YUKON COUNCIL ON THE ECONOMY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

YUKON COUNCIL ON THE ECONOMY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Minutes of April 3 and 4, 1998

Dawson City, Yukon

Members Present:

Jennifer Mauro	Chair
Daryn Leas	Council of Yukon First Nations
Louise Ranger	Yukon Federation of Labour
Dave Austin	Yukon Chamber of Mines
Lucy van Oldenbarneveld	Yukon Status of Women's Council
George Johnson	Council of Yukon First Nations
Ralph Nordling	Member at Large

Secretariat:

Toby Sanger	Secretariat, Executive Council Office
Karen Sparrow	Secretariat, Economic Development
Janet Moodie	ADM, Economic Development
Jim Connell	Director, Policy & Planning, Renewable Resources

Regrets:

Louise Bouvier	Yukon Indian Women's Association
Kathy Watson	Association of Yukon Communities
Andy Williams	Yukon Conservation Society
John Carroll	Yukon Chamber of Commerce

1. MEETING AGENDA

The Draft Agenda was approved with the following changes:

Review of the Communication Strategy was deleted.
Energy and Mining Tour updates will follow the update on the Protected Areas Strategy on Friday at 8:30 P.M.

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Ralph Nordling moved the minutes of Feb. 13 & 14, 1998 be approved as written.

Dave Austin seconded. MOTION PASSED.

3. BRIEFING ON THE ISSUES AND CONCERNS FROM THE DAWSON AREA

Ed Kormendy, Tr’ondek Hwech'in and Peter Jenkins, MLA for Klondike, addressed the Council on the various issues and concerns which affect the Dawson area.

4. DRAFT REGULATIONS FOR THE YCEE

Secretariat presented "Discussion Draft" YCEE Regulations.

It was suggested that Item # 3.3 and # 3.4 be combined into one item number and that Item #3.6 be reworded to read Minister, not Commissioner in Executive Council.
The timetable and public process was accepted as presented.

ACTION: Regulations were approved with changes noted. It was suggested that the Draft Regulations be forwarded to the organizations representing the interests on the Council. Once the Justice Department has reviewed the Regulations, the Regulations Sub-Committee of the Council would like an opportunity to provide a final review.
5. DRAFT OPERATING PROCEDURES

Secretariat reviewed the draft operating procedures with the Council. Council agreed to the following changes:

Section 2.1.2: add "per year." To the end of sentence. To read: A minimum of two meetings will be held in communities outside Whitehorse per year.
2.1.9: replace "any organization" with "the Minister" and replace "its member's participation" with "the participation of a member". To read: The chair shall monitor attendance and shall contact the Minister where there are concerns about the participation of a member.
2.2.2: replace "$200" with "$500" and "be moved as formal motions for approval-in-principle" with "approved in- principle". To read: Decisions on budgetary items of more that $500 beyond routine meeting expenses shall be approved in-principle by members.
4.5: add "or their designate" to the end of the sentence. To read: All written correspondence sent out on YCEE letterhead shall be signed by the chair or their designate.
5.4: Rewrite this section to clarify different process to follow when a member is sure or unsure about a conflict; replace "chair/Council" with "chair or vice-chair"
5.6: Replace "Conflicts Commissioner" with "Minister". To read: If the member and Council do not reach a resolution on these matters, the issue may be referred by Council to the Minister.
Add a section on suspension and removal procedures to include the missing of three consecutive meetings and/or inappropriate behavior.

ACTION: Secretariat will provide Council with a finalized copy of the operating procedures at the next meeting.
6. REVIEW OF GOVERNMENT IMPLEMENTATION OF YUKON CONSERVATION STRATEGY

Council reviewed a draft of the review of Government of Yukon's performance in implementing the Yukon Conservation Strategy. The Council found the "discussion draft" presented difficult to review.

The following suggestions were made:

Energy Section - to be rewritten in a clearer manner, ensuring that criteria selected are reviewed.

Oil and Gas Section - The wording be changed from "First Nation government will adopt YOGA" to "First Nation government may adopt YOGA".

Forestry - Some progress has been made but substantial work needs to be done. The Government is to be commended on efforts made to finalize a letter of understanding with the First Nations. Council suggested eliminating the third last paragraph regarding the First Nations Forestry Program.

