Premier Darrell Pasloski was in Winnipeg this week for the 40th annual Western Premiers’ Conference.
He took the opportunity to meet with Canada’s ambassador to the United States, Gary Doer, about the future of funding for the Shakwak project.
The United States has committed to pay for asphalt pavement between the border on the Haines Highway to the border north of Beaver Creek.
But funding disappeared from the most recent U.S. transportation bill.
Enough funding remains to pay for a few more years worth of work, and in that time Yukon officials hope to convince the U.S. to reinstate funding.
“This is a project that still has potentially around $300 million in work to do, and a lot of this is very challenging because of the fact that we’re dealing with unstable permafrost, especially from about Destruction Bay right to the Alaska border,” said Pasloski.
He discussed the issue with the ambassador, but couldn’t say if any headway had been made on the issue.
He has also met with the prime minister and officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, he said.