUCTION OF VISITO=
RS
Hon. Mr. Nixon: It’s with great pleasure that= I ask all members of this Assembly to join me not only in welcoming but thanking = two of the volunteers from Mothers Against Drunk Dri= ving: Daniela Martinson, who is president, and Amanda Price, who is vice-presiden= t.
Applause
Speaker: Are there any returns or documents for tabling?
TABLING RETURNS AND DOCUMENTS
Hon.
Mr. Nixon: I have for tabling the Workers=
8217;
Advocate Office 2012 Annual Report. I also have for tabling the Yukon L=
aw
Foundation annual report,
Speaker: Are there any reports of committees?
Are there any petitions to be prese= nted?
Are there any bills to be introduce= d?
Are there any notices of motion?
NOTICES OF MOTION
Hon. Mr. Nixon:= 195; I rise to give = notice of the following motion:
THAT this House urges the Governmen=
t of
Yukon to assist Mothers Against Drunk Driving - =
Ms. McLeod: I rise to give notice of the follow= ing motion:
THAT this House urges the Governmen= t of Yukon to commit $450,000 over three years in support of advancing aboriginal women’s equality.
I also give notice of the following= motion:
THAT this House recognizes that the=
people
of
Mr. Elias:= 8195; I rise to give notice of the following motion:
THAT this House urges the Minister = of Justice to examine the Curb the Danger and Vehicle Plate Impoundment progra= ms that have experienced success in combating impaired driving in other jurisdictions.
Speaker: Is there a statement by a minister?
This then brings us to Question Per= iod.
QUESTION PERIOD
Question re:
Ms. Hanson:=
Mr. Speaker, ye=
sterday
the Minister of Health stated that a bonding company is now responsible for
sorting out the financial management problems that continue to plague contractors owed money by Dowland=
,
the company chosen to build the hospitals in Dowland on these two projects.
An honest day’s work usually = results in an honest day’s pay. What explanation will the minister provide to these contractors who are owed money, and will he confirm that the bonding company is able to honour the payments that Dowland already owes to subcontractors who, in good faith, worked on these projects= ?
Hon. Mr. Graham: Mr. Speaker, it’s interesting= how the member opposite uses only excerpts of what was actually said in the Legislature yesterday and usually fails to give a complete picture of what = was actually said.
I said it was my understanding that= that was what happened. I also said that the bonding company and the Hospital Corporation were in continuing talks and when I receive an update on what e= lse is happening then I will inform the House at that time.
I’m not sure what the member = opposite expects me to do — run out there with a cheque book and pay these contractors myself? What must be understood is there is a process that must= be followed. There is a very legal process. As I said yesterday, it’s extremely unfortunate that any contractors and subcontractors are being lef= t in the lurch due to the difficulties that have befallen D= owland. Unfortunately, at this point in time, there is not a great deal that I can = do about it. I promised yesterday that I would inform the House as further developments occur and I’m informed of them, and I will keep that promise.
Ms.
Hanson:&=
#8195; It is indeed ex=
tremely
unfortunate, but it’s not the first time we have raised issues
surrounding recent major capital projects, such as the long delays and cost=
increases
to these hospitals, and the back-and-forth of building or not building a new
F.H. Collins. What kind of message do these sorts of delays, changes in pla=
ns,
postponement of projects send to companies working in the construction indu=
stry
— to local companies that are planning their work around schedules th=
at
get pushed back, not just a week or two, but a month or two or a year or tw=
o?
Proper capital management of projec=
ts is
essential for ensuring timely, cost-effective development. With each misman=
aged
project, industry is less inclined to take the risk of being involved in =
span>
What concrete action is the governm=
ent
taking to ensure that going forward — they can’t rectify what h=
as
gone already —
Hon. Mr. Graham: I have sat in this Legislature as t= hese questions have arisen from time to time from members opposite, and I’= ve heard our Minister of Highways and Public Works say that they’ve instituted a number of things already, such as a new procurement policy, and how their department is very aware of some of the difficulties that have occurred in the past and how they are trying to correct them. Speaking for = me and the Yukon Hospital Corporation, we’ve had these discussions with = the Hospital Corporation and, as I said before, it’s extremely unfortunate that this has happened. However, the Hospital Corporation is making every effort, together with the bonding company, to alleviate the difficulties th= at subcontractors are experiencing at this time. When I have more information, I’ll be pleased to bring it to the House.
Ms.
Hanson:&=
#8195; It is an unfort=
unate
story that goes on. Really, at the end of the day, it’s the
As well, it is Yukon
Hon.
Mr. Istchenko: I’ve alluded to this in the H=
ouse
before. I thank the member opposite for the question, but when it comes to
contracting and disputes among a general or subcontractor, the government d=
oes
hold funds back and it goes before the courts. This is an example that my
fellow colleagues spoke about. The government doesn’t meddle in court
proceedings and does not get involved in disputes among separate companies.=
The bonding company is responsible,= and the member opposite offered, when we have some information, to get back to the House.
Question re: Renewable energy strategy
Ms.
White:=
8195; The Minister of=
Energy,
Mines and Resources is not answering specific questions about renewable ene=
rgy
and this is a disservice to us all. I will now table the redacted
wind-assessment feasibility study completed for Yukon Energy and obtained
through an access-to-information request. This study showed, and I quote:
“there would appear to be every justification to seriously pursue a w=
ind
generation project.” There is great potential for wind power to compl=
ement
Hon.
Mr. Cathers: Absolutely. If the member were a li=
ttle
more careful in her research instead of, as we saw yesterday, the member sa=
ying
things in this House that are quite inaccurate and that do not reflect an
understanding of history and timelines, I would point out to the member tha=
t,
in fact, projects that government has looked at include Ferry Hill.
There’s currently ongoing work with
Again, I remind the member opposite= that, while we remain committed to pursuing renewable energy sources, we also hav= e to look at what those sources cost. In case of specific projects, I would point out that the economics of individual projects may be different from the economics of other projects. When we are looking at projects and when we are engaging with our Crown corporations — Yukon Development Corporation = and Yukon Energy Corporation — we are very much focused and have asked th= em to be focused on minimizing the financial risk to ratepayers and taxpayers = and focusing the investments of large amounts of money on projects that are lik= ely to succeed and are likely to fit well into the rate structure and not cause= a spike in rates. Unlike the Member for Takhini-Kopper King, we believe that = most Yukoners are not prepared to pay dramatic amounts of increases to their pow= er bills simply because of a love for a specific energy source like the member’s love for wind.
Ms. White:= 8195; Four years ago,= with its Energy Strategy for Yukon, the Yukon Party government listed priority actions, and I quote: “Support the development of a wind, hy= dro, solar, wood or geothermal project in a diesel powered community.”
In 2009, the
How will this government increase <=
/span>
Hon.
Mr. Cathers: Again, the member is being fairly
selective with the facts that she’s bringing forward in front of the
House and painting a picture that does not line up with the facts. In fact,
government has partnered with others to look at the feasibility for renewab=
le
energy sources. Work has been done and investments made by Yukon Energy
Corporation in exploring the feasibility of a wide range of various energy
sources. That includes active work that is going on with the
As I indicated to the member, what =
I have
asked and this government has asked Yukon Development Corporation and Yukon
Energy Corporation to do is to be focused when making decisions about what
energy options to explore, to be mindful of how likely it is that a project
would be successful in getting permits, and also consider the ultimate cost=
of
that.
With certain types of renewable ene= rgy with certain specific projects, it may be feasible and may not cause a dramatic spike in the rates. However, simply to look to wind as the be-all and end-a= ll and the salvation, as the Member for Takhini-Kopper King appears to do, qui= te simply does not work, and we do not believe most Yukoners are willing to see that much of a spike in the rates.
Speaker: Order please. The member’s time has elapsed.
Ms. White:= 8195; What I’m = asking for is where this government is going with renewables<= /span>. It’s clear from the minister’s non-answers these last few days = that he would benefit from more updated information about the feasibility of wind power as one of our diverse and renewable options in the energy mix. Local experts and their peers and colleagues from around the north have created solutions on the issues the minister has identified as concerns. There does= not need to be a megawatt of backup power for every megawatt of wind power installed, and icing and other maintenance concerns are being addressed. Haeckel Hill’s wind turbine provides many lessons, including the impa= ct of neglect on performance.
The Yukon Energy Corporation report=
I just
tabled concluded that in an off-grid community, a wind project “̷=
0;
would be economic even with diesel fuel costing $0.75 a litre.”
Before dismissing the potential of wind power as part of
Hon. Mr. Cathers: In fact, the member is just, quite simply, not well-informed about her facts. I would encourage her to look at= the presentations that have been made by Yukon Energy Corporation in its rate application to the Yukon Utilities Board and the Yukon Utilities Board̵= 7;s recent review of the rate application, where they have analyzed the corporation’s expenses, including the significant amount of money that has been spent researching renewable energy opportunities. The investments = have gone on and they will continue to. But, again, as I’ve said to the member, based on the work that has been done to date, we need to make certa= in decisions, and we are very mindful of the cost as a factor when new, significant projects are being included into the rate base.
Now, as I mentioned before, perhaps= if we set up a wind turbine in the NDP benches, we might see a significant increa= se in renewable energy that would provide great electrical power through the constant circling of the wind turbine. But what I do have to point out is t= he fact that for wind energy we have to very concerned about its reliability, = and there has to be a backup piece —
Some Hon. Member: (Inaudible)
Hon. Mr. Cathers: Perhaps the member would rather hec= kle than listen. There has to be a capital asset that provides backup energy solutions. It’s dangerous for the members to focus on their imaginary world, where wind and fairy dust power the economy.
Question re: &=
nbsp; Solid-waste
management
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; In 2009, the Yu=
kon
Party government announced its Yukon Solid Waste Action Plan, to
modernize how our landfills operate.
An important part of the plan was t= he creation of a solid waste advisory committee. It was established to assist = in the successful implementation of the Yukon Solid Waste Action Plan and as an ongoing opportunity for partnerships = and ideas. The committee produced one annual report and has been dormant since = May 2012, when the terms of all the appointees expired and the government didn’t appoint any new members.
Can the minister explain why a comm= ittee the government itself described as “ongoing” no longer exists?<= /span>
Hon. Ms. Taylor: I want to point out the Government = of Yukon has been doing a lot in terms of improving waste management throughout the territory. We have taken steps to ensure we continue to provide capital investments in solid-waste facilities throughout all the unincorporated communities, and we’re also working collaboratively with municipal go= vernments on short- and long-term use of their facilities.
At this particular time, we are act=
ually
working in collaboration with municipal governments through “Our Town=
s,
Our Future”, and we have convened a working group to oversee the futu=
re
of waste management in the territory. A report has since come out of that
group.
I had a meeting with the Associatio= n of Yukon Communities president and the two co-chairs of that working group and have since made a number of recommendations on future improvements when it comes to solid-waste management. Again, this government is proceeding on a number of fronts to reduce waste and to certainly improve how waste has improved throughout the territory.
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; I have no doubt=
that
there is forward motion here, but I’m talking about a specific questi=
on.
The appointment of all eight members on the Solid Waste Advisory Committee =
were
made at the same time and ended at the same time. Their terms all expired o=
n
On
Shortly after this, the committee w= as disbanded. Can the minister explain why?
Hon.
Ms. Taylor: For one thing, again, I just want t=
o take
note of the work that the Government of Yukon has been doing in collaborati=
on
with the committee and in collaboration with municipal governments througho=
ut
the territory.
In terms of focusing our operations= on diversion rather than disposal, we have been installing groundwater monitor= ing wells at all of our respective facilities. We have established transfer stations and waste circuits at all regional sites. We’ve established a Yukon-wide recycling review. That work is ongoing. The Yukon Solid Waste Action Plan has been in place for a number of years. The Department of Community Services, in collaboration with the Department of Environment and municipal governments, is certainly taking stock of what has worked and what has not worked. We are working in collaboration — hand in hand —= ; on a working group with respect to solid-waste improvements. We’re commi= tted to doing that, and certainly that work will help inform the future of a sol= id waste action committee as well.
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; Mr. Speaker, wh=
en the
Yukon Party government announced the creation of this committee, it said th=
at
the job would be to help set priorities for improving solid-waste and recyc=
ling
programs in the
Just two years later, the Yukon Par=
ty
decided it was no longer interested in hearing from this committee and
disbanded it. In the one annual report it did produce, the committee said, =
and
I quote: “A number of recommendations are being developed, and, when
complete, will be officially tabled with the Minister of Community
Services.”
Were those recommendations complete= d and, if so, will the minister share them with the public?
Hon.
Ms. Taylor: When it comes to improving solid-wa=
ste
management in the territory, we’re taking a number of steps. We’=
;ve
moved to no open burning of household waste at all of our respective sites.
We’ve done that. We’ve created a number of transfer facilities,=
and
I have been to pretty much every single one of them in the territory. We ha=
ve
staffed a number of the peripheral sites in
Again, we’re also moving beyo=
nd that.
We’re actually working in partnership — as the member opposite =
has
very much advocated on a number of occasions — and hand in hand with =
our
municipal governments to discuss the gaps and the issues relating to
solid-waste improvement in the Yukon, including liabilities, permitting,
regulatory changes, overlap between municipal and unincorporated sites. We =
are
very much committed to moving in the right direction. We are doing that with
our municipal governments. That will help inform future steps as we move
forward.
Question re: Impaired driving rates
Mr. Elias:<=
/b> I have a question for the Minister of Justice.
Hon.
Mr. Nixon: I do thank the member opposite for
bringing this question forward on the floor today. It is timely, in a sense,
that we have two members here from Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Whiteho=
rse
and that I tabled the motion today indicating that this government is
interested in working with other governments and partners within the territ=
ory
to work with Mothers Against Drunk Driving and to be able to enhance their
spring campaign to prevent people from drinking and driving.
I certainly appreciate the relation= ship that we have with MADD Whitehorse and I know that over the last two years I have taken an entire eight-hour shift with traffic services, RCMP and with Mothers Against Drunk Drivers to do road-side sa= fety check stops with them. I look forward to continuing the relationship that we have with MADD, with the RCMP and other community members. I think with everybody working together we can in fact work on reducing the rates of dru= nk driving.
Mr.
Elias:=
8195; I will take my time in Question Period to go over a couple of
programs that are working in other jurisdictions. One is called Curb the
Danger. Across
Would the minister consider formally
establishing and promoting a program similar to Curb
the Danger that would actively enlist and support concerned citizens in
combating impaired driving in the
Hon.
Mr. Istchenko: Again, I thank the member opposite =
for
the question. It is timely, as the Minister of Justice spoke to earlier. Th=
is
government is interested in creating safer
Speaker: Final supplementary.
Mr.
Elias:=
8195; Recidivism is common among impaired drivers, even when their
driving privileges have been revoked. To combat this se=
veral
American states, including
This is also being implemented in t=
he
Hon. Mr. Nixon: This government is always intereste= d in reviewing initiatives from other jurisdictions, so it’s one I can tas= k my officials from the Department of Justice to look into and fully brief me on= the program over there.
While I’m on my feet here, I = think it’s equally important to thank the minister responsible for the Liqu= or Corporation for his and his department’s work on this file. I know th= ey show great interest in the relationship we have with MADD and with the RCMP= .
Substance abuse and addictions trea= tment programs are also available through the Department of Health and Social Services, so again I’d like to thank the Minister of Health and Social Services for his work on that.