Waste Management - In general, ranked as "substantial progress". Very good effort with a need to ensure an integrated waste management strategy is completed. It was noted there has been no expansion beyond 1996 on beverage refunds.

Education and Consultation - In general, ranked as "good progress". The government needs to review and ensure the expansion of the programs throughout the Yukon. It was recognized that this commitment is an ongoing requirement.
ACTION: Review will be rewritten and a draft sent out to Council members for their views and comments. It was agreed to have a short turn around time of the next draft to facilitate the goal of having the final draft out by the end of April.

7. INFORMATION ITEMS

Update on Environment Audit
Renewable Resources presented an update on the Environment Audit. The next audit is scheduled for the year 2000.
Update on Protected Areas Strategy
Renewable Resources staff presented an update on the Protected Areas Strategy. Issues related to the management of the plan were discussed including the involvement of First Nations. The relation between the Protected Areas Strategy and Special Management Areas was discussed. The draft PAS should be ready by the end of April, 1998.
Energy Consultations Update
Lucy van Oldenbarneveld gave an update on the consultations and the various aspects of the energy initiatives. The Council advised that they would like to be briefed on the government's energy consultations.
Mining Tour Update
Dave Austin gave a brief overview of the mining tour presently being conducted by the Chamber of Mines.

8. DIVERSIFICATION UPDATE

Performance Indicators
Secretariat presented the material that the Department of Economic Development had prepared for the Working Group on indicators. With Council members, a list of indicators which reflects the adopted objectives for economic diversification was developed. This sample list may indicate the progress or lack thereof in achieving the objectives as defined for the diversification strategy (see minutes of February 13 & 14, 1998). The Council still views the need for "expert" review of the appropriateness of these indicators.
Barriers
The background paper on "barriers" was reviewed and discussed. It was suggested Mark Wedge, Bob Snyder (Capital Working Group) and a representative from the Business Service Centre address the group.
ACTION: In conjunction with the Department of Economic Development, the Working Group will work towards determining the components of financial services available and the need to maintain capital in the Yukon as well as look at the various investment options available for capital from outside the Yukon. The group will explore different options available including tax incentives/credits and alternatives.

9. PUBLIC EDUCATION FORUMS

Arctic Council Conference
Interest was expressed by some members to attend the workshop on sustained forestry as well as the sustainable development conference.
ACTION: Registration forms will be sent out by Secretariat. Those attending will meet before and after to brief/debrief.
Speakers
The possibility of arranging speakers for the communities and Whitehorse was discussed.
ACTION: It was agreed to try and get a speaker out to the communities. Issues to focus on should include micro credit, youth, alternate economies, mineral resources, protected areas and sustainable development. Elizabeth Dowdeswell and Mary Simon were recommended as potential speakers.

The proposal to include the expertise of Tony Hodge was reviewed.
ACTION: It was agreed to invite the Territorial Government, Federal Government and the First Nations to send people to a policy discussion with Tony Hodge on Performance Measurement/Progress Assessment.
Delgamuukw Forum
The Council discussed the proposal for public forums (one for lay people as well as an advanced session) on Delgamuukw. The objective of both sessions would be to provide clarity of the decision and its effect/implications to the Yukon.

10. Communication Strategy

The date of April 21^st at 12:00 noon was confirmed to review the strategy. The out-of-town members will be connected by teleconference.

11. Administrative Matters

Annual Report
Council agreed we should submit an Annual Report to cover April 1995 to March 1998. A draft will be reviewed by everyone via e-mail with specific comments by Kathy, Andy, and Daryn on the 1995/1996 information.
ACTION: Secretariat will look into establishing a web site and will send out the previous Annual Report for reference. A draft will be ready for final review at the next meeting.
Press Release
It was agreed that a press release should be completed following every meeting.

Agreement based on the information discussed and approval of the Chair.
Next Meeting
Suggested dates for the next meeting were Sunday, May 10^th/ Monday, May 11th or Friday, May 29/Saturday, May 30.

Meeting adjourned at 3:10 P.M.

______________________________________

Jennifer Mauro, Chair