GNWT cancels Tulita and Norman Wells summer barges

The NWT government has scrapped summer resupply barges to Tulita and Norman Wells over record low water levels.

In interviews, Sahtu community representatives had said this was a foregone conclusion with the Mackenzie River’s water astonishingly low.

An extreme drought lasting years has dramatically lowered the river water. In some places, residents say the water is many feet lower than they’re used to seeing it.

“Due to historically low water levels on the Mackenzie River, all Marine Transportation Services barges to Norman Wells and Tulita are cancelled for the 2024 sailing season,” the GNWT stated on Thursday. Previously, the territory had said only that it was closely watching the conditions.

“This difficult but necessary decision was made as the Mackenzie River near Fort Providence is not navigable and includes obstacles such as large boulders and gravel bars,” the territory’s statement continued.

“Current conditions are unsafe for marine crews and would risk the integrity of vessels, cargo and fuel. We understand that these changes have negative impacts on customers, but safety remains our top priority.”

In affected communities, cancellation of the entire summer resupply season is almost certain to heighten calls for a permanent road connection in the form of the Mackenzie Valley Highway, which has been talked about for decades but requires $1 billion or more in federal funding to become a reality.

Buffalo Airways has already said it will offer discounted air freight to make up for the absence of barges, but the Sahtu Secretariat has said barge cancellations will throw all kinds of projects behind schedule.

“No new school in Colville Lake. No new health centre in Tulita. No new arena in Fort Good Hope,” the Sahtu Secretariat wrote last week, listing the projects that will be delayed if construction materials planned for the barges can’t make it north.

The GNWT said anyone whose cargo is already at the Hay River terminal “can either arrange for it to be picked up and taken up on the winter road or leave it at the terminal until the 2025 sailing season,” a stark set of options that underlines just how difficult getting freight to isolated northern communities can be.

Unless it fits on an aircraft and the customer can cover the cost, cargo that should have sailed this summer may be waiting at least six months and possibly 12 months or more. (There is no guarantee that water levels will have improved in a year’s time.)

The GNWT said fuel destined for Tulita must now wait for the winter road in more than half a year’s time. Fuel in Norman Wells is supplied through Imperial Oil, which the GNWT said had been notified and was “in the process of notifying customers to develop alternative supply plans.”

Communities north of Norman Wells are being resupplied via Tuk this year, a change made earlier in the season when low water near Fort Good Hope was identified as a concern. Sailings starting from Tuk are not affected, and nor is a sailing from Hay River to Łútsël K’é.

Abandonment of a large part of the summer barge schedule may have the effect of easing some pressure on dredging work taking place in Hay River.

Earlier this week, the GNWT said work to dredge the town’s harbour would resume at the start of June and run into September, addressing yet another impediment to barge operations – a build-up of sediment that made navigation tricky even before the drought.

“Key improvements are being implemented to improve dredging productivity and account for the extremely low water levels,” the GNWT stated.