This government will continue to bu=
ild the
relationship with Mothers Against Drunk Driving.=
We
will continue to build a relationship with the RCMP, with the City of
Question re: Emergency 911 coverage
Mr.
Barr:=
195; This February, =
the Yukon
Hon.
Ms. Taylor: I thank the member opposite for the=
very
important question on the issue of 911. When it comes to what this governme=
nt
has been doing over the last number of years, we have done a lot in terms of
making significant improvements to our emergency response capability. When =
the
members opposite will reflect upon this year’s fiscal budget allocati=
ons,
they will see significant increases in the Fire Marshal’s Office,
significant increases in emergency medical services and so forth.
We are certainly working to strengt=
hen our
response whenever and wherever possible. We are certainly taking the issue =
of
911 into consideration, and have struck a working group comprised of the As=
sociation
of Yukon Fire Chiefs, Association of Yukon Communities,
Mr.
Barr:=
195; What do these n=
umbers
mean: 536, 390, 993? They form part of the seven=
-digit
local phone numbers for the emergency services in
Yesterday on CBC Radio, the fire ch=
ief of
Hon.
Ms. Taylor: What this
Just to get back to my original res=
ponse,
the
Mr.
Barr:=
195; The
For rural areas, the information is lacking. A few minutes of delay in emergency can make the difference between life and death.
Will the minister make a commitment= to direct officials to work with all appropriate agencies and community volunt= eers to complete Yukon-wide, standardized civic addresses this year?
Hon. Ms. Taylor: The Government of Yukon will contin= ue to work in collaboration with all of our communities, all of our response agen= cies and many other volunteers. I would like to thank all of those individuals w= ho have given of their time and continue to give of their time — who hav= e resulted in making excellent access to fire protection, emergency medical care and p= olice over the years.
We are committed to working in
collaboration with the communities — all of our stakeholders as I just
outlined — and that includes working with each of the local advisory
councils of
Speaker: The time for Question Period has now elapsed.
Some Hon. Member: (Inaudible)=
INTRODUCTION OF VISITO= RS
Speaker: Leader of the Third Party, on a point of order.
Mr. Silver:&= #8195; I’d just = like to ask the Legislative Assembly to help me in welcoming a long-time Yukoner an= d a true mentor in education, Mr. Fred Smith.
Applause
Ms. White:= 8195; In that same ve= in, I’d like to ask the House to join me in welcoming Murray Martin, auth= or and long-time wildlife conservationist and a great source of information fo= r me. So, please welcome Murray Martin.
Applause
Hon.
Mr. Cathers: Like the Member for
Applause
Speaker: We will now proceed to Orders of the Day.
ORDERS OF THE DAY
Unanimous
consent re proceeding with government business
Hon.
Mr. Cathers: Pursuant to Standing Order 14.3, I
request the unanimous consent of the House to proceed with government busin=
ess,
specifically the granting of assent to Bill No. 53, Act to Amend the
Education Act, after which the House will continue with opposition priv=
ate
members’ business.
Speaker: The Government House Leader has, pursuant to Standing Order 1= 4.3, requested the unanimous consent of the House to proceed with government business, specifically the granting of assent to Bill No. 53, Act to Ame= nd the Education Act, after which the House will continue with opposition = private members’ business. Is there unanimous consent?
All Hon. Members: Agreed.
Speaker: Unanimous consent has been granted.
We are now prepared to receive the = Commissioner, in his capacity as Lieutenant Governor, to grant assent to the bill which h= as passed this House.
Commissioner Phillips enters the
Chamber, announced by the Sergeant-at-Arms
ASSENT TO BILLS
Commissioner: Please be seated.
Speaker: Mr. Commissioner, this Assembly has, at its present session, = passed a certain bill to which, in the name and on behalf of the Assembly, I respectfully request your assent.
Clerk: Act to Amend the Education Act.
Commissioner: =
I assent to the bill as en=
umerated
by the Clerk.
Commissioner
leaves the Chamber
Speaker: I will call the House to =
order.
Please be seated.
OPPOSITION PRIVATE MEMBERS’ BUSINESS
MOTI=
ONS
OTHER THAN GOVERNMENT MOTIONS
Motion No. 369
Clerk: Motion No. 369, standing in the name of Ms. White.
Speaker: It is moved by the Member for Takhini-Kopper King
THAT this House urges the Governmen= t of Yukon to immediately:
(1) implement= span> all of the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Us= e of Off-road Vehicles; and
(2) develop and
implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to protect environmental=
ly
sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing responsible access=
to
the backcountry.
Ms. White:= 8195; It’s with= honour that I rise on behalf of the Official Opposition to support Motion No. 369:=
THAT this House urges the Governmen= t of Yukon
(1) to i= mmediately implement all of the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles; and
(2) to i=
mmediately
develop and implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to protect
environmentally sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing
responsible access to the backcountry.
The issues of ORV use and concerns =
over
environmental impacts were first flagged by our Renewable Resources departm=
ent
in 1981 — 32 years ago and long before my time. With that in mind,
I’d like to thank Manfred Hoefs for his c=
omprehensive
history of this issue. Mr. Hoefs has a lifetime=
of professional
and personal experience in the
Mr. Speaker, I’ll be starting= with the second point of my motion today: to immediately develop and implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to protect environmentally sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing responsible access to the ba= ckcountry.
Roads and wildlife don’t mix =
well.
This has been a universal observation wherever new roads have come into bei=
ng
and the
The establishment of the Kluane game
sanctuary and the Dempster corridor were, in part, attempts to reduce these=
highways’
negative impacts on wildlife. But highways are important to the functioning=
of
the territory, allowing residents to travel between communities and neighbouring jurisdictions and they are essential for=
the
transport of goods. A much larger number of roads and trails are found in t=
he
As far back as 1914, 14,000 miles of
backcountry roads existed, primarily serving mining and exploration interes=
ts.
The
The government was in support of th=
is
hinterland road building activity. For instance, the regional road resource=
s program
managed by the federal government, Department of Indian and Northern Affair=
s,
which had formed in 1986, had an annual budget of $2.5 million for providing
funding for construction of new roads or upgrading existing ones.
A Yukon-wide inventory of roads and=
trails
at the time indicated there were 602 in existence, all of which were availa=
ble
in varying degrees for use to access wildlife populations for the purpose of
hunting. However, at that time ATVs, as they are currently known, did not y=
et
exist in the
New types of ATVs began to show up =
around
1985 to 1990, but the first versions were not very reliable or powerful and=
the
so-called three-wheelers were dangerous to drive and were prohibited in many
jurisdictions. The ORVs improved. They became f=
aster,
they became stronger, and their number grew rapidly. It’s estimated t=
hat
between 200 and 300 are purchased every year in the
Concerns about negative impacts by =
ATVs on
wildlife and habitats began to be documented in the early 1980s and grew co=
ncurrently
with the number of ATVs and the proliferation of the hinterland trail netwo=
rk.
In 1981,
The questionnaire was mailed to 4,6= 77 hunters, of which 1,800 — 38.5 percent — returned their filled-= in forms.
All analyses were done by the
Question 1 read as follows: “= The department is concerned with the increasing use of ATVs as hunting vehicles. Are you in favour of
“(a) eliminating hunting from ATVs entirely?” That got a 43-percent respon= se.
“(b) rest= ricting the use of ATVs to certain subzones.” Tha= t got a 12.4-percent response.
“(c) rest= ricting ATVs to transporting game after a kill.” That received a 27-percent response.
“(d) rest= ricting the use of ATVs to no specific times.” That received a 30.1-percent response and “no restrictions” received 14.4 percent support.= span>
The majority — 85.6-percent &= #8212; of resident hunters were in favour of ATVs being restricted in some manner, with 43 percent of hunters favouring eliminatin= g their use entirely.
In 1986, further evidence for regul= ation of vehicles, including conventional four-wheel drives, is found in the report = of the Legislature’s Select Committee on Renewable Resources, Yukoners’ Views on Managing our Renewable Resources. The sp= ecific recommendation called for a ban on the use of ATVs and four-by-fours in rem= ote areas recently made accessible by new roads and restricting them in areas of sensitive environments.
In 1988, the Yukon Department of Re=
newable
Resources released a report entitled, Access-related Impacts of Backcoun=
try
Roads to Wildlife and Management Approaches to Mitigate Them. This was =
an
important report in that it was the first time the
Government chose to restrict hunting instead of regulating ATV use. Had the government of the day seen the futur= e, I’m sure would have made a different decision.
In 1997, the Department of Renewable
Resources, now known as the Department of Environment, conducted a survey of
sheep hunters residing in
Questionnaires were sent out to 187=
sheep
hunters residing in
Even though in 1997 the number of A=
TVs was
much lower than at present and the trail system less elaborate, the authors
write: “The use of ATVs for sheep hunting and access in general were
topics that respondents brought up most.”
Two of the hunters’ quotes ci= ted were as follows: “I don’t like to see four-wheelers or four-wheel dr= ives allowed in sheep country because of the potential terrain disturbance and wildlife harassment. Also, to me, it detracts from my ideal of a desirable hunting experience.” The other quote: “The use of ATVs for sheep hunting is the number one complaint I currently hear from traditional, ethi= cal sheep hunters. At the same time I see ATVs as the fastest-growing sheep hun= ting tool. It’s time to address ATV use. They are both popular and unpopul= ar, depending on who you talk to.”
The author writes under highlights = of their analysis that “26 percent of the hunters responding to the questionna= ire thought that an outright ban on ATVs would be appropriate under some condit= ions and a further 39 percent suggested that ATVs be restricted to designated ro= utes or limited below treeline.”
Also in 1997, the
Consider the risks over the medium = and long term of no action and take into account the experience of other jurisdictio= ns studied in this review.
The study documented impacts consis=
ting of
damage to soil and vegetation, stressed, displaced or even killed wildlife,=
conflicts
with other backcountry users and uncontrolled spread of trail networks in
various areas of the
In 1998, Yukon Fish and Wildlife br=
anch
passed regulations to restrict the use of ATVs in the southern parts of the=
In 2000, Yukon Fish and Wildlife Ma=
nagement
Board established an access management working group, which contracted Loeks again to do a follow-up study that was released=
in
2000 under the title Off-road Vehic=
le Use
and Issues in the Yukon. This study was more Yukon-specific, focusing on
the impacts of ATVs on this territory’s wildlife, fish and their habi=
tats,
providing case studies and recommending measures to address the problem. Af=
ter
much research, Loeks describes five approaches =
to
handle this topic, ranging from one extreme — the do nothing approach
— to the opposite one — dealing with ATV management in the cont=
ext
of an all-encompassing land use plan. He warned that, “The most impor=
tant
lesson from other jurisdictions was that it is too late once off-road vehic=
le
impacts have been allowed to become serious.”
In 2000, the Yukon Fish and Wildlife
Management Board’s access management working group also commissioned =
Clayton
White to do a survey in five other jurisdictions — Alaska, British
Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba — and described their
ATV-related experiences and regulations. These were published under the tit=
le Report
on ORV Management Strategies, Activities, Success and Failures in Other
Jurisdictions.
All jurisdictions had similar exper=
iences
in that ATV-related problems came into being quickly and had to be reacted =
to
without a proactive management strategy being in place.
In
Still, in 2000, the Government of Y=
ukon
Fish and Wildlife branch Southern Lakes regional program commissioned a rep=
ort
on the status of moose in the Southern Lakes region. At the same time, the =
The contractor’s recommendati=
ons for
the
In 2003, a letter by the Minister of Environment at the time, dated January 29, 2003, to the Yukon Fish and Wild= life Management Board, in response to the board’s recommendations on propo= sed hunting, fishing and trapping regulation changes included the following paragraph, and I quote: “The department is prepared to continue to wo= rk together with the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board in cooperation with stakeholders on the development of a territorial policy or approach for the= management of off-road vehicle use in the Yukon.”
Mr. Speaker, I’ll just point =
out that
was in 2003. The board followed up with this commitment with a proposal to
develop a legislative framework for managing access in the
Also in 2003, the Yukon Fish and Wi= ldlife Management Board released a booklet with the title Down the Road: The Effects of Roads and Trails on Wildlife, compi= led by M. Christie. It is a well-illustrated document written in non-scientific language for use by the general public. It addresses the impact of vehicles= on wildlife in their habitats, both in a road and trail setting, as well as ma= king recommendations on mitigation steps to reduce these impacts. Also discussed= is the decommissioning of roads and trails if they are no longer needed for th= eir intended purpose or if they are particularly damaging to the environment. <= o:p>
In 2004, the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board’s working group on off-road vehicles released a shor= t What We Heard report about their discussions with organizations. These organizations included First Nations, territorial and local governments, renewable resources councils and the pub= lic. Their positions were assessed through a questionnaire. Over 400 filled-in q= uestionnaire forms were returned. The overall conclusion of the working group was that “Opinion was split between those who have no concerns about off-road = vehicle use and those who have concerns.”
Suggested solutions from participat= ing groups and individuals were as varied and as opposing as their acceptance or rejection of the impacts of ATVs. Some felt that this whole issue could be dealt with by an education program that could start in schools. Here are so= me of the other ideas proposed: Many people felt that ORV= s should stay on existing trails. A common suggestion was that ATVs should no= t be used above treeline. Licensing and registration of ATVs was brought up, and= it was suggested that licensing should be connected to training and that licen= ce plates should be very visible.
The use of ATVs in certain areas se= nsitive to wildlife should be restricted, at least during times when the animals are using that area. ATV owners should switch to quieter four-stroke engine machines to reduce their disturbance impact. Other suggestions included that bridges should be built over stream crossings, that helmets and a minimum a= ge restriction should be imposed. Lastly, they suggested that good-quality tra= ils and areas that will have no impact on wildlife should be built. These trails could either be offered as a trade for not using trails in sensitive areas,= or to just encourage people to use less sensitive areas.
In 2007, a joint investigation with participation of the Laberge Renewable Resources Council, the Yukon Fish and Wildlife branch and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council was started in the Miners Range with the title, Assessing possible impacts of increasing use of off-road vehicles on the Dall’= s Sheep population and their habitat on Pilot Mountain.
The project consisted of ground and= aerial surveys of wildlife, the conducting of public workshops, the interviewing of local residents by door-to-door contact, estimating the use of the area by = ATVs during the hunting season by means of remote cameras, and locating and mapp= ing key wildlife habitats. The study was precipitated by frequent complaints by residents that the local wildlife was being over-harvested and displaced by= the high number of ATVs using the area, a concern shared by the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council. These concerns were verified by the study= .
When this study was conducted in 20=
07-08,
there were five trails that ATV drivers could use to get into alpine elevat=
ion,
as well as an unknown number at alpine elevation, which are difficult to co=
unt
because of their meandering nature and varying quality. Concurrently with t=
rail
development increasing numbers of ATVs, there was an increase in hunting
pressure on sheep and for the duration of one decade, between 1989 and 1999,
the harvest exceeded the maximum level of four percent, as stipulated in the
sheep management plan.
To estimate the number of hunters a= nd ATVs ascending the mountain, the government installed remote cameras at two acce= ss routes during the hunting season. Instrument problems prevented continuous records over the entire hunting season, but the cameras worked for about se= ven weeks. During that time, some 95 ATVs entered the area with close to 200 people. The other access routes were not monitored, but it’s known th= at at least four pack trains with local horse owners were also hunting in the area. A regulation proposal to limit ATV use to the area below treeline was rejected by government. However, government did put the sheep population on= a permit hunt.
