Jean questions Michael Wernick on education and school infrastructure on reserves - December 3, 2009

Ms. Jean Crowder: Thanks, Mr. Chair.

I have another couple of education questions.

I understand that the audit division has completed an audit of the K-to-12 programs. Do you know when the committee will have access to that report?

A voice: An audit or an evaluation?

Ms. Jean Crowder: I had it as an audit, but it could be an evaluation.

Mr. Michael Wernick: No, I don't know off the top of my head.

Ms. Jean Crowder: Could you let us know on that?

Mr. Michael Wernick: I'll let you know right away.

Ms. Jean Crowder: We understand that it's been completed.

I think you're aware that the Parliamentary Budget Officer made some recommendations around school infrastructure. I know that one of the recommendations was around doing the kind of engineering assessment that has been proposed for waste-water treatment facilities, I believe. Is there any plan to do that kind of engineering assessment on school infrastructure for K to 12?

Mr. Michael Wernick: The assessment of the water and waste water is under way. It has been tendered and awarded. That work is starting. It'll take several years to complete.

On the school infrastructure, I think there was a bit of a difference in views about how much we knew about the state of the schools and the inventory. A lot of stuff had not been properly coded and entered into our information system. I can get back to you on the state of that.

We're not going to do one of those national assessments for every institution at this point. We've been very busy trying to do the CEAP projects and the gas tax projects and cope with the business that's under way right now. As you know, we work off the regional capital plans.

Ms. Jean Crowder: So there are no plans to do that kind of assessment, then.

Mr. Michael Wernick: No.

Ms. Jean Crowder: You mentioned the environment. On page 185, I note that there's money around remediation of federal contaminated sites.

You mentioned the Auditor General's report as well and the specific recommendations around dealing with the residual environmental regulatory gaps on reserves and looking at high-risk and medium-risk sites on reserves that became contaminated prior to 1998.

Is that pot of money there to address those kinds of recommendations in the AG's report?

Mr. Michael Wernick: We do two kinds of contaminated sites work, one in the north and another on reserve lands. We've been working away at an inventory of sites, which is quite extensive, as you can imagine.

Ms. Jean Crowder: This is on reserve?

Mr. Michael Wernick: It's on reserve. I can provide you a bit of a progress report.

Ms. Jean Crowder: That would be great.

Mr. Michael Wernick: There's a triage of sorts of what's most urgent and so on. We do what we can with the resources that are available, but there is an overall plan for how quickly we can get to that. If we had more money, we'd do more, but there is a system for that.

Ms. Jean Crowder: It sounds as if there are some fairly serious regulatory gaps as well, though.

Mr. Michael Wernick: That's the issue about how there's some dispute about whether federal law or provincial law applies on reserve on some of these matters, because there are matters that weren't anticipated when the Indian Act was written over 100 years ago.

Ms. Jean Crowder: Is there a process under way for resolution around this that will include first nations?

Mr. Michael Wernick: Yes. We're working very hard with the people who are expert in land and environmental management. My guess is that a permanent solution is going to require legislative change.

Ms. Jean Crowder: Ouch.

On page 186, on the implementation of Bill C-21, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act, you may have covered this and I may have missed it. Can you tell us what progress is happening on reserve around that consultation process and around making sure that people are aware?

Mr. Michael Wernick: There has been a quite extensive engagement since the bill was adopted. As you know, we have a rendezvous with Parliament in 2011 on the progress report. We've been working with a number of organizations to try to figure out what the impacts would be on communities. I'd be happy to provide you with a progress report on that. We've been out in the field with first nations organizations.

Ms. Jean Crowder: I think you also mentioned that you could provide us with a list of the PSSSP consultations as well.

Mr. Michael Wernick: Yes. On Bill C-21, we've been working with AFN, CAP, and the Native Women's Association to get their input. We'll be able to provide a full report to Parliament in June 2011, as you've mandated.

Ms. Jean Crowder: How's my time?

The Chair: You still have about 40 seconds.

Ms. Jean Crowder: Oh. That's fine.

You will provide us with that list on the PSSSP consultations?

Mr. Michael Wernick: Yes.