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Around Iqaluit
May
21, 2004
Iqaluit council wants chit-chat with fire marshal
Iqaluit council and firefighters plan to question the fire marshal on concerns
rising from his critical report on the Joamie School fire last year.
Council made a show of solidarity with their firefighting department, whose
members crowded council chambers at their meeting on May 11.
Mayor Elisapee Sheutiapik complained the fire marshal released the report to
media before Iqaluit council and administration, and said they wouldn't comment
on the report's findings until meeting with the fire marshal, who was expected
to sit down with them on May 19.
Among other criticisms, Fire Marshal Gerald Pickett's report found the fire
chief's lack of experience contributed to the complete loss of the school.
In a brief statement to council, Fremantle admitted Iqaluit fire chief Cory
Chegwyn didn't have "the courses" required for his job when he was
hired, and that Chegwyn had only intended to keep the position temporarily.
Council backed the mayor's demand that the fire marshal meet council and the
firefighters to answer questions from councillors and the fire department.
May
21, 2004
Recycling program may be scrapped
Under budget pressures, Iqaluit city council is weighing whether to scrap the
eastern Arctic's only door-to-door recycling program.
Referring to the estimated $235,000 annual cost of recycling in Iqaluit, the
chief administrative officer, Ian Fremantle, lobbied council to cut the program
immediately at their last meeting on May 11.
"I don't have the money to continue with recycling," Fremantle said.
"Some other service is going to have to be reduced to continue this."
Mark Hall, the public works director, expects cutting the recycling program
will only increase garbage levels by one per cent.
Councillors put off the decision, saying they wanted to speak with the Iqaluit
Recycling Society, a group of volunteers that promote the program, before making
their decision at their next meeting on May 25.
May
21, 2004
New cemetery approved in industrial zone
Iqaluit council has allowed construction to proceed on a new cemetery, despite
concerns from some churches that the site will be too noisy.
Advised by administration that time is running out, council voted unanimously
on May 11 to start building the cemetery along the former American air force
runway near the airport in the West 40 area.
The old cemetery has become so full that graves dug on soft ground close to
the tide line are collapsing.
Capt. Ron McLean, a pastor for the Anglican Church, told council before they
voted that churches wanted them to approve a more tranquil site along the Road
to Nowhere.
But council sided with administration against the Road to Nowhere site, expected
to cost up to $500,000 more to maintain than the West 40 location.
May
21, 2004
Iqaluit seeks business booster
The City of Iqaluit is searching for a new director of economic development
with stronger Inuktitut skills, a move that the mayor hopes will open the community
to more business with hamlets around the territory.
Terry Ma, the former director in charge of communications and promoting business
activity in Nunavut's capital, quit the job after the Nunavut trade show earlier
this month.
Mayor Elisapee Sheutiapik hopes Ma's replacement will be able to communicate
with unilingual Inuktitut speakers in order to help promote Iqaluit among Inuit
in the communities that were difficult to help previously because of language
barriers.
May
21, 2004
Iqaluit swaps sewage technology for sewage truck
Iqaluit council has salvaged parts of the city's infamous non-functioning sewage
treatment plant to pay for a sewage truck.
Council approved leasing a Sterling sewage truck from South Baffin Holdings,
an Iqaluit-based operation, pending the sale of sewage treatment membrane technology
left over from Iqaluit's $7-million sewage treatment facilities, which haven't
worked since they were built several years ago.
Administration already budgeted $180,000 this year to sell the old plant's
membrane filters, which are incompatible with the new sewage treatment plant
being constructed, to the municipality of Powell River, B.C.
May
21, 2004
Iqaluit co-op delays new store, hotel
Design changes to a new retail grocery store and hotel in Iqaluit have delayed
their grand opening until next year.
Mary-Ellen Thomas, chair of the Iqaluit co-op board, said construction of the
co-op's store and hotel complex will begin this summer. But a recent decision
to design the building so that the two facilities share the same plumbing and
heating system means preparations will take longer than expected.
Thomas said shoppers, who were originally told the store would be open by Christmas,
will now have to wait until July, 2005 before the co-op officially opens its
doors.
May
21, 2004
Public forum on alt-schools delayed
An Iqaluit town hall debate on alternative schooling has been delayed until
the new school year.
Members of the Iqaluit District Education Authority decided at their May 17
meeting that they would be better prepared to host a series of public meetings
on schooling issues, if they put it off until the fall.
The meetings will cover topics including how to deal with troubled and absentee
students, such as starting an alternative school for students who don't respond
well to regular classrooms.
May
21, 2004
Alternative discipline gets the okay
Teachers, students and school administrators in Iqaluit have joined forces
to find ways of dealing with troubled students without kicking them out of school.
The Iqaluit District Education Authority recently approved funding for a community
group that aims to give students more chances to go out on the land and interact
with elders outside of school.
At its May 17 meeting, the IDEA earmarked $25,000 for a subcommittee headed
by member Katherine Trumper, partially to train teachers on using mediation
to discipline students.