In the fall of 2008, the Yukon Fish=
and
Wildlife Management Board launched an initiative titled “Yukon Fish a=
nd
Wildlife — a
Over a three-month period, Yukon-wi= de public meetings were held and questionnaires were distributed dealing with a great range of issues relating to fish and wildlife management as it is currently carried out and how people envisioned its status in management wo= uld be 12 years later in 2020.
Of relevance to the use of ATVs, qu= estion 14 of the questionnaire read, and I quote: “Should there be controlled access routes and/or elevation restrictions for ATVs to protected habitat?&= #8221; Out of the 311 returned questionnaires, 163 people answered this question w= ith “yes”. Eighty-eight percent of those said that there should be = some restrictions or controlled access for ATV use in order to protect habitats. Late in 2009 we saw the formation of the Trails Only Yukon Association. TOYA based their efforts on the values of responsibility, wise stewardship, and = the desire to leave a legacy for the next generation of a pristine wilderness environment. They listed their concerns about the unregulated use of ATVs i= n Yukon’s hinterland as: (1) damage to fragile alpine and wetlands; (2) harassment, d= isturbance and displacement of wildlife; (3) over-harvest in accessed areas; (4) cutti= ng of new trails; and (5) the quality of the wilderness experience.
TOYA has consistently advocated for=
four
specific initiatives regarding the issue of ATVs in the
On
In 2010, TOYA organized a public me=
eting on
the ATV issue with over 200 citizens in attendance. In early May 2010, TOYA
circulated a petition in
In May 2010, the Yukon Off-Road Rid=
ers
Association was formed to represent the riders’ needs and interests to
examine the feasibility of creating summer riding infrastructure in the
This working group consisted of
representatives from seven organizations: the Klondike Snowmobile Associati=
on,
Trails Only Yukon Association, Wilderness Tourism Association of the
Between the spring of 2011 and the = winter of 2012, this ORV working group met three times to discuss ORV management recommendations. A central document in these discussions was the 2011 repor= t of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles. The committee supported recommendation 3 that said that the government undertake an extensive advertising educational campaign to raise pub= lic awareness of any and all existing restrictions on off-road vehicle use, alo= ng with penalties and means of enforcement.
They supported recommendation 4, th= at government undertake an educational campaign that, in addition to existing = laws and regulations, focuses on the safe, responsible and respectful operation = of off-road vehicles, as well as the environmental stewardship.
They supported No. 10, that the gov=
ernment
encourage and support voluntary driver training on the safe and environment=
ally
responsible operation of ATVs and snowmobiles, and No. 14, that off-road
vehicle legislation and regulations provide for the ability to mitigate
environmental damage and cumulative negative impacts to sensitive wildlife =
and
fish habitats; ensure that legislation and/or regulations provide for the
ability to restrict the growth of trail networks in sensitive areas, to clo=
se
trails or overused areas, as necessary; to exclude off-road vehicles from
specific types of land or habitats and to have certain areas designated as
“access route only”.
These four recommendations were sup= ported by all stakeholders in the working group. I think it’s important to p= oint out that those seven stakeholders came from very different backgrounds, and= the fact that they could unanimously support four was important.
In 2011, prior to the October elect=
ion,
letters were sent to all candidates running, asking them four ATV-specific =
questions
and informing them that their answers would be published in the papers. The
four questions were the following: (1) Should ATV use be managed in order to
protect
It is of interest to note that all candidates from all four parties answered yes. All members in this House answered yes.
Also in 2011, an opinion paper on o=
ff-road
vehicles was produced jointly by YTG Departments of Environment, Highways a=
nd
Public Works and Community Services. It was a follow-up to the Select Commi=
ttee
on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles report tabled in the Hou=
se
in March 2011.
It had the purpose to present the k=
ey
safety and environmental issues related to off-road vehicle operation in th=
e
Early in January 2013, a letter sig= ned by ministers Cathers and Dixon was sent to relevant organizations and individu= als announcing that a government committee had been established consisting of t= he departments of Environment Highways and Public Works, and Energy, Mines and= Resources to follow up on the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles. This letter also named contact staff from the departments of Environment, and Energy, Mines and Resources,= who could be approached for questions and comments. While the letter announced = the formation of this working group, its terms of reference timelines have not = been made public. This is the 32-year history of ORV use in the territory.
I’d now like to discuss the f=
irst
point in my motion: to immediately implement all the recommendations of the=
Select
Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles. This issue has
had a long life in this House. The Select Committee on the Safe Operation a=
nd
Use of Off-road Vehicles was originally struck from Motion No. 834 during t=
he
32nd Legislative Assembly. This select committee was an all-party
committee of the Yukon Legislative Assembly, established on
Pursuant to the select committee=
217;s
terms of reference, the committee undertook public consultations for the
purposes of receiving the views and opinions of
The committee placed ads in local
newspapers, soliciting feedback on the issue in three ways: an on-line opin=
ion
survey, written submissions supplied to the committee, or at one of the pub=
lic
meetings that they held. An information card explaining the committee’=
;s
work and directing individuals to the on-line opinion survey were delivered=
to
In addition to public meetings and =
in
response to meeting requests, the committee met individually with the follo=
wing
groups: the Yukon Off-Road Riders Association, the City of
Others see it as that pristine, unt=
ouched
wilderness experience. For them it’s more about respect and the princ=
iple
that
While
The committee believed that the app=
roach
must not only be responsible and progressive, but it must be respectful to =
all
The recommendations that were made = by the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles are, as follow= s:
“1. THAT, legislation and reg=
ulations
governing the use of off-road vehicles are inclusive of all and do not excl=
ude
anyone to the advantage of another.
“2. THAT, there is consistency
throughout all legislation and regulations governing the use of off-road ve=
hicles
in the territory.
“3. THAT, government undertake an extensive advertising/educational campaig=
n to
raise public awareness of any and all existing restrictions on off-road veh=
icle
use along with penalties and means of enforcement.
“4. THAT, government undertake an educational campaign which, in addition to
existing laws and regulations, focuses on the safe, responsible and respect=
ful
operation of off-road vehicles as well as environmental stewardship.
“5. THAT, legislation governi=
ng
‘on-road’ use of off-road vehicles (ORV) be provided for through
amendments to
“6. THAT, as it pertains to
‘on-road’ use, provisions in the Yukon government’s exist=
ing
policy regarding the operation and registration of all-terrain vehicles be
given the force of law and enshrined in legislation.
“7. THAT, all off-road vehicl= es that travel on or cross any Yukon road or highway be subject to registration and liability insurance and require that operators hold a valid Class 5 driver’s licence.
“8. THAT, government consider= the issues of registration, operator licensing and insurance for ‘off-road’ use and that government look at how other jurisdicti= ons have approached these issues, prior to determining the best approach for Yu= kon.
“9. THAT, the definition of ‘highway’ in the Motor = Vehicles Act be clarified, and THAT the terms of ‘on-road’ and ‘off-road’ be clearly defined in the act.
“10. THAT, government encourage and support voluntary driver training on the= safe and environmentally responsible operation of ATVs and snow machines.
“11. THAT, the issues of age requirements, under-age riders, adult supervision and age vs. size of machi= ne be addressed in legislation and/or regulation and that government consider = how other jurisdictions have approached these issues in determining the best approach for Yukon.
“12. THAT, helmet use be mand= atory when operating an off-road vehicle or snowmobile on roads. The committee did not reach consensus on helmet requirements for ‘off-road’ use.<= /span>
“13. THAT, legislation address the needs of municipalities in identifying off= enders and enforcing their bylaws.
“14. THAT, off-road vehicle
legislation and regulations provide for the ability to mitigate environment=
al
damage and cumulative negative impacts to sensitive wildlife and fish habit=
ats.
Ensure that legislation and/or regulations provide for the ability to restr=
ict
the growth of trail networks in sensitive areas; to close trails or overused
areas as necessary; to exclude off-road vehicles from specific types of lan=
d or
habitats, and have certain areas designated as access routes only.
“THAT, environmental and acce= ss restrictions be implemented in areas where problems exist or are developing and, when not required for wildlife or environmental protection, efforts be made not to reduce access to existing use areas.
“THAT, government review pena= lties for environmental damage caused by any method, motorized or non-motorized means, to ensure penalties are appropriate. The committee further recommends that the government takes steps to improve public awareness of these penalt= ies; and
“THAT, go= vernment consider separate environmental protection legislation that targets = and penalizes environmental damage rather than restricting specific users.̶= 1;
As I noted, the select committee ta=
bled its
report in March 2011. With the leadership of the Yukon Party in turmoil, no=
thing
happened until the 2011 general election. In September 2011, the Trails Only
Yukon Association submitted a questionnaire to all parties that I referenced
before — and I would like to point out again that we all said, yes, t=
hat
we would enact these things. We agreed that ATV use should be managed in or=
der
to protect wilderness.
We agreed that new legislation or
regulations should be put in place to manage ATV use in the
It should be noted that this is an
important part of the debate today, because we all answered yes. That commi=
tted
the Yukon Party government to bring forward legislation to protect <=
st1:State>
Our responsibility as legislators b=
ecomes
even more urgent when the potential population growth over the next 10 year=
s is
considered. Even a modest increase in population will see a significant
increase in backcountry use by all citizens. The conflict between user grou=
ps
will continue to escalate, and sensitive ecosystems will be damaged further.
Sadly, since 2009 there have been more injuries and at least two fatalities.
Every season that we wait, we risk another person’s life. Every season
that we wait, we risk more sensitive habitat, more alpine areas and more wilderness.
Mr. Speaker, the government talks a= lot about education; it’s the low-hanging fruit for politicians after all, and it is relatively straightforward to set up an education program. Educat= ion programs are at a low risk for government and how can anyone argue against education? However, we have not seen any serious action on the front beside= s a few posters. It does raise for me the question of the government’s commitment to this issue. Do we need another tragedy before we see action f= rom this government? I truly hope not, but I’m concerned that we might be going that way. It’s a question of priorities. In the Premier’s Budget Address, he made it abundantly clear that this is not where his priorities lie. Where is the licensing, registration and requirement for helmets while on roads and highways and the issues around the age of riders= ?
The government recently sent a lett= er to TOYA outlining some of its initiatives. At first glance, there is promise. = Promises are being made to amend the Motor Vehicles Act. A promise is being m= ade to get ahead of some of the environmental problems and to take proactive ac= tion to protect areas that have not yet been damaged by off-road vehicles. Howev= er, there are no timelines; no solid plans or commitments that even indicate timelines and we know that without timelines, many good intentions get shuf= fled off to a corner in someone’s office to wait for winter.
We’re heard the Premier repea=
t on
numerous occasions that the Yukon Party government has been responsible for=
the
creation of more select committees than any other government, but what good=
is
the work of a select committee if it goes nowhere? Don’t get me wrong=
; I
think off-road vehicles have their place and they’re even fun, althou=
gh
I’m not a very good driver.
They are also great tools and I und= erstand where that part comes in. It’s just that our northern environment is = very fragile and the marks of a couple of quads in the alpine can last for generations. This is not only about landscape and view= scapes; many populations of animals can be stressed and negatively impacted by the unrestricted use of off-road vehicles.
The Minister of Environment has sai=
d in
Question Period that we’ve consistently responded positively to those
recommendations and are committed to acting upon them. The problem is that =
the
The point of the long 32-year histo= ry was to point out that this is not a new issue. This started when I was four, and here I am at 36. If we continue to go on at this rate without making the ha= rd decisions about protecting the environment and about enforcing rules, we st= and to be in the same spot many years from now but the conditions will be much worse.
This state of affairs will not do, = and concrete action needs to be taken. I hope to see all members vote in favour of this motion.
Hon.
Mr. Dixon: I would like to take some time to s=
peak
to this motion. As a precursor to my comments, I would like to thank the Me=
mber
for Takhini-Kopper King for raising it. It’s one that we have discuss=
ed
in this House previously in Question Period, I should mention, and at other
times as well. It’s one that she did mention has a long history in the
territory and one that has been faced by numerous governments throughout th=
e
So there are obviously divisions th=
ere. Of
course, between communities — I know that when the select committee w=
ent
out, there was a marked difference in communities, in terms of their opinio=
ns
on whether or not there was action needed and what that action would be. For
instance, I understand from anecdotal discussions with members of the commi=
ttee
that there was quite a significant — for lack of a better term —
“anti-Whitehorse bent” to a lot of the input received from some=
of
the communities. So there is certainly a difference in opinion between Yuko=
ners
from different parts of the
I appreciate the history that the M= ember for Takhini-Kopper King provided. I probably won’t go back as far as = she did, but I do appreciate some of the historical context. I know some of the documents she referenced. I’ve seen and had the opportunity to read s= ome of them. I don’t believe all of them, though, so I do appreciate her bringing forward some of that historical perspective to this particular iss= ue.
I will apologize, I guess, in advan=
ce for
my comments possibly overlapping with some of the ones she has made already=
, because
in preparation for this, we obviously reviewed some of the same material. S=
ome
of the things I’ll be covering are maybe echoing what she has already
discussed. So I do apologize in advance for any repetition that may occur a=
s a
result of that.
Basically, the way I’d like to proceed with my comments on this particular motion is, first of all, to rev= iew the select committee’s work, the recommendations provided therein and some of the process that went into that. I think some of the context around= the creation of the select committee is valid for this discussion, and I think I’ll cover some of that. I’d also like to cover some of the work that has been done since then — throughout the time since the spring = of 2011 — when the select committee presented its recommendations.
As the member opposite referenced, = a lot of work has been done by a number of different groups, some of whom are with us today in the gallery, and I think there are a lot of different aspects to t= his, which drive certain people into having an interest in this particular topic= . I know that some are very concerned about the safety aspects of ATVs, and oth= ers are not so concerned about the safety aspects, but rather the environmental consequences of their use in the environment. For folks like that, I know they’re much more focused on the physical impacts on the environment = as a result of ATV use occurring in the territory.
Then I’d like to once again r=
eview
some of the dialogue that went on during the election, which was put forwar=
d by
the Yukon Party, in explaining our position during the election, some of wh=
ich has
been mentioned by the member opposite already, again, but I will provide so=
me
additional information and then discuss, if I may, some of the work we have
done to date in reviewing our options and some of the steps we have taken a=
nd
some of the ideas we have for going forward, and then we’ll take it f=
rom
there.
Going back to the select committee&=
#8217;s
work, the member opposite did note that the select committee was an all-par=
ty
committee of the Yukon Legislative Assembly, established in November of 200=
9,
when the Legislative Assembly adopted a motion moved by Steve Nordick, the =
MLA
for
That’s one issue that I would= note, Mr. Speaker, as a piece of context here. Originally, this work by the select committee was intended to specifically deal with the safety aspects of ATV = use in the territory. As a result of some ambiguity in the wording of the motio= n, it ended up taking a bit of a turn and really becoming a focus on environme= ntal problems and the environmental consequences of ATV use in the territory.
So one thing I did want to mention = is that in this case — something we can take into consideration is the fact t= hat originally, the work of this committee was aimed at dealing specifically wi= th safety issues, and those environmental concerns that a number of Yukoners h= ave with ATVs weren’t the intended topic of discussion. Nonetheless, they were discussed and raised, and that is a reality and something the select committee acknowledged in their report and recommendations. As the report s= ays, the public expectation and ambiguity in the wording of the motion made it necessary for the committee to consider the broader issue. So nonetheless it was something they considered closely — the environmental impacts. That’s what a lot of Yukoners are interested in, in the context of th= is discussion.
