Nunavut’s infrastructure and housing crises are closely linked and need a federal partner to step up

The experience of the High Arctic relocatees from northern Quebec and other parts of Nunavut to Grise Fiord and Resolute are the epitome of Canada’s marginalization of Inuit. In the 1950s, about 100 families were promised abundance in hunting, security, and comfort in housing. When the families arrived, they felt abandoned and the lands were foreign. The rest of the Nunavut communities suffered similar atrocities. Inuit were forced to settle, after having thrived in the Arctic by following the seasons and animals, and being guided by the stars, ice, and snow. Their dogs were slaughtered, children sent to residential schools, and houses built of plywood called matchboxes. Marginalization continues to this day. Nunavummiut continue to be underserved and under-resourced. Decades of this underinvestment in housing and infrastructure has kept Nunavummiut in crisis. Lori Idlout is the NDP MP for Nunavut. Photograph courtesy of Lori Idlout I started 2024 hosting Minister of Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities Sean Fraser in his first visit to Nunavut. Together, we met with Nunavut’s minister of housing, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., Qikiqtani Inuit Association, the mayor of Iqaluit, and others so he could hear the realities I frequently speak about in the House of Commons. Mayor Solomon Awa expressed the demand clearly: to build houses, we need infrastructure. He said roads need to be built, power needs to be supplied, and water and sewage systems need to be installed. There are many infrastructure needs that must be built in order to meet the housing demands. Houses cannot be built if there are no roads, power poles, and infrastructure for water and sewage systems. The City of Iqaluit has been in a water crisis for years. There is both too many people to serve, and aging infrastructure. The city was unable to develop or enable more lands because of the lack of infrastructure, and had been seeking funds without approval from the federal government. By the time I was elected in 2021, the NDP was able to use its power to secure more than $214-million to update the aging infrastructure. When I visited Whale Cove, I met with then-mayor Percy Kabloona. He showed me his house, which had cracked in the middle, from one end to the other. The permafrost melting had shifted the house. Because of the lack of resources in the community, it would not be renovated for some time. They used duct tape. It was even worse at the airport—the floors, ceiling, walls, everything all around it was damaged beyond repair. Due to Whale Cove being mainly on bedrock, it makes building roads extremely difficult. Whale Cove either requires some form of rock crushing or bringing in material from other communities to enable the building of roads. It will require additional infrastructure investments. All 25 Nunavut communities run on diesel for power and heat. It is expensive, and contributing to climate change. Since January, there have been power outages in at least seven communities. After power was recently lost in Pangnirtung, the outage lasted a further four days because bad weather delayed the arrival of the repair crew by plane. Transitioning away from diesel power is an important part of ensuring that Nunavummiut have reliable access to electricity. The Kivalliq Hydro-Fibre Link is a project that would do just that, bringing renewable energy from northern Manitoba more than 1,200 kilometres to five communities in the Kivalliq region. It would also bring fast, reliable internet. Nunavut would, for the first time, be connected to the national electric grid. This would bring many opportunities to the region, and would certainly increase the capacity for homebuilding. I call on the federal government to invest in this important project. The housing crisis raises many challenges. Nunavut’s climate makes things even more difficult, as builders must grapple with a short building season and the need to bring in materials by sealift. It is important to recognize that the housing crisis will not simply be solved by building more homes. New houses create additional infrastructure burdens on communities that the federal government must help them to address. The infrastructure gap must be addressed. Major investments must be made, so Nunavummiut can contribute to Canada’s economy. Lori Idlout has served as the NDP MP for the riding of Nunavut since 2021. Before her election, Idlout practiced law in Iqaluit with her own firm, Qusagaq Law Office. The Hill Times

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Nunavut’s infrastructure and housing crises are closely linked and need a federal partner to step up

New houses create additional infrastructure burdens on communities that the federal government must help them to address.

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