Darlene Nuqingaq, principal of Aqsarniit Middle School, said she's already
seen positive results from a similar program at her school, sponsored by the
Iqaluit Restorative Justice Society.
"I've seen a dramatic difference in the kids' self-esteem," she said.
May
21, 2004
Feast marks start of global chemical ban
A select group of Iqaluit residents and visitors recently shared a lavish spread
of seal, whale, caribou and char with Inuit leaders to celebrate the official
start of an international ban on chemicals known to trickle their way into the
northern food chain.
Sheila Watt-Cloutier, chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, hosted the
festivities on May 17 with the National Aboriginal Health Organization, to highlight
how the international convention is intended to protect future generations from
eating country food contaminated by chemicals that come from plastics and paints.
More than 50 countries have ratified an international treaty, known as the
Stockholm Convention, which bans or severely restricts 12 of the world's most
environmentally dangerous chemicals, known as the dirty dozen. The United States
has signed the agreement, but not ratified it, meaning their government hasn't
enacted any local legislation that backs the treaty.
Chemicals covered by the agreement include PCBs, which are used to insulate
electric transformers and as additives in plastics and paint, and pesticides
such as DDT.
May
21, 2004
Iqaluit education authority creates media policy
After months of withholding public documents from the media, the Iqaluit District
Education Authority approved temporary guidelines of what reporters are allowed
to see.
After the May 17 decision, reporters and other members of the public have access
to minutes from previous meetings, some memos, and select correspondence.
Documents related to the authority's employees, disciplinary issues at schools,
legal advice, and correspondence marked as "personal," will be withheld.
May
7, 2004
New member joins IDEA
The Iqaluit District Education Authority almost reached full membership at
its May 3 meeting, with one member joining the group, and another taking leave
for the summer.
Christa Kunuk, 31, became the youngest sitting member on the IDEA, after beating
Mike Courtney and Allen Hayward for the position vacated by Caroline Anawak,
who moved to Ottawa last month.
Kunuk, hand-picked late last month by the remaining members of the IDEA, will
serve a two-year term before the next elections in fall, 2006.
"I want to make sure the rights of Inuit children are met," Kunuk
said after her swearing-in.
The board will remain one member short, as Aseena Allurut took leave for the
summer, citing an overcharged schedule.
May
7, 2004
IDEA plans town hall meeting on education
The board overseeing schools in Iqaluit is brainstorming about topics to discuss
at a community meeting, expected before the end of the school year.
The decision to hold a public forum on topics like school suspensions and drop-out
rates surfaced when members of the IDEA were debating how they could deal with
troubled students, other than kicking them out of school.
At their May 3 meeting, members repeatedly focused on how Iqaluit lacks an
alternative school for students who don't adapt to the regular school format.
"I know by the demographics on the street, we're losing those kids,"
IDEA member Katherine Trumper said of suspended students. "There's no alternative
for them, and there's no door between the schoolhouse and the courthouse."
IDEA member Kathy Smith suggested the board consider how Iqaluit used to have
a drop-in centre with teachers in the Brown building for troubled students years
ago, though she later added the former location was not ideal.
IDEA member Sean Maloney is drafting a list of topics for the coming meeting.
May
7, 2004
IDEA seeks missing policy on school excursions
The IDEA can't find the policy on school outings that it hopes to update before
summer.
Katherine Trumper said she and other members need to localize the Iqaluit's
excursion policy used by Qikiqtani Schools Operations, the body overseeing all
schools in the Baffin region.
At the IDEA's May 3 meeting, Trumper compared the QSO policy with the Toronto
District School Board's policy, suggesting that the local approach to approving
excursions lacked educational guidelines and planning requirements.
"It's got to have been written by risk-managers because it's just written
to avoid a lawsuit," Trumper said, adding that the IDEA needed to add its
own criteria for school outings.
Member Kathy Smith said a policy existed for Iqaluit schools, but couldn't
be found.
May
7, 2004
IDEA debates lengthy meetings
With a nod to the irony of the debate, IDEA members recently put time aside
to search for ways to quicken the pace of their notoriously long meetings.
The majority of members supported a new set of guidelines to keep meetings
brief, instead of dragging late into the evening.
"I don't want to see anyone speaking to an issue four, five times,"
said member Sean Maloney. "It's out of line. I can't live with it."
Members Kathy Smith and Tim Neily voted against the guidelines, arguing that
members should aim to be more efficient without time limitations being enforced.
May
7, 2004
Iqaluit school bus contract remains in flux
IDEA members flatly rejected calls from officials at Qikiqtani Schools Operations
to approve school bus contracts that the QSO has negotiated for Iqaluit.
Andrew Tagak Sr., chair of the IDEA, announced at the May 3 meeting he will
turn down such requests, after members reassured him that such a move wouldn't
leave students stranded.
IDEA member Sean Maloney said the QSO request was aimed at saddling the board
with contracts that are expensive and rife with administration problems.
"We're not signing anything," Maloney said. "It's their baby."
QSO oversees all schools in the Baffin region.
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