The committee’s mandate was s=
et out
in the motion, as all select committee mandates are done, and voted on by t=
he
Legislature in typical fashion. The motion that set out the select committee
specifies that the committee is charged with conducting public consultation=
s on
the safe operation and use of all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles in the
territory, and reporting its findings and recommendations to the Legislative
Assembly no later than the fall 2010 sitting.
The text of that order, as recorded= in the Hansard journals, reads as follows, “THAT a select committee on the safe oper= ation and use of off-road vehicles be established; THAT the membership of the committee be comprised of equal representation from the government caucus, = the Official Opposition caucus, Third Party caucus and include the Independent = member.” — It was a contentious issue and resulted in the select committee, wh= ich sounds kind of familiar, I guess, for members currently. — “THAT the Premier, the Leader of the Official Opposition, and the Leader of the T= hird Party name their respective caucus member(s) to the committee; THAT the committee conduct public consultations for the purpose of receiving the vie= ws and opinions of Yukon residents and prepare a report making recommendations= on the safe operation and use of all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles in the territory; THAT the committee report its findings and recommendations in the 2010 fall sitting of the Legislative Assembly; THAT the committee have the power to seek background information from experts and to call and hear these expert witnesses; and THAT the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly be respons= ible for providing the necessary support services to the committee.”
On
There was an amendment to that moti= on which read as follows: “THAT the select committee on the safe operation and= use of off-road vehicles be established by Motion No. 834 of the First Session = of the 32nd Legislative Assembly” and that it was amended by changing the date of its reporting to the House from the 2010 fall sitting = to the 2011 spring sitting. So obviously the select committee met and decided = that they wanted an extension based on their public consultations and needed some additional time.
The consultation process was very
extensive. It was thorough and involved a number of forums and mediums thro=
ugh
which the committee received input from Yukoners. It undertook public
consultations for the purpose of receiving the views and opinions of
The committee agreed to consider re=
quests
for public meetings where there was sufficient interest and accepted a requ=
est
for public meetings where there was sufficient interest, and accepted reque=
sts
for public meetings until
The deadline for written submission=
s and
opinion surveys was on
In August 2010, letters explaining =
the
formation of the committee and its mandate were sent to each of
The letters invited First Nation governments to provide any comments or concerns they might have with regard= to the safe operation and use of off-road vehicles in their communities to the committee. No responses were received. I know that wasn’t from lack of interest, Mr. Speaker. I’ve heard since from a number of representati= ves of First Nation governments that it wasn’t from a lack of interest th= at they didn’t want to provide this to the select committee but the beli= ef that First Nation concerns ought to be provided on a government-to-governme= nt basis, with the government rather than a select committee of the Legislatur= e.
I can’t speak to a specific F= irst Nation here; this was just something I’m given to understand from discussions with others. It makes sense to me that they would want to condu= ct their business on a government-to-government basis. That’s something = we should keep in mind: we have an obligation to discuss these matters with Fi= rst Nations and the First Nations have indicated in the past that they prefer to deal with these kinds of matters on a government-to-government basis, rather than a public forum like a select committee hearing.
In terms of what the select committ=
ee
heard, I know very well — because I’ve had a number of discussi=
ons
about this with the Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources, who was a memb=
er
of that committee — that the interest was significant and the opinions
were divisive and fairly passionate but certainly very informative.
Opinions and suggestions about the =
safe
operation and use of off-road vehicles were vastly diverse, ranging from ve=
ry
intense views at either end of the spectrum to everything in between. Some =
were
strongly in support of off-road vehicle legislation while others vehemently
opposed it. One thing is clear that was noted in the select committee’=
;s
report: Yukoners are passionate about the issue. Comments tend to be emotio=
nally
charged and closely tied to what
I apologize — I know that the= member opposite quoted the same passage, but that’s inevitable in this kind = of discussion.
It was pointed out in the committee=
’s
report that if the
So if they had dealt with it back i=
n the
day, they wouldn’t be as bad. This responsibility becomes even more
urgent when the potential population growth over the next 10 years is consi=
dered.
As we’ve seen in the past 10 years, of course, our projections are
continued economic and population growth of the territory. So we know that =
this
will continue to be an issue for
One comment I had about education &= #8212; the committee, of course, noted that the committee heard over and over again that education is critical. There were many calls for education and enforce= ment of existing rules before new or additional regulations are considered. There were calls for education on the safe and respectful ownership of ATVs and f= or education on respectful and responsible environmental stewardship.= p>
The committee also heard that educa=
tion
alone is not the answer — that it must be paired with efficient and
effective infrastructure regulations and enforcement. I think that’s =
an
important point, as well, that we need to keep in mind — I know some =
have
the feeling that we are past the stage where education is necessary and that
further attempts to provide education to Yukoners around this issue is a lo=
st
cause. I don’t agree with that. I really do think that education need=
s to
continue to be a priority for us. As I’ll discuss, there are a number=
of
things that we’ve done already to promote education and provide some
public information around this topic. So I’ll get into that in a few
moments.
This is another piece that we discu=
ssed
earlier. There was a large block calling for legislation to protect the
What is =
important
to discuss at this point are the recommendations the select committee provi=
ded
to the Legislature and to the government. One of the things they noted in t=
heir
preamble to the recommendations was the complexity of the issue and the fact
that it wasn’t going to be easy and wasn’t going to be somethin=
g that
government was going to be able to move forward on without disappointing so=
me
Yukoners.
There are going to be some folks th= at aren’t ultimately happy with whichever direction we take. There’= ;s going to be some on either side of it, so that’s an issue the governm= ent faces on a number of fronts and a number of decision points.
The select committee recommends the following — and I’ll just read the recommendations so that we c= an discuss them a little bit better: “That legislation and regulations governing the use of off-road vehicles are inclusive of all and do not excl= ude anyone to the advantage of another; that there is consistency throughout all legislation and regulations governing the use of off-road vehicles in the territory; that the government undertake an extensive advertising/education= al campaign to raise public awareness of any and all existing restrictions on off-road vehicle use, along with penalties and means of enforcement; that government undertake an educational campaign which, in addition to the exis= ting laws and regulations, focuses on the safe, responsible, and respectful operation of off-road vehicles, as well environmental stewardship; that legislation governing on-road use of off-road vehicles be provided for thro= ugh amendments to Yukon’s Motor Vehicles Act; that as it pertains = to on-road use, provisions in the Yukon government’s existing policy regarding the operation and registration of all-terrain vehicles be given t= he force of law and enshrined in the legislation; that all off-road vehicles t= hat travel on or cross over any Yukon road or highway be subjected to registrat= ion and liability insurance and require that operators hold a valid class 5 driver’s licence; that government consider the issue of registration,= operator licensing and insurance for off-road use and that government look at how ot= her jurisdictions have approached these issues prior to determining the best approach for Yukon; that the definition of ‘highway’ in the = Motor Vehicles Act be clarified and that the terms “on-road” and “off-road” be clearly defined in the act; that government encou= rage and support voluntary driver training on the safe and environmentally responsible operation of ATVs and snowmobiles; that the issues of age requirements, under-age riders, adult supervision and age versus size of machine be addressed in legislation and/or regulation and that government consider how other jurisdictions have approached these issues in determining the best approach for Yukon; that helmet use be mandatory when operating an off-road vehicle or snowmobile on-road” — the committee did not reach consensus on helmet requirements for off-road use — “that legislation address the needs of municipalities for identifying offenders a= nd enforcing their bylaws; that off-road vehicle legislation regulations provi= de for the ability to mitigate environmental damage and cumulative negative im= pacts to sensitive wildlife and fish habitats; ensure that legislation and/or regulations provide for the ability to restrict the growth of trail network= s in sensitive areas; to close trails or overused areas, as necessary; to exclude off-road vehicles from specific types of land or habitats and have certain areas designated as access routes only; that environmental and access restr= ictions be implemented in areas where problems exist or are developing and, when not required for wildlife or environmental protection efforts to be made, not to reduce access to existing areas; that government review penalties for envir= onmental damage caused by any method, motorized or non-motorized means, to ensure penalties are appropriate.
“The committee further recomm= ends that government take steps to improve public awareness of these penalties; = and finally that the government consider separate environmental protection legislation that targets and penalizes environment= al damage rather than restricting specific users.”
The committee noted that, while
The final piece in the committee=
217;s
work is that “The committee believes that legislative tools and educa=
tion
programs that discourage poor practices, prevent ecological degradation and
teach ecological stewardship are required.
So I think that’s a fair re-c= reation of the committee’s work and what, of course, we’re discussing today.
Now, as I said earlier, that commit=
tee
provided those recommendations to the Legislature in March of 2011. Since t=
hen,
a lot of work has been done by government, but also by a number of groups. A
number of groups have formed in response to the proceedings and the discuss=
ion
of this topic. I think we should note that some of the work that has been d=
one
to date has been very good and very collaborative and government is certain=
ly
appreciative of that work.
As the Member for Takhini-Kopper Ki= ng noted, in the spring of 2011, the Yukon Conservation Society received fundi= ng from the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Enhancement Trust Fund, which is a trust pursuant to the Umbrella Final Agre= ement administered by members of the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board, wh= ich provides the funding based on criteria outlined in the Umbrella Final Agreement to provide support for a number of environmental issues and the Yukon environmental awareness fund, which is a fund administered by the Department of Environment to promote a number of environmental causes and activities.
The Yukon Conservation Society rece=
ived
funding for both of those funds for a project to address the growing concer=
ns
about the impacts of ORVs in the
The member opposite listed the memb= ers of that working group already so I don’t need to list them, but they did come from a variety of backgrounds, some representing riders and those who enjoy ATV use as a recreational hobby and others who were concerned about t= he impacts of ATV use and wanted to represent the more environmental side, for lack of a better term.
They came up with a number of recommendations that actually directly referenced the work done by the sele= ct committee. Basically, from what I can tell you, they used the select commit= tee recommendations as a bit of a guiding mantra and moved forward based on the recommendations therein, and also provided subse= quent recommendations based on how they felt the government could properly respon= d to some of those recommendations. They highlighted recommendations 3, 4, 10 an= d 14 from the select committee’s report. The third recommendation was that= government undertake an extensive advertising/educatio= nal campaign. There are some more words after that, but that’s the crux of it.
They added to the recommendation the
following: “Government should partner with the established stakeholde=
rs
to best utilize resources and gain inroads to user groups; Education should
also reach non-motorized groups so that all users understand what is permit=
ted;
The Yukon government should review ORV legislation across Canada and assess=
its
applicability for the Yukon; The Department of Environment should include
information on ORV environmental impacts in Hunter Education and Ethics
Development (HEED) training; =
Education
should teach why legislation is in place, why it is important to comply with
the legislation and the consequences of not complying.”
Following recommendation 4, which w=
as also
in relation to an educational campaign about the current regulations, they
recommendation that government should partner with established stakeholders=
to
best utilize resources and gain inroads to user groups. They recommended
education should also reach — some of these echo the first one, so I
won’t read them all, but they also recommended that we use national
standards for trail signage, maps and other ORV publications for public and
field office use, to provide updates for ORV users about trail designations,
bylaws, changes to the rules and regulations, et cetera, and provide links =
to
other motorized ORV-related sites.
Incentives should be built into reg= ulating frameworks to encourage rider training such as WCB or liability insurance d= eals for trained riders. WCB should be encouraged to use nationally recognized courses. Then, following the select committee’s recommendation 14, th= ey added recommendations as follows: scientific criteria to assess violations = of environmental protection laws need to be established. Restrictions should be based on this criteria and not anecdotal evidence or complaints. The Depart= ment of Environment should be mandated to conduct research on environmental impa= cts of ORVs and work with other departments to ensu= re sensitive habitats are protected. This will support evidence-based legislat= ion or environmental legislation. There should be restricted access in place for sensitive habitat areas during critical seasons, such as spring wet conditi= ons and lambing areas, et cetera. I think that’s one that I will return to — that we acknowledge that there are critical seasons and when we consider the ways the government can act in terms of restricting use, identifying critical seasons — perhaps lambing time or in the spring = when things are wet and easy to be torn up — we could take an approach that rather than being 365/24/7, we could target specific areas at specific time= s.
So following that work —
Some Hon. Member: (Inaudible)
Hon. Mr. Dixon: Forgive me, Mr. Speaker. The member opposite is giving me some advice, I guess, on how to move forward. Followi= ng that work by that working group, they provided that information to us in January of last year through a letter addressed to the Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources and copied to me, as well as all First Nations and municipalities, I believe. We took that information and provided it to departments to take into consideration as we move forward with this issue. =
One of the topics that I did want to
discuss was the election and some of the positions established by the vario=
us
parties. In response to the Trails Only Yukon Association’s request f=
or
the positions of the various parties, the Yukon Party provided them with a
letter which outlined a response to their four questions that were asked by=
the
group, which the member opposite mentioned in her response.
The Yukon Party provided the follow= ing response with regard to off-road vehicle use: The Yukon Party is committed = to implementing the recommendations made by the all-party committee on off-road vehicle use= in its unanimous report to the Legislature. This will include equality and fairness. Under the heading of equality and fairness: We recognize the impo= rtance of users and uses, including recreation, hunting, trapping, outfitting, resource industries, and tourism. We will ensure legislation and regulations governing the use of off-road vehicles are inclusive and do not exclude any= one to the advantage of another. We recognize that many people regard the abili= ty to travel in the backcountry by ATV and snowmobile as a very important pers= onal freedom. Government actions must be fair and balanced to all user groups and citizens and appropriately protect our environment and wildlife.
With regard to the environment, we =
will
review legislation and regulations to determine whether existing mechanisms,
such as habitat protection areas and special management areas, provide
appropriate ability to restrict the growth of trail networks in sensitive
areas, to close trails or overused areas as necessary, to exclude off-road
vehicles from specific types of lands or habitats, and to have certain areas
designated as access roads only.
We recognize that there are some ar= eas where new steps need to be taken to protect wildlife and environment from A= TV damage. Actions will be targeted to areas where problems exist or are developing. Access to existing use areas will not be reduced unless necessa= ry for environmental protection. We will consult with Yukoners prior to implementing any proposed restrictions. We will review penalties for environmental damage caused by any method, motorized or non-motorized, to ensure penalties are appropriate.
With regard to safety and responsib=
le
riding, we committed to the following: amend the Motor Vehicles Act =
to
clearly distinguish between roads and trails; amend the Motor Vehicles A=
ct
to make helmet use, liability insurance and registration mandatory when
operating an ATV or snowmobile on-road; pass legislation to make helmet use
mandatory for young riders operating ATVs and snowmobiles off-road; launch =
an
education campaign to promote awareness of laws and regulations, safe,
responsible and respectful operation of off-road vehicles, helmet use and
environmental stewardship; work with partners to support voluntary rider
training focused on safety and environmentally responsible operation of ATVs
and snowmobiles; and strengthen the ability of municipalities to implement =
bylaws
placing additional restrictions on ATV and snowmobile use, including bylaws
affecting trails, operating training and licensing, safety equipment insura=
nce
and registration.
