Infrastructure tops federal budget wish list in Nunavut

Nunavut's leaders know what they'll be looking for in today's federal budget:money to fix theterritory's crumbling infrastructure.

Nunavut finance minister Keith Peterson laid out the situation to his federal counterpart, Joe Oliver, in December. The territory's power plants and diesel generators are decades old, he said, and in need of upgrades about $200 million worth.

"A power plant is the life-blood of the small Arctic community," Peterson says. "The communities are growing at the same time, so you have to add to your power plants to accommodate."

Peterson is also hoping for some housing relief in today's budget. He says the territory's housing shortage is "huge" in the range of 3,500 to 4,000 units. Nunavut is asking for $300 million.

"If we could get some money, we could build over a number of years," Peterson says.

Nunavut is also requesting a higher debt cap. Right now, the territory can borrow up to $400 million. Peterson says most of that is paying for upgrades to the Iqaluit airport, so he wants to raise the debt cap to $750 million to cover potential critical infrastructure needs.

'There is a lot of need'

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Terry Audla agrees that infrastructure needs are paramount not just in Nunavut, but in Nunavik and Nunatsiavut as well. He cites transportation corridors and road systems that need work. Audlaalso agrees that housing is a major issuebut not the only one.

"There are some communities where that isn't the number oneissue," he says. "So it has to be reflective of the area."

In fact, Audlasays he's hard-pressed to prioritise his budget wishes, "because there is a lot of need." He says income disparity and the high cost of living in the North need to be addressed, to improve the lot of all Inuit.

Audla worries that the Nunavik and Nunatsiavut regions are sometimes forgotten.

"They tend to fall through the cracks when it comes to available funding for federal grants and programs," he says. "It's all handed off to the provincial governments, who don't necessarily distribute finances into their own Arctic."