It is lack of communication that is creating a major obstacle in understanding the impact of pending border identification laws, says Tourism and Culture Minister Elaine Taylor.

'It's really hard to communicate when there is no information really available,' Taylor said today by telephone.

Taylor, along with Economic Development Minister Jim Kenyon, are in Edmonton attending the annual meeting of Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER).

The organization is a joining of public and private representatives from the Yukon, British Columbia, Alberta, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington state. The region has approximately 18 million residents and an annual gross regional product of $697 billion.

The group has been actively lobbying the Canadian and American governments regarding the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI).

The purpose of the initiative is to create a standardized piece of identification that establishes the bearer's identity and citizenship. It will be become a legalized requirement to enter or re-enter the United States and is meant to increase security at the border.

The initiative, which is American legislation, would see travellers from Canada or Mexico entering the United States by air or sea required to hold a passport or another secure travel document, yet to be determined, as of Dec. 31, 2006.

By Dec. 31, 2007, travellers entering the States by land will be required to have the same documentation.

The U.S. Senate, however, has approved a 17-month delay on its implementation at land crossings. Though, how the legislation will actually work is still up in the air.

That is one of the major problems for jurisdictions across Canada and the United States, said Taylor.

'There will be a requirement for some form of identification. But we aren't sure what that is yet,' said Taylor. 'We need to educate people on that.'

The implication of the legislation on land-crossing at the Yukon-Alaska border is of most concern to the territory.

The rules surrounding the policy have not yet been released and aren't expected to be until late 2006 or early 2007, said Taylor.

That means the Yukon will only have about a year to educate its travelling public on the new law, she said.

'We need a communications plan for our travelling public and we need a comprehensive one,' she said.

As a member of the Canadian Partners Passport Coalition, the Yukon has approached the U.S. Department of Homeland Security about the need to provide a budget to get information to the public.

'It needs to start right now,' said Taylor.

'It is a work in progress,' Michael Chertoff, U.S. secretary to homeland security told The Canadian Press (CP).

Chertoff, along with U.S. ambassador David Wilkins, Michael Wilson, the Canadian Ambassador to the United States, and Canadian Public Security Minister Stockwell Day were also at the Edmonton meetings.

'Concerns about this are being expressed very effectively and being discussed and reviewed at the very highest levels in Washington,' said Chertoff. 'We do want to be flexible and simple.'

What sort of technology and identification requirements the final document will require remain unclear, said Kenyon. But it's clear the Yukon driver's licence won't meet the needs to be valid documentation, he said.

'We will need a secure document and we will need to do something to validate those documents.'

It doesn't necessarily mean all Yukoners will need passports either, said Kenyon. Chertoff has committed to finding an alternative to having to show a passport at the borders, he said.

Day told CP officials from the two countries are making progress on developing travel documents to meet security concerns while keeping the border open to legitimate travel and trade.

But he added it's American legislation driving the debate.

'We have to integrate our concerns into their process.'

A poll conducted by Zogby International earlier this year found 68 per cent of the Americans surveyed said they would be unlikely to purchase the appropriate documentation to cross the border.

Fifty-four per cent of the Canadians questioned agreed they would also be unlikely to invest in an identification card that would solely allow them to cross the Canada/U.S. border.

The implications for the Yukon could be huge, said Kenyon.

'Unless you have a passport in your pocket, you're not going,' he said. 'It's very broad. It has to do with tourism. It has to do with trade.'

Taylor said the meetings were an opportunity to continue to bring the Yukon's concerns regarding border security and passports to high-ranking officials from across North America.

Postponement of the implementation, establishing an affordable alternative to passports and clarification on the implications the law will have on first nations are a priority for the territory, she said.

The key is to not simply criticize the validity of the American legislation but to continue to work toward reasonable solutions, said Kenyon, who will be sworn in as president of PNWER tonight. He has been serving as vice-president for the last year.

The organization's meetings will conclude tomorrow.