That was what the Yukon Party provi= ded to TOYA during the election by way of charting out our position on responding = to the select committee’s recommendations and to their requests for a position on the particular issue. Since then, there has been action in a few areas that I won’t mention now, but in particular one of the areas of interest has been around the environmental considerations. The safety and responsibility issues in the Motor Vehicles Act — those are things that we’ll be dealing with = in due course, but I’ll leave those to the Minister of Highways and Publ= ic Works to discuss perhaps at greater length in the future. I’d like to focus now on the more environmental aspects of the recommendations of the select committee and then how they play into the Member for Takhini-Kopper King’s motion.
Fairly shortly after the election, =
the
Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources and I met with representatives from
TOYA — I think Mr. Peters is in the stands presently.
At that meeting we discussed how the government would move forward with this. Obviously, representatives of orga= nizations are eager to see government act in short order. Of course we indicated that= we fully intend to respond positively to the recommendations of the select committee, but from perhaps a different viewpoint on how exactly that would play out. I do recall that shortly after our meeting and after our discussi= on there was some media attention around this. I had a bit of a laugh because I gave what I felt to be the exact same interview to two different newspapers= and the headlines the next day were — one newspaper reported that I was putting the brakes on ATV legislation and one newspaper reported that I was charging ahead with ATV legislation. I thought that was a bit humorous and = I know that the coverage from the TOYA group was in ther= e as well.
What we have indicated to TOYA and =
to
others is that we have an interest in targeting specific areas in the terri=
tory
that we feel are in need of greater protection or are likely to be in need =
of
greater protection. In a recent letter that we sent to the Trails Only Yukon
Association, we charted out some of what we have done to date and some of o=
ur
thinking and ideas about where we wanted to go with this.
I’d like to read some of that= because I think it’s important.
In the letter addressed to Trails O=
nly
Yukon Association we said, “We appreciated the opportunity to meet wi=
th
you in December to discuss the topic of off-road vehicles. At that time we
provided you with an update on the current work of
“Because of the range of
recommendations of the select committee and the diversity of responsibiliti=
es
within various departments, we decided to create an interdepartmental worki=
ng
group to advise us on how best to respond. As a result of that internal wor=
king
group meeting, we determined that the Department of Highways and Public Wor=
ks
will lead implementation of the safety-related recommendations to be dealt =
with
through the Motor Vehicles Act. Environment
“Our intended outcome is to e= nsure that government has the adequate tools to target specific areas, like key wildlife habitat or particularly sensitive areas, where it is determined th= at problems resulting from off-road vehicles — ORVs= — are occurring or are likely to occur. Recognizing this intended out= come, the interdepartmental working group determined that our suite of tools and powers under current legislation are not ideally suited.
“Consequently we have determi=
ned that
the best alternative will be pursuant to the Territorial Lands (Yukon<=
/st1:place>
“We hope to keep the regulato= ry amendments to a minimum in order to enact changes in a timely and efficient= manner, while ensuring effectiveness in addressing environmental concerns. Our next steps will include further definition of regulatory requirements, regulation drafting and targeted consultation.”
In that letter, we referenced the interdepartmental working group, and I didn’t mention that earlier. So following our initial meeting with TOYA, we indicated that we would be form= ing an interdepartmental working group among the departments of Energy, Mines a= nd Resources, Environment Yukon and Highways and Public Works to look at the options for how we would exactly move forward with the recommendations of t= he select committee. There are a number of tools that we currently have at our= disposal that we were considering at that time. Those included habitat protection ar= eas; other tools exist in the Parks and Land Certainty Act, a number of o= ther legislative or regulatory tools that we could employ to deal with the recom= mendations of the select committee.
That interdepartmental working grou= p met over the course of several months and determined that, as we indicated in t= he letter, it was best to parse out the two different issues — one being= the issue of safety and one being the issue of the environmental considerations= . We decided it was best to deal with them separately and deal with the safety considerations with the Department of Highways and Public Works and that the departments of EMR and Environment Yukon would consider the environmental sides.
After that work, the interdepartmen=
tal
working group also determined that a number of the tools that we have curre=
ntly
— some of the ones I listed earlier — would probably not be
well-suited to dealing with that particular issue in the manner which we wa=
nted
to go.
So they came up with the potential =
of
making either a strategic amendment to the Territorial Lands (
There are a number of different way=
s that
could happen but, essentially, if we had a regulation in place, pursuant to=
the
Territorial Lands ( One idea that does come to mind =
212;
and I certainly don’t want to commit to it, but it’s something =
that
I think is a possibility — would be to use the s=
ubzones
that already exist for hunting regulations. They delineate manageable-sized are=
as
throughout the I know a number of people have iden=
tified
some different areas that may be a good place to target. There are areas ar=
ound
Faro that see a significant amount of ATV and ORV use. There are areas in t=
he One thing that we did make clear wa=
s that
we weren’t interested in a broad-based law about ATVs that spans the
entire I know that’s not the approac=
h that
some people would like to see us take. I know some people would like a gene=
ral
ban on ATVs being used anywhere in the territory, if they are off-trail or
off-road, but that was not the direction we wanted to go in. We were interested in legislation or
regulations that allowed us to target specific areas that were experiencing=
damage.
So that actually, I think, is a pre=
tty fair
appraisal of where we are in terms of the general thinking. So the planning=
at
this point would involve either a specific legislative amendment or the
creation of regulations pursuant to the Territorial Lands ( So the ability for us to act immedi=
ately in
the wording of the current motion is somewhat limited because of the fact t=
hat
we can’t make legislative changes this sitting because we’re
already engaged in the sitting. Of course, as I said before, the roles of F=
irst
Nations, municipalities and stakeholder groups need to be considered as wel=
l. The issue that I have with the moti=
on as it
currently stands is about the timeline in terms of the word
“immediately”. It simply isn’t possible for us to take
immediate action to all of the recommendations outlined in the select
committee’s recommendations because of the fact that they asked for a=
nd require
legislative changes, whether it be to the Motor
Vehicles Act in the Highways and Public Works component of the issue, o=
r if
we are going to consider amendments to the Territorial Lands (Yukon) Act, that is somethi=
ng we
would also have to consider. As I said, the Summary
Convictions Act may require a legislative amendment as well to include =
ORV
use as an offence that could be penalized with a summary conviction and thus
have a financial penalty. With that in mind, I would suggest =
that
while we support the recommendations of the select committee and the work it
did, and the second point of the motion, which includes us working with
stakeholder groups and determining a proper course of action, while we have=
a
vision of how we’d like to see it go forward — and we know that
doesn’t necessarily line up with all interested groups but, nonethele=
ss,
we should obviously include them in the discussion. With that in mind and in support of
sections (1) and (2) of the motion, I am going to move a friendly amendment=
to
the motion as presented to the House. Amendment proposed Hon.
Mr. Dixon: I move THAT Motion No. 369 be
amended by deleting the word “immediately”. Speaker: Order please. The amendment is in order. It has been moved by the Minister of
Environment THAT Motion No. 369 be
amended by deleting the word “immediately”. Hon.
Mr. Dixon: I don’t think I need to go on=
at
too much length here, but I would say that we indicated in the election and
since then that we of course are committed to responding positively to the
recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of
Off-road Vehicles. We’ve got a plan currently laid out in terms of the
division of responsibilities of who does what with regard to the safety-rel=
ated
recommendations and the more environmentally based regulations and steps
forward there. We do have plans to move forward and take action and this
amendment supports us moving forward as we see fit and removes the word
“immediately”. The reason for that is as I said — it simp=
ly
isn’t possible for us to make legislative amendments immediately beca=
use
we are currently sitting and can’t identify new legislation. Of cours=
e the
process of amending legislation isn’t a simple one. I know the members
opposite sometimes think it is, but a lot of work has to go into that proce=
ss
from departments and from staff with regard to those kinds of changes. They often require consultation. I =
know the
NDP doesn’t enjoy consultation with Yukoners, or they certainly
haven’t with other pieces of legislation when they propose amendments=
to
that. Some
Hon. Member: (Inaudible) Point of order Speaker: Member for Takhini-Kopper King on a point of order. Ms.
White:=
8195; Standing Order =
19(g)
covers imputing false or unavowed motives to another member — I belie=
ve
we are treading into that territory. Speaker’s ruling Speaker: There is no point of order. It’s a dispute between memb=
ers.
Minister of Environment, please continue. Hon.
Mr. Dixon: The point I’m making here is =
that
there is more to amending legislation than simply snapping our fingers and
putting it on the floor here in the House. A lot of work has to go into it
— a lot of work by departments and a lot of work by our staff.=
We are committed to moving forward =
with
this; we’ve said that; we said it in the election and we’ve
committed to groups that have brought this to us that we are committed to
moving forward. The direction we’re going isn’t exactly what
everyone will want, but that’s something that was acknowledged in the
select committee’s report — that whatever government does
isn’t going to be accepted or necessarily supported by every single
person. That’s the reality and something that we understand and reali=
ze
that we have to try to make the best decision possible on behalf of Yukoner=
s. I think that by amending this motio=
n we
maintain the spirit and intent of it, which is to urge the government to
implement the recommendations, which is something
we’re fully intending to do, but removing the caveat and specificity =
with
the word “immediately”. With that, I think the amendment cr=
eates a
motion that all members of this House can accept, maintains the spirit and
intent originally put forward by the Member for Takhini-Kopper King and
obviously represents this House’s understanding and appreciation of t=
he
work done by the select committee in determining some recommendations for
government on how to move forward on this fairly divisive and contentious
issue. I think this amendment improves it and provides all members with the
ability to support it in urging government to take action. Ms.
White:=
8195; In speaking on =
the
amendment, my concern with the removal of the word “immediately”=
;,
although I understand the reasons why, is that we’re taking away the =
urgency
of the situation. The minister referred to critical seasons. He referred to=
all
sorts of things of urgency. By removing a timeline, we’ve left it ope=
n. We have 32 years of research about =
the
effects of ATV use in the backcountry and sensitive areas, and it’s o=
nly
going to increase with our population and with the change in motorized
vehicles. I understand that, because the five days has moved forward where =
we
could bring forward new legislation, that is not possible, but my concern w=
ith
the removal of the word “immediately” and no time frame include=
d is
that this will just get lost again. So although I understand the amendment,=
I
am not in favour of it as it is stated. Hon.
Mr. Cathers: I will be brief in speaking to the
amendment, but to elaborate on what my colleague the Minister of Environment
has expressed, the reason behind the amendment is quite simply that some of=
the
recommendations that it specifically refers to — again I’ll ref=
er
to the Member for Takhini-Kopper King’s motion as read — were t=
hey
not to be amended, would urge the Government of Yukon to immediately implem=
ent
all of the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and
Use of Off-road Vehicles. While we are committed to working o=
n this
in an expeditious fashion, the recommendations that were contained in the c=
ommittee’s
report include recommendation 5, that legislation governing on-road use of off-road vehicles (ORV) be
provided for through amendments to Yukon’s Motor Vehicles Act, as my colleague noted, government has to ta=
ble
all government business within the first five sitting days and we don’=
;t
have those amendments ready, let alone in a form they could be tabled at th=
is
point in time. Our colleague, the Minister of Highways and Public Works, and
his department are working on that as outlined in the letter that the Minis=
ter
of Environment and I sent to Trails Only Yukon Association on Mr. Speaker, I will not spend too m=
uch more
time speaking to the amendment. The government recognizes and appreciates t=
he
concerns and perspectives of all citizens who provided input on this issue.=
We are, as the Minister of Environm=
ent and
I noted in our letter to Trails Only Yukon Association, committed to keeping
regulatory amendments to a minimum in order to enact changes in a timely and
efficient manner while ensuring effectiveness and addressing environmental
concerns. I would also point out, in terms of=
the
time involved, it’s very easy to sit in the opposition benches and
disagree with everything government does and take shots at everything that
government does and say, “Well, it should be done faster,” or
whatever they wish to say. I would remind members that if they would look at
the dates contained within the committee’s report, the motion that
established the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road
Vehicles — which I had the honour and privilege to be part of —=
was
passed on It does take time. Good policy work=
does
take time to do it right. It involves interdepartmental work and considerin=
g different
pieces of legislation. I would remind members and those listening that the
committee, in its report — which, as the Minister of Environment, I
believe, mentioned — the committee was able to unanimously agree on t=
he
recommendations in the report. The committee, on page 10,
“Recommendations”, noted the following: “Off-road vehicle=
use
is a complex matter requiring analysis of several pieces of legislation, i.=
e.
the Motor Vehicles Act, Highways Act, Lands Act, En=
vironment
Act, Wildlife Act, Forest Protection Act, and any others =
that
may be applicable.” There were others that were applica=
ble
— as the Minister of Environment noted — Parks and Land
Certainty Act. We also have to consider the obligations under First Nat=
ion
final agreements, because one of the key recommendations — in fact, t=
he
very first recommendation — made by the committee was that legislation
and regulations governing the use of off-road vehicles are inclusive of all=
and
do not exclude anyone to the advantage of another. The committee intended that to apply
equally to both First Nation and non-First Nation citizens. As well, that
clause was intended to indicate that there would be no greater or lesser ri=
ghts
to given to any user group, whether they be commercial, recreational, hunti=
ng
and so on and so forth. The specific applicability of that =
is that
there are requirements under First Nation final agreements for consideratio=
n to
be given to where there are subsistence hunting rights which could be acces=
sed
through use of all-terrain vehicles, so that is one of the things that need=
s to
be given consideration. Much of that work in fact has been done by departme=
nts
already, but I would point out again that the committee, which was a
four-member committee with one clerk, took roughly 16 months to come up with
the document that was tabled in this House. A lot more people in government
departments, as well as the entire caucus of 11 members, have been involved=
in
considering what the options might be for fulfilling the commitments made b=
y us
in the 2011 election campaign, including implementing the recommendations of
the select committee report. A significant amount of work within a number of
government departments has been involved in determining, first of all, that
Highways and Public Works will lead the implementation of the safety-related
recommendations to be death with through the Motor Vehicles Act and =
that
the Department of Environment and Department of Energy, Mines and Resources
will collaborate to address the recommendations relating to environmental c=
oncerns. I will conclude my remarks on the
amendment. I will note, as the Minister of Environment did, that our intend=
ed
outcome is to ensure government has the adequate tools to target specific a=
reas
like key wildlife habitat or particularly sensitive areas where it is
determined problems resulting from off-road vehicles are occurring or likel=
y to
occur. It is also important to recognize what the committee referenced in t=
he
report on page 10, noting that: “The committee also heard from many
people who regard the ability to travel in backcountry by ATV and snowmobil=
e as
a very important personal freedom. In our recommendations, we attempt to be
fair and balanced to all user groups and citizens, and acknowledge the impo=
rtance
of appropriately protecting citizens and wildlife.” — which for the sake of Hansard recording that,
that’s the end of the quote from that part of the select committee
report. As my colleague noted, we committed=
to a
number of things, including reviewing the legislation and regulations to
determine whether existing mechanisms, such as habitat protection areas and
special management areas, provide appropriate ability to restrict growth of
trail networks in sensitive areas; close trails or overused areas as necess=
ary
to exclude off-road vehicles from specific types of lands or habitat; and to
have certain areas designated as access routes only. We also committed in the election t=
hat we
recognize there are some areas where new steps need to be taken to protect
wildlife and environment from ATV damage and committed that actions will be
targeted to areas where problems exist or are developing. With that, I hope I have adequately
explained why this amendment is necessary. We would hope that members will =
support
this amendment so that we can pass the motion as amended later this afterno=
on. Speaker: Member for Mayo-Tatchun, on the amendment. Mr.
