Who did the N.W.T. government consult for fracking regulations?
Minister cites standing committee, but committee report cites nobody from the public
As more people call for a ban on fracking in the territory, questions are being raised about where the proposed regulations — now the subject of a series of public engagement sessions — came from.
The issue came up at meetings in both Fort Good Hope and Tulita last week.
The draft rules are "based on the views and priorities of N.W.T. residents," according to the government's plain-language summary, but it's not clear who they talked to.
Last week CBC asked the minister responsible. David Ramsay, the minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, said the priorities came out of a report by the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure — something he can't comment on because he's not a member.
That committee visited successful hydraulic fracturing operations in Saskatchewan, but its report (found here) doesn't say whether it spoke to anyone from the N.W.T.
In an email, an ITI department spokesperson says the regulations were written after what was heard at public engagement meetings on other issues, such as devolution, land use plans and water strategies, but the government hasn't held any meetings specific to hydraulic fracturing until now.
CBC asked the department for an interview to explain that ... but has not yet received an answer.