Tredger:=
I’m quite
disappointed with this amendment. It could have been amended in other ways;=
it
could have been looked at. In terms of safety and the one
recommendation, this delay is unconscionable. Two years ago, the select
committee came forward and said the safety of our children and the safety of
people in the wilderness are at risk. How many head injuries do we have to =
deal
with while we wait to bring forward legislation that other jurisdictions saw
the need to do a long time ago? How hard is that? Yes, we talk about divisi=
on.
Show me a parent who think it’s okay to no=
t put
a helmet on their child when they’re driving an ATV. As far as the la=
nd
is concerned, one only needs to walk. Five years ago, I could walk out my d=
oor
and access wilderness. Now, I have to drive 100 miles and walk another five=
to
get off the highway to access wilderness. The quality of wilderness is rapi=
dly
changing while we dawdle. This isn’t a partisan issue. =
This is
a human issue. Are we or are we not stewards of the land? Do we or do we not
take time to consider what is happening? The members opposite spoke of divis=
ion. The
select committee listened to the various opinions, weighed them and came up
with some recommendations. Two years later we’re dithering; it’s
not working; it is not working. One only needs to go up into the alpine are=
a,
to walk through some of our bogs and swamps, to walk along our river valleys
and see our fish habitat to see that people need to go farther and farther =
to
find hunting areas that are productive. It is not working. We can’t d=
elay
any longer. How will the government protect subzones=
span>
that currently don’t have impacts? This summer, this spring — the
minister opposite mentioned spring. The land is vulnerable in the spring. We
have one more year; two more years — who knows how many more years be=
fore
action is taken on this? But the land is not waiting. What is the government’s plan=
to
provide interim protection for our quality wilderness? This is the wilderne=
ss
that I love and that you love, that we go out into, the wilderness that
tourists are willing to pay $5,000 a day to come and experience, the wilder=
ness
that is providing industry, a place for people to work with tourism and bri=
ng
them in — wilderness tourism, local tourism, wilderness that you can =
look
across and not see cut lines or trails. I talk to a lot of tourists who com=
e up and
they’re astonished and astounded at it and want to come back again to=
see
the vastness, to experience the joy of walking over a hill and watching the
sunset on a creek with mountains in behind, or a moose. We have a unique
wilderness and, as stewards of the land, we have an obligation to protect t=
hat.
What are we doing to prevent that damage to the fragile habitat? How are we
being proactive? Two years ago that report came in. My colleague mentioned =
that
we’ve had 70, 80, 100 studies specific to the I’m opposed to this amendment=
—
or I’m in favour of this amendment. What am I? My apologies — I=
am
emotional; I do care about my land. I’m not suggesting that anybody h=
ere
doesn’t. We do. We are all in the Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; I am a bit perp=
lexed.
How expeditiously this government does what it commits to do will be the le=
gacy
of the Yukon Party government. We have a motion from the Official Opposition
that says it would like to do two things: (1) implement all of the recommen=
dations
of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles;=
and
(2) develop and implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to prote=
ct
environmentally sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing re=
sponsible
access to the backcountry. We have an amendment that has just =
been put
forward by the Minister of Environment that says the exact same thing. The =
only
difference is taking out the word “immediate”. Now, time is
relevant. If you want to get into the concept of time and talk about how th=
ings
are relevant in that aspect, that’s one thing, but with the Official
Opposition and with the official government both saying the exact same thing
— now, I know that the Member for Vuntut Gwitchin has some questions =
and
some concerns that are in regard to the Umbrella
Final Agreement, but I think we have our day here and I think it’s
time to move on. Speaker: Does any other member wish to be heard on the amendment? Are =
you
prepared for the question? Some
Hon. Members: Division. =
Division Speaker: Division has been called. Bells Speaker: Mr. Clerk, please poll the House. Hon.
Mr. Pasloski: <=
/span>Agree. Hon. Mr. Cathers: <=
/span> Agree. Hon. Ms. Taylor: =
span> Agree. Hon. Mr. Graham: =
span> Agree. Hon. Mr. Hon. Mr. Nixon: Agree. Ms. McLeod: =
Agree. Hon. Mr. Istchenko: =
; Agree. Hon. Mr. Dixon: Agree. Mr. Hassard: Agree. Ms. Hanson: ̳=
4; Disagree. Ms. Stick: ̳=
4; Disagree. Ms. Moorcroft: Disagree. Ms. White: ̳=
4; Disagree. Mr. Tredger: ̳=
4; Disagree. Mr. Barr: ̳=
4; Disagree. Mr. Silver: ̳=
4; Agree. Mr. Elias: ̳=
4; Disagree. Clerk: <=
span
lang=3DEN-US style=3D'mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'> Mr. Speaker, the results =
are 11 yea, seven nay.
Speaker: The yeas have it. I decla=
re the
amendment carried.
Amendment to Motion No. 369 agre=
ed to
Ms. Moorcroft: I want to comme= nd the Member for Takhini-Kopper King for bringing forward this important matter f= or debate today. Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge the traditional l= ands of the Kwanlin Dun First Nation and Ta’an Kwä= ;ch’än Council. I would like to thank the many First Nation elders I’ve had = the opportunity to work with for what I’ve learned from them. I would lik= e to recognize the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peo= ples, which specifically addresses economic, social, cultural, political, civic, spiritual and environmental rights of First Nation peoples. Treaties and agreements that uphold indigenous peoples’ rights to lands, territori= es, and resources must be respected and protected in the proceedings of the Legislative Assembly and government bills. In the context of the motion rel= ated to the use of off-road vehicles before us today, this means respecting the = Umbrella Final Agreement and the F= irst Nation final agreements and self-government agreements.
I want to speak for just a moment a=
bout the
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and why =
that
is relevant.
In article 25 it sets out “= 8230;the right to maintain and strengthen their distinctive spiritual relationship w= ith their traditionally owned or otherwise occupied and used lands, territories, waters and coastal seas and other resources and to uphold their responsibil= ities to future generations in this regard.”
Article 26 speaks about the legal recognition and protection of indigenous peoples’ rights to their lan= ds, territories and resources.
Article 29 speaks to “…= .the right to the conservation and protection of the environment and the product= ive capacity of their lands or territories and resources.”
What I’ve learned from First =
Nation
elders over the years is not only the spiritual and economic value they pla=
ce
on the land where we live; I’ve also learned that it is essential to =
respect
the earth and to protect its waters, lands, animals and fish as we treasure=
all
species so they will continue to sustain future generations. Indeed, all pe=
ople
of the
My colleague, the Member for Takhin=
i-Kopper
King, set out the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-Road
Vehicles and its mandate that it was established by an all-party committee =
of
the 32nd Legislature in 2009. She also set out in her remarks the
history of public, government and interest groups’ interest in the
managing of ATV use in the
So I want to acknowledge, first of = all, Manfred Hoefs for his work in compiling this annotated list, as well as the assistance of A. Jones, B. McLean, H. Clarke= , K. Gustafson, G. Zealand, V. Peters, S. Ford and L. Mycha= siw. It’s always important to acknowledge the work that people put into do= cuments and the effort they put into making us as legislators aware of research that has been conducted. So I’m only going to briefly touch on a few of the documents and research reported there.
It’s important that we acknow=
ledge
that in 2000, off-road vehicle use and issues in the
In 2004, the Fish and Wildlife Mana=
gement
Board also put out a report based on a working group of on- and off-road ve=
hicles.
They spoke about the positive aspec=
ts of
ATVs, including access to the wilderness, being able to retrieve meat and t=
rophies,
and get firewood. The report also documented some well-known negative impac=
ts,
such as terrain damage, particularly in soft and steep areas, disturbance a=
nd
displacement of wildlife, overharvesting of wil=
dlife,
the pollution of water and stream crossings, damage to vegetation, possible
impacts on rare and endangered species and, of course, the dispersal of
invasive plants. The report cited damage to many areas of the
In 2007, there was a joint investig=
ation
with the Laberge Renewable Resources Council, the Yukon Fish and Wildlife b=
ranch
and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council, which assessed the
impacts of the increased use of off-road vehicles on the Dall
sheep population and their habitat in the Pilot Mountain area. That document
looked at the history of trail development, a literature search of hunting
stories and inspections of old maps, as well as other current research.
It noted that ATV riders develop th=
eir
trail network by improving horse trails and adding new trails in the alpine=
. In
the fall of 2008, the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board launched the=
ir
initiative of
In 2011, the Yukon Department of
Environment website contained the following information: Respect Mother Ear=
th
and discipline yourself by using existing ATV trails. This motion is before=
us
because we need to see prevention of more damage. On the website in 2011, t=
he
late John Edzerza, former Environment minister said, “All-terrain
vehicles are a popular way to access backcountry
I will also address the 2009 report=
of the
select committee. Before I turn to that, in the spring of 2011, the Yukon C=
onservation
Society received funding from the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Wildlife
Enhancement Trust and the
I have had conversations for many a=
n hour
with far too many families, friends, teachers and students who are grieving=
the
loss of a loved one far too early from an off-road vehicle crash. The safe
operation and use of all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles in the
I know that this matter is divisive= within our community, but governments have a responsibility to act and we have a responsibility to follow up on the recommendations of the select committee.=
Now, the Member for Takhini-Kopper = King and the Minister of Environment both read into the record the recommendations of the select committee, so I’m only going to summarize those — because that is the substance of this motion — that we are urging the Government of Yukon to implement all of those recommendations: to ensure th= ere is consistency of all legislation and regulations governing the use of off-= road vehicles in the territory, that government undertake extensive advertising = and educational campaigns and that those educational campaigns address restrict= ions on off-road vehicle use, penalties and means of enforcement, as well as the existing laws and regulations. We want to see education that focuses on saf= e, responsible and respectful use of off-road vehicles, as well as environmental stewardsh= ip.
There is a specific recommendation = that amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act be done to govern on-road and off-road use and, because of the force of law, truly have an impact that can improve public safety.
Recommendation 7 says “THAT, = all off-road vehicles that travel on or cross over any Yukon road or highway be subject to registration and liability insurance and require that operators = hold a valid Class 5 driver’s licence.”
The next recommendation speaks to t=
he
advisability that “…government look =
at how
other jurisdictions have approached these issues prior to determining the b=
est
approach for
“THAT, the definition of “highway” in the Motor Vehicles Act be clarified…”<= /span>
“THAT …government…= ;support voluntary driver training on the safe and environmentally responsible opera= tion of ATVs and snowmobiles.”
“THAT, the issues of age requirements, underage riders, adult supervision, and age vs. size of machi= ne be addressed in legislation and/or regulation...”
Again, it would be instructive to c= onsider how other jurisdictions have approached this.
“…helmet use be
mandatory when operating an off-road vehicle or snowmobile on-road.” =
The
Yukon Medical Association, national medical organizations, parents,
grandparents, safety advocates and indeed, the current Minister of Highways=
and
Public Works are all on the record as stating that helmet use should be
mandatory as a safety standard.
Legislatures also need to address t= he needs of municipalities in identifying offenders and enforcing bylaws that legisl= ation and regulations need to provide for the ability to mitigate environmental damage and cumulative negative impacts to sensitive wildlife and fish habit= ats. We need to restrict the growth of trail networks in sensitive areas and clo= se trails in overused or damaged areas. The government also should be reviewing penalties for environmental damage and implement environmental and access restrictions where problems exist and, finally, consider separate environme= ntal protection legislation.
So that is a lot of work, but I wou= ld point out that the report from the select committee was submitted to government t= wo years ago and the government had some time to address it. Then, in 2011, the Trails Only Yukon Association submitted a questionnaire to all the parties = in the 2011 general election and they published the results prior to the elect= ion.
All parties said yes, ATV use shoul= d be managed in order to protect wilderness; yes, new legislation and regulations should be put in place to manage ATV use in the Yukon wilderness; yes, our = government will make new legislation and/or regulations to manage ATVs in the Yukon wilderness a priority if elected; and yes, if elected, all parties would br= ing forward legislation and/or regulations to manage ATV use in the Yukon wilderness within their first mandate. We are looking to the government to follow up on that today.
I believe that the issue of time is= one that needs consideration and, accordingly, I move an amendment to the amend= ment to Motion 369.
Amendment proposed
Ms. Moorcroft: I move= p>
THAT the amendment to Motion 369 be= amended by inserting the words “by fall 2013” where the word “immediately” was deleted.
Some Hon. Member: (Inaudible)
Point of order
Speaker: The Government House Leader, on a point of order.
Hon. Mr. Cathers: The member just moved an amendment = to an amendment — a subamendment to an amendment, which has already been de= alt with by this House.
Speaker: The Member for Copperbelt South, on the point of order.
Ms. Moorcroft: Mr. Speaker, I = move an amendment to the motion. I understand that the first amendment was defeated= and if I used the improper language then I would request that you allow me to m= ove an amendment to the motion, as amended.
Speaker: You got it right this time.
Amendment proposed
Ms. Moorcroft: I move <= /p>
THAT amendment to Motion No. 369 be amended by inserting the words, “by fall
2013” where the word “immediately” was deleted.
Speaker: Order please. Everybody has a copy of the amendment to the mo= tion, as amended. Just as a clerical point, we have reworded it. The intent has n= ot changed but we have reworded it to make it clearer than what members have b= een presented with.
It has been moved by the Member for Copperbelt South
THAT the amende=
d Motion
No. 369 be amended by inserting the words “by fall 2013” after =
the
words “Government of Yukon to”.
Member for Copperbelt South, you ha= ve five minutes and 34 seconds on your amendment.
Ms.
Moorcroft: Mr. Speaker, in=
the
limited time that is available to me to speak to this amendment, I want to
begin by noting that when the Minister of Environment rose to speak to the
motion, he started out referring to “ambiguity” in the mandate =
of
the select committee, which was only supposed to deal with safety concerns.=
I
was a little concerned that he might be going down the course of not being =
in
support of the concerns with the environment and with habitat for fish and =
wildlife,
which are quite legitimate topics of discussion.
The minister spoke about the workin= g group that was undertaking response to the select committee, and I do applaud tha= t. However, I think it’s really important that this be acted on in the n= ear future. The government has to make the hard decision. Governments have to m= ake hard decisions every day. That doesn’t mean that they can ignore those decisions. There are a number of reasons why they need to make it now.
What we would like to see the gover=
nment do
is stop any more environmental damage and destruction of habitat from happe=
ning
as a better approach than trying to remediate damage after the fact. While
there are some parks, protected areas and management plans that are in plac=
e in
I think the government needs to ack=
nowledge
that many areas have been damaged because no action has been taken to prote=
ct
those lands as of yet and the time is now.
On behalf of the Official Oppositio= n, I am in support of Motion No. 369:
THAT this House urges the Governmen= t of Yukon to by fall 2013:
(1) implement= span> all of the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Us= e of Off-road Vehicles; and
(2) develop and
implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to protect environmental=
ly
sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing responsible access=
to
the backcountry.
Speaker: Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources on the amendment, ple= ase.
Hon. Mr. Cathers: First of all, in beginning to respo= nd to the member, what I’d like to briefly talk about is the context to what occurred in the committee’s work. It is unfortunate that for a commit= tee that worked very collaboratively and worked hard to reach unanimous agreement, we see the NDP taking a very adversarial approach in this, rather than a collaborative approach.
Without the work done by the former=
NDP MLA
for Mount Lorne, the late Steve Cardiff, we wouldn’t have seen this
report as we see it today, and I would like to give Steve credit, as well as
the other members of the committee, for the fact that the select committee =
was
not required by its mandate to reach unanimous agreement. The four of us who
sat on the committee chose to make best effort to reach unanimous agreement=
on
how to address these issues.
We recognized that in the substanti= al feedback from Yukoners we heard, I would again draw members’ attention — and for those who are listening or read this in Hansard — on page 7 of the select committee’s repor= t, it references the number of surveys completed by Yukoners — 2,489 completed surveys, plus an additional 181 citizens who attended public meetings, and 25 written submissions, nine of which were from groups or organizations and 16 from individual citizens. The diversity of opinion on = this issue really was significant. It’s also notable, as my colleagues referenced, that the NDP in their motion today seemed to focus only and sol= ely on recommendation 14. This is an important one, but that seems to be the primary focus of the rhetoric of most of the members, not recognizing the — it’s interesting, Mr. Speaker. I hear a lot from the Leader of the NDP publicly about improving decorum in the House, but she’s the worst heckler in this entire Assembly.
I would point out that if members a=
nd
members of the public review the recommendations they’ll see that they
cover a wide range of areas.
Recommendation 14 is the one that r= elates to the environmental issues, or primarily relates to that; some of the othe= rs bear some reference to it. That recommendation read that off-road vehicle legislation and regulations provide for the ability to mitigate environment= al damage and cumulative negative impacts to sensitive wildlife and fish habit= ats; ensure legislation and/or regulations provide for the ability to restrict growth of trail networks in sensitive areas; to close trails or overused ar= eas as necessary; to exclude off-road vehicles from specific types of lands or habitats; and to have certain areas designated as access routes only.
Now, with regard to the specific am=
endment,
as the Minister of Environment and I attempted to outline and clarify for m=
embers,
some parts of this will take additional time. There are some areas when it
comes down to the question of immediately implementing all of the
recommendations — the specific commitments that we made in the 2011
election, including ensuring, first of all, that the commitment to review
legislation and regulations to determine whether existing mechanisms such as
habitat protection areas and special management areas provide appropriate
ability to restrict growth of trail networks in sensitive areas, close trai=
ls
or overused areas as necessary, exclude off-road vehicles from specific lan=
ds
or habitats and have certain areas designated as access routes only.
It was a commitment we made that be= gan with a review — the interdepartmental committee to which my colleague and I have referred to — that took a look at what legislative tools we have, came up with the conclusion that the current suite of tools and powers are = not ideally suited to this task. What I am attempting to convey to the members = is there are some parts of this having the tools in place that allow the targe= ting of these areas. This is expected to be something that would lead in future years, in future mandates of future Legislative Assemblies in future govern= ments, to additional steps being taken with those tools. To that end, that would b= e an ongoing process, not snap our fingers and it’s done.
There are other areas of this which=
relate
to the Motor Vehicles Act, as I’ve referenced. There are other
parts of this that may take additional time. What we’ve heard from gr=
oups
such as Trails Only Yukon Association is that their primary concern and the=
ir
priority relates to the environmental measures. It’s very easy when
you’re in Opposition to call for government to amend every piece of
legislation out there. In fact, the NDP have called for us to amend over 35
pieces of legislation and said that they were all priorities on that day in=
the
House. Government has certain resources within its departments, in our poli=
cy
shops and within the legal drafting resources, a=
nd you
can’t do everything at once.
I would remind the Member for Coppe= rbelt South of an example that today she likes to talk about the importance of updating the language of legislation to remove outdated references to First= Nation citizens as Indians, but she had, I believe, four years as Minister of Just= ice and that didn’t make her priority list.
We are committed to fulfilling our commitments in this mandate. There are also some parts of the select commit= tee report that we expect will be completed by the fall of 2013, but to think t= hat all of it would be completed is questionable. It’s very easy for memb= ers of the Opposition to make commitments, and some seem to be very quick to ma= ke commitments without regard to whether they can deliver on them or not, but before we make commitments, we think carefully about whether we can deliver them. There are some parts that we expect would be completed by fall 2013; there are other parts that may take longer.
The specific area of concern to gro=
ups
concerned about environmental issues is one that is an active file. We have
staff working on it as we speak and, as committed to by the Minister of
Environment and me in our
Quite frankly, I know I’m nev=
er going
to reach agreement with many of the members of the NDP. I recognize and app=
reciate
that the Liberal Member for
We remain committed to doing what w= e said we would in the 2011 election, which is fulfilling those commitments in this mandate. Some of them, including the environmental ones, are prioritized and will be dealt with. We expect and are confident that they will be dealt with well before the end of the mandate.
Speaker: Member for Mount Lorne-Southern Lakes, on the amendment.
Mr.
Barr:=
195; I would like to=
just
speak briefly on the amendment. I would say that in the Yukon, or when we h=
ave
such diverse opinions on an issue such as off-road vehicles — and that
all members of the select committee were able to come to an agreement as to=
how
to move forward, or what they wanted to do is great, when you have such opp=
osing
views on this. They managed to come up with recommendations that all were h=
appy
with. All we are charged to do here with the government is to move forward =
with
those recommendations. We have an opportunity that makes it easy — th=
ey
have already done that. We just have to put it into legislation. With this
amendment “by fall 2013” — when I was listening to the Mi=
nister
of Environment first speak to this Motion No. 369, he stated that that woul=
d be
fine, but the first five days have passed. We can’t do this, so we ha=
ve
to take out the word “immediately”.
So now we have the opportunity to m=
ove
forward. “Immediately” is out there and the next sitting in the
fall we have the first five days to put forward what we have missed the opp=
ortunity
for in this sitting. Then we have the ability to move forward with all the
stakeholders’ recommendations — what the people of the <=
st1:State>
We’re not saying that it has =
to be
all done. I am saying that, without it moving forward in the first five day=
s,
the part that we missed on this Legislature, we cannot move forward. I am
saying this allows the Yukon Party to commit to doing this. I would urge th=
em
to follow through and commit so we can tend to the rest of the business at
hand.
Hon.
Mr. Dixon: I have to respond to some of that. =
The
commitment we made during the election was to move forward with this during
this mandate. That’s exactly what we’re committed to. We commit=
ted
to that publicly during the election campaign and we are committing to it
presently in the House. We want to move forward. We committed to doing this
during this mandate. I have acknowledged that it’s not possible to do=
it
in this sitting. There’s at least three pieces of legislation that
we’re just talking about. We haven’t identified exactly what
changes to the Motor Vehicles Act, for instance, need to be made and
exactly what work will go into that. It will be a lot of work; we know that=
for
sure. We can’t commit to timelines that we don’t expect to be a=
ble
to meet. It is simply not going to happen that we will meet all 14
recommendations within the next eight months. There are other priorities th=
at
we have that we have to keep in mind as well. I’d like to advance the
development of a water strategy for the
This is a priority as well, but for= us to commit to implementing all 14 actions, including all the ones about on-road= and off-road safety and responsibility and Motor Vehicle= s Act changes, within the next eight months is just unlikely and I think, = in my opinion, a bit unreasonable. We’re not going to commit to something that we can’t achieve because it doesn’t make sense to do that.= We have said we’re going to do this; we’ve said we are going to ta= ke action and we are committed to that. We are committed to doing it in this mandate, but to say we’re going to get it all done in eight months is unreasonable. It’s not reasonable to our staff wh= o have to do the work to come up with the policy changes necessary. It’s not reasonable to the staff who have to draft th= e legislation or regulations or whatever it is that we need to move forward. It is simply unreasonable and I find it disappointing that we go down this route of putt= ing a hard timeline on this when we have been very clear that we’re commi= tted to it. We want to move forward, but to attach such a hard timeline to this = is quite frankly a little bit silly to me.
I will say that I can’t suppo=
rt this
amendment, and I don’t anticipate my colleagues will be able to eithe=
r. I
am committed to the original motion that sees this House urge the governmen=
t to
take action on the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe
Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles. That’s something I have commi=
tted
to. That’s something that the Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources=
and
I have met and talked about a fair amount.
Our officials continue to work on t= his, but to impose an arbitrarily determined timeline on them would be unfair of us = to ask our staff to do and it’s unfair of us as legislators to do that t= oo. I think that’s an unreasonable timeline and I won’t be supporti= ng it.
Speaker: Does any other member wish to be heard?
Are you prepared for the question?<= /span>
Some Hon. Members: Division. =
Speaker: It requires two members to stand simultaneously for division.=
Are you agreed?
Some Hon. Members: Agreed. = p>
Some Hon. Members: Disagreed.=
Speaker: The amendment to the motion is defeated.
Amendment to Motion No. 369, as =
amended,
negatived
Speaker: Does any other member wish to be heard on the motion as origi= nally amended?
Ms.
McLeod: It can’t be said that I’=
;m in
favour of legislating everything we do; I’m a great believer in perso=
nal
responsibility. In this discussion about off-road vehicles, we all know that
this encompasses a wide variety of methods of transportation. Personally,
I’ve seen adults who do not regard safety as important. I’ve se=
en
them disregard and show a great disrespect for personal property, and
I’ve seen them put other drivers at risk — but those adults are=
a minority.
Most off-road vehicle users are thoughtful and pay attention to the rules a=
nd
are mindful of safety. There are rules already. For instance, in order to d=
rive
on
So what if the rules aren’t f=
ollowed?
The police take these offences just as seriously as any other. Catching the=
se
culprits is sometimes a little difficult, so I can’t fault the RCMP f=
or
not being able to be everywhere or go everywhere to enforce
Do we really need more rules for th= at portion of adults who won’t pay attention to new rules? I ask that because after all they’re already not listening, so I would say no, we don’t need rules for people who aren’t listening to the rules already.
We do need rules for people who are=
going
to listen to them and to protect those people who can’t protect
themselves. There are parents who think it’s okay for a child operate=
an
off-road vehicle without safety gear, without training and without supervis=
ion.
That’s my focus. Children must have protection. I’ve seen
four-wheelers being driven by six-year-old children on our roads with a par=
ent
on another four-wheeler. That child did not have control and did not know w=
hat
the rules of the road were, and that parent was thinking everything was just
fine. I’ve seen five-year-olds on mini-motorbikes, alone on the roads
with no safety gear and clearly no supervision or understanding of the road=
and
travelling just as fast as a car. I’ve seen three kids racing down
streets on one four-wheeler and I believe they were built for one person and
I’ve seen the labels about that, but parents don’t always read =
the
labels because I’ve seen mom or dad with one or two kids on the back =
of
the family four-wheeler. Everyone thinks that nothing will happen; the kids=
are
just having fun. Well, recently several children on a snowmobile had a minor
run-in with a motor vehicle in my community and three of those children wer=
e medevaced because of injuries. One of them was three =
years
old.
I really am very thankful that the = injuries were not more serious. Of course, the same can’t be said of other mis= haps and it wasn’t that long ago that a child did die in Teslin as a resul= t of an accident on an ATV. Another child died at Lower Post as a result of an accident on a snowmobile. These are all collisions with motor vehicles R= 12; I’m sorry, not all of them were. They tend to be a collision on our roads, not accidents in the backcountry. I don’t want anybody to thin= k I have something against off-road vehicles. I certainly see that people have = fun out in the backcountry, and good for them. Some people use these vehicles f= or work, and good for them. As I have said, most people use this equipment in a responsible manner. I can’t say that I’ve heard of a child being hurt in the backcountry but perhaps it has happened. Children using off-road vehicles with safety gear in the presence of an adult are less of a concern= for me.
If we are to have new or updated
legislation, we need to ensure the enforcers have the tools to deter people
from running afoul of the law. Certainly I would choose to see parents char=
ged
when they allow their children to not pay attention to the law, and to
confiscate those vehicles.
New laws or enhancements of existing legislation may save the life of a child and — pretty much — that’s good enough for me. It’s worth noting that the select committee recommended a public information campaign, and I certainly support that action taking place as soon as possible.
Now, in looking at the statistics f=
rom
people who took the time to voice their opinions during the public consulta=
tion
on off-road vehicle use, rural
I look forward to comments from rur=
al
I’ve heard today about all of=
the
Yukoners who have weighed in on this and, really, without adding up the num=
ber
— what is it? — 2,500 people. It doesn’t really amount to=
the
whole
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; Our focus in the
Liberal Party has always been the issue of safety in this particular regard
here, especially with the issue of helmets. I am pleased that the committee
made the recommendations that helmets be mandatory when operating an off-ro=
ad
vehicle or a snowmobile off-road. We actually support that it would be requ=
ired
at all times, on-road or off-road.
I had my first motorbike — di=
rt bike
— when I was six years old. It was a Kawi=
100
— for Hansard, that’s a Silver family and that if I didn’t wear one, my =
injuries
that I suffered would pale in comparison to what I had to face when I got h=
ome.
Mr. Speaker, that was my mother talking; she was deadly with the wooden spo=
on.
I can hear her right now, actually, saying that she didn’t use it eno=
ugh.
My point is that not every kid out =
there
has the same kind of guidance when it comes to safety. On a serious note, we
have had tragic deaths in the
Do you remember when seatbelts beca= me mandatory? Because I sure do and I remember at the time the conversations behind it and I remember the commercials — what a hassle and it’= ;s going to wrinkle my pretty dress — and the public campaign and I just have to say, there was a lot of opposition; there was a lot of conversation. The political will changed that. We have seatbelts now and seatbelts have b= een saving lives ever since and they’ve saved my life on several occasion= s. Same with helmets; I still have a helmet back home that’s completely shattered, and it’s a constant reminder of youth and that sometimes we make the wrong decisions.
I hope that the government’s = plan is not to stall indefinitely on these issues and I must note that work on implementing these recommendations is moving at a pretty slow pace currentl= y. I do hope what I’m hearing today is that that is all about to change.= span>
I want to encourage the government =
to move
on recommendation 3 specifically as well, which is that the government will=
undertake
an extensive advertising/educational campaign to raise public awareness of =
any
and all existing restrictions on off-road vehicle use, along with penalties=
and
means of enforcement.
With respect to the final recommend= ation that says that off-road vehicle legislation and regulations provide for the= ability to mitigate environmental damage and cumulative negative impacts to sensiti= ve wildlife and fish habitats — this is a complicated issue. It’s a very complicated issue. I appreciate the government is being pulled in a co= uple different directions on this one. Some want more restrictions and some want none at all. I appreciate that this will take some time to resolve, and I encourage the government to try to reach a compromise. But to do nothing is= not an option. These are areas that need restrictions and the government needs = to work with user groups to find these solutions.
There is obviously division. I thin=
k at
this point in time, the people have had an excellent amount of time to weigh
in. We’ve heard from hunters, trappers, snowmach=
ine
enthusiasts and organizations. A committee was struck. The recommendations =
have
come forward. Here we are in the Legislative Assembly and we have asked in
motion form for the government — a Yukon Party majority government
— to take it from here.
It’s not an easy file, but it= is now on the government’s desk, and I urge them to be very thorough and to = look at the Umbrella Final Agreement — for our Member for Vuntut Gwitchin’s concerns — and make some forward progression here and, at least, move on the least contentious issues maybe — to take a stance and to show some leadership and start= an expeditious pathway on this file.
Thanks for your time. I’ll de= finitely be voting in favour of this motion, as amended.
Hon. Mr. Istchenko: I did not get what the member oppos= ite said — about the seat belt and wrinkling his pretty dress. I wasnR= 17;t sure if that’s how that came out, but I’m d= oubting that.
I’d like to focus my remarks =
this
afternoon on three separate areas related to off-road vehicles: registratio=
n,
licensing and the safe use and operation of an off-road vehicle. I’m a
certified ATV instructor, and I definitely understand the importance of
training and safety when it comes to the safe operation of off-road vehicle=
s.
You know, the
The Government of Yukon recognizes = the value of off-road vehicles for both recreational and commercial use. Govern= ment wants all riders to enjoy the use of off-road vehicles, but urges drivers to use them safely and courteously. The safety of Yukoners will always be a priority of this government.
In 2012, the Government of Yukon in=
itiated
an advertising campaign to raise awareness of the laws and regulations. This
campaign included the safe, responsible and respectful operation of off-road
vehicles, helmet use and environmental stewardship. Ads were placed in
Government encourages all riders to= take the necessary precautions to ensure their own safety and the safety of othe= rs who share the trails. Like my fellow colleagues have said, this government = is working with partners to support voluntary rider training focused on safety= and environmental responsibility, and operation of ATVs and snowmobiles.=
The Minister of Environment and oth=
er
ministers have said that the Department of Highways and Public Works is
currently looking at the recommendations of the select committee, including
those specifically related to the vehicle registration, licensing, and safe=
ATV
riding, including helmet use.
I just wanted to get in Hansard a few things from my ATV r=
ider
course, something I learned as a child from my parents, as the Member for <=
/span>
Safe ATV riding can depend on our a=
bility
to recognize hazardous riding conditions. How well you are able to read the=
terrain
and the environment will play a large part in how safe your ride will be.
Riding safety requires a rider to take responsibility for his or her own ri=
ding
abilities, the riding environment and the capabilities of the ATV. Riding
within personal limits may seem simple to do but many injuries are caused by
riders going beyond their abilities. We should look at riding as an activity
that requires the interaction of three things: personal ability, the
ATV’s capability and environment or terrain conditions.
The full enjoyment of your ATV requ= ires some of the same kinds of precautions associated with sports and recreation= al activities. For example, it’s important to always wear proper protect= ive gear, just as you would whether playing football or hockey. The single most important piece of protective gear you can wear is a helmet. A good helmet = can prevent serious head injuries. Helmets protect your head in two ways: the o= uter shell resists penetration and abrasion; the inner absorbs shock by slowly collapsing under impact. Both the shell and the liner essentially self-dest= ruct by spreading the force of an impact throughout the helmet material. That’s why in most cases if a helmet has been damaged in an accident,= it may be of little protective value in another mishap.
Eye protection is very important. B= eing able to see clearly will help you ride more safely. Operating without eye p= rotection can result in an accident that increases your chances of severe eye injury = in the event of an accident. An object such as a rock, branch, or even a bug t= hat hits you in the face can distract you. The wearing of gloves — a good= set of quality gloves; boots and clothing — the big part about clothing is its importance to protect your skin from scratches. A long-sleeved shirt or= a jersey and long pants are a minimum requirement for a riders’ protection.<= o:p>
Every ATV — all-terrain vehic= le — and all snow machines come with warning labels on them. As an instructor, one of the first things we encourage is that every piece of equ= ipment have brakes, that brakes are your best friend, a= nd to make sure that your brakes are working.
Another thing w=
hen using
an ATV — and this plays into the concerns from the members opposite.<=
/span> I know a fellow member from across the way, from
Another big factor when it comes to=
ATVs is
the effects of alcohol, drugs and fatigue. Riding an ATV can be more demand=
ing
than driving a car. You have to be in good physical and mental condition to
ride safely. Three things that keep ATV users from being in top shape for
riding are alcohol, drugs and fatigue.
Each affects the entire decision-ma= king process of SIPDE. Alcohol and drugs — drinking and riding can be fata= l. Alcohol affects all the skills you need to ride safely. We were in the House earlier today discussing the great working relationship we have with Mother= s Against Drunk Drivers. This also goes for ATVs.
Another point I wanted to get acros=
s for
Yukoners and get this across in Hansard is the environmental side of
things. The ATV course — as an instructor you teach safe riding capab=
ilities
and the wearing of protective equipment and stuff. The other thing you do i=
s to
tread lightly. “TREAD” is an acronym too. This is one of the
important things. It has to do with being a responsible rider, not just
protecting yourself from potential hazards, but also protecting the environ=
ment
where you ride. The best way to protect the environment is to stay on estab=
lished
trails using marked trail limits and other potential damage reducing —
and tread lightly. “TREAD” means: “T” — to tr=
avel
and recreate with minimal impact; “R” — respect the
environment and the rights of others; “E” — educate yours=
elf,
plan and prepare before you go; “A” — allow for future us=
ers
of the outdoors and leave it better than you found it.
Many times I’ve stopped on th= e trail with my ATV or my snowmobile and picked up garbage or a part that somebody = had lost.
Allow for future use of outdoors; l= eave it better than you found it. I like that one. Discover the rewards of responsi= ble recreation.
The Member for Watson Gjoa Haven, Iglulik or wh=
ere my
Ranger buddy Tim, who also was in this course with me, lives, which is in <=
span
class=3DSpellE>Pangnirtung, Nunavut, ATVs are a way of life and
transportation for all ages in the north.
My son has an ATV. My son learned h=
ow to
ride an ATV from me and from his grandfather. At the tender age of 12 this
year, my son will probably go with his protective gear out to
I want to talk a little bit about A= TVs as a way of life. Sitting in the hotel in Tuktoyaktuk; Friday night bingo; summertime. Somebody gets a bingo; young fellow who loo= ked about 12 or 13 jumps on his ATV, puts his helmet on, takes his bingo card a= nd goes down to the radio station to see if he’s a winner. I’m goi= ng to get into the legislation and the rules and regulations, which are going = to kill the north — the lifestyle and way of life that everybody wants to see. I agree with the safety stuff, the laws and regulations, but I’m going to talk more about this.
A good example here is in
I don’t know about anybody el= se, but I learned to ride at the tender age of 16. All it says within our rules, regulations and legislation that we have right now is that we have to be 16= to ride it.
In my community, we have a fundrais=
er that
has been going on. It’s the 20th anniversary of the Jorg Schneider Memorial Poker Run. We have this run o=
n the
same trail every year. We encourage helmet use; it’s mandatory. To
“tread lightly” is on the back of the poker sheet. We work with=
the
Conservation Society on this. I was very saddened to see an organization br=
ing
the Lions Club’s name into the paper for their personal agenda on ATVs
when the select committee came up with this — stay on the same trail;
wear a helmet. I was quite disappointed in that, especially when the funds
raised through this activity goes to every youth who grows up in Haines
Junction and who goes through the driving school, paid for by the Lions Clu=
b.
Not everybody can afford $600 or $700 so the Lions Club pays for that. We w=
ork
with the local First Nations and the school on paying this off.
That weekend in May on the day befo= re Mother’s Day when we hold this activity, there is over $1 million in = ATVs in our community. There is $4 million in trucks and trailers. It’s economic development; there are jobs created; the hotels are full; the RV p= arks are full; the restaurants. People are working and we are raising money for = the youth in our community. There are not many ways to raise money for youth in= our community. We can’t always go after the government: pay, pay, pay. = span>
In closing, I support my fellow col=
leagues.
I agree we need to look at the legislation, but we need to be mindful when =
we
look at the legislation. Old Crow and
Mr.
Hassard: I’m happy to rise today to sp=
eak to
Motion No. 369, as amended, as well. I can appreciate the dedicated work do=
ne
by the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Use of Off-road Vehicles,=
but
I too have issues in regard to this.
Approximately 2,500 Yukoners respon=
ded to
the questionnaire that was put out by the select committee. Actually,
that’s not too bad for the
The report goes on to state that =
8220;The
Committee heard that the majority of off-road riders are responsible and
respectful people.” Personally, I have to agree with that statement a=
nd I
think that other members here have made that point very clear.
It is unfortunate, however, that a = few people can shed such a dark shadow over the majority of the others.<= /p>
The committee heard that many Yukon=
ers
believe that this is a “
Of course, I don’t profess to=
have all
the answers to these questions either, but I have heard from my constituents
and they’re not very happy about some of these issues. I don’t
think that anybody is against being safe. I think that common sense needs to
come into play.
I think that parents need to look a=
fter
their children and make sure they do things in a safe fashion. But <=
st1:City>
On November 23, the committee held a meeting in Faro and were pretty much told to take their commi= ttee and their study and go back to wherever they came from and stay there ̵= 2; maybe not quite that nicely, but that was the general idea.
Mr. Speaker, I’m not going to=
spend a
lot of time on this, but I want to be on record and very clearly heard that=
no
matter what comes out of this, I will speak loud and clear for rural Yukone=
rs.
I will do my best to ensure that any legislation or regulations be
community-based and not just handed down to rural Yukoners by a group of pe=
ople
here in
The federal government passes legis=
lation
on to Yukoners; we don’t like it and we get in an uproar, and rightfu=
lly
so. It’s a very similar situation. We can sit here and make rules, and
then we just pass it on to the people. The people in Old Crow are an exampl=
e. I
spent a summer in Old Crow and four-wheelers aren’t a luxury. Four-wh=
eelers
are a way of life. That’s your main mode of transportation.
We who live in rural
Whatever happens with this legislat=
ion, or
whatever regulations come out of this, I just want everyone to please think
about all Yukoners, not just what happens here in
Ms.
Hanson:&=
#8195; I hadn’t =
intended
to speak to this motion, but it has been a fascinating glimpse into how ver=
y,
very differently people I thought were elected on behalf of all Yukoners vi=
ew
their roles. It’s also interesting to observe that when we have one
environment, we would choose to think that there is not one environment and=
one
world that we all collectively have stewardship of and, in particularly with
respect to stewardship of this territory. Our job is to work together as
elected members of the Legislature to try to pull together
When we talk about certain rules th=
at apply
or shouldn’t apply to people who live in different parts of this
beautiful territory that we live in, whether or not you are in rural
We heard eloquent testimony to that= this afternoon from both sides of this Legislature. If you’ll recall, thos= e of you who were around at the time when the government introduced legislation = to make it illegal to drink and drive, up until that time it was legal to drink and drive as long as you weren’t drunk. There was an outcry in this territory because we were infringing upon the rights of Yukoners to drink a= nd drive. Eventually people realized that drinking and driving kills.= p>
I’m not going to go on —
because it is fascinating to hear and illuminating to hear some of these po=
ints
of views — but I have to pose a question. A child dies because there =
is a
faulty soccer net in a rural community. Within six months there is legislat=
ion
brought before this territory. Children die in
Mr. Elias:= 8195; Seeing that our community of Old Crow has been mentioned abou= t 17 times during the debate this afternoon, I felt compelled to get up and ment= ion a few things myself.
I’m just going to be straight= forward and blunt. I have not consulted my constituents on many of these sections within the recommendations posed by the committee on off-road vehicle use. = Some of them have serious day-to-day ramifications to many of my constituents. I feel that I don’t have a mandate to agree with many of these, because= I have not discussed them face to face.
I’ll give you an example. We = use four-wheelers when we’re 10 years old to go get firewood, water and t= o go hunting. To tell you the truth, it’s not safe to operate those vehicl= es and work out in the wilderness, trying to make a living in Old Crow, with a helmet on. It’s just not safe because of various environmental factors and other things that you have to be aware of that you cannot be aware of w= hen you’re wearing a helmet. That’s just a fact of the matter.
So I won’t be voting in favou=
r of
this motion, as amended or as it is, because I don’t feel that I have=
a
mandate to do so.
I can go on and on about rural
One other thing=
that
hasn’t been mentioned, in that I haven’t seen the solution or
anyone mention a solution yet — again, I’ll go back to the Umbrella Final Agreement.=
span> It’s under 16.4.3, and I’ll read an excerpt from =
that,
“Yukon Indian People shall have the right to employ within their
So these are incredibly complex iss= ues, for which I haven’t heard solutions. It’s up to the government to do their good work and I’m glad that it’s on their agenda. But as = it stands right now, I won’t be able to support this motion.
Mr. Barr:= 195; I did speak to = the amendment to the motion, but I haven’t spoken to the direct motion. I’m a rural MLA also. I ride an ATV, I ride snow machines and I go out with a bunch of fellows who do. I’ve been up to Old Crow, and I’= ;ve been into many of the communities. When I spoke earlier I was saying that we need to move forward with = the legislation, but what we need to do is act, because we have been given the direction from opposing opinions that have come forward and the last select committee has given us some direction. In hearing that, it means to me that it’s up to our legislators and up to us then to reflect what that actually is going to mean throughout the territory.
I agree that it is different in
What’s important is that we a=
re able
to come together as the people here and work with the people writing the
policies so that they reflect the uniqueness of the territory. It doesnR=
17;t
mean we don’t do it. I know it’s difficult. I know that’s=
a
difficult task. It means that we proceed and we come up with not just a bla=
nket
solution, but since we are the
When I was young, I took a hunter s=
afety
course. I was young — I can’t remember how old I was, but I
wasn’t of age to have a gun. But I was of age, after I took the cours=
e,
to legally carry a gun — underage.
We can look at what things have bee=
n done
in different places around some of these issues and follow suit, and in that
way we’re able to fulfill our obligations and move forward in the
I would like to sit down, move forw= ard and get a vote on this.
Speaker: Is there any further debate on the motion as amended?<= /p>
Motion No. 369 reads as follows:
THAT this House urges the Governmen= t of Yukon to
(1) implement= span> all of the recommendations of the Select Committee on the Safe Operation and Us= e of Off-road Vehicles; and
(2) develop and implement a plan, in conjunction with user groups, to protect environmental= ly sensitive areas from off-road vehicle use while allowing responsible access= to the backcountry.
Are you prepared for the question?<= /span>
Some Hon. Members: Division.<= /p>
Division
Speaker: Division has been called.
Bells
Speaker: Mr. Clerk, please poll the House on the motion, as amended. <= /span>
Hon. Mr. Pasloski: Agree.
Hon. Mr. Cathers: Agree.
Hon. Ms. Taylor: <= /span>Agree.
Hon. Mr. Graham: Agree.
Hon.
Mr. Hon.
Mr. Nixon: Agree. Ms. McLeod: Agree. Hon. Mr. Istchenko: Agree.=
p>
Hon. Mr. Dixon: Agree.=
p>
Mr. Hassard:
Agree. Ms. Hanson: Agree. Ms. Stick: Agree. Ms. Moorcroft: Agree. Ms. White: Agree. Mr. Tredger: Agree. Mr.
Barr:=
195; Agree.=
p>
Mr.
Silver:&=
#8195; Agree.=
p>
Mr.
Elias:=
8195; Disagree. Clerk: Mr. Speaker, the results are 17 yea, one
nay. Speaker: The yeas have it. I declare the motion, as amended, carried.<=
/span> Motion No. 369, as amended, agre=
ed to Mr.
Tredger:=
Mr. Speaker, se=
eing the
time, I move that the House do now adjourn. Speaker: It has been mov=
ed by
Mr. Tredger that the House do now adjourn. Motion agreed to Speaker: This House now stands adjourned until The House adjourned at =
i> The =
following
Sessional Paper was tabled April 10, 2013: 33-1-78=
Yukon L=
aw
Foundation (November 1, 2011 – October 31, 2012) Annual Report and
Audited Financial Statements
(Nixon) The =
following
document was filed April 10, 2013: 33-1-44=
Workers=
’
Advocate Office 2012 Annual Report
(Nixon)
2348 &=
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bsp;  =
; &n=
bsp;