The Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario.
THE Ring of Fire is on many minds these days. As miners prepare to dig into the James Bay lowlands, Northern Ontario communities jockey to provide services and employees. But the North’s new mining boom extends well beyond the Ring. A new analysis, commissioned by Ambassadors Northwest, showcases stunning opportunities that will transform the region. Billions of dollars are at stake. Communities will share handsomely if governments do what they must do to make it happen.
Conducted by university and college professors, the study looks at nine mining projects underway in the Northwest. It does not include existing mines. The Ring of Fire’s two biggies — Cliff’s Natural Resources’ Black Thor and Noront Resources’ Eagles Nest — are familiar. But seven other projects are similarly mature or near development with the potential to become producing mines in five years.
They are: Bending Lake Iron Property surrounded by Atikokan, Ignace and Dryden; Goldcorp’s Bruce Channel and Cochenour projects and Rubicon Minerals’ Phoenix Gold project in the famed Red Lake gold field; Osisko Mining’s Hammond Reef project near Atikokan; Rainy River Resources’ gold project; Stillwater Mining’s copper and paladium operation near Marathon; and Treasury Metals’ Goliath gold project in the Wabigoon and Dryden area.
The dollar value, employment and tax revenue potential of these projects is “substantial,” the study says. That’s an understatement. The total value of unmined metals and minerals is estimated to be $135 billion based on June commodity prices.
Employment presents a region reeling from unemployment with remarkable opportunities. Employment from these nine projects is expected to total 232,588 new positions throughout Ontario — a third from construction, the rest from mining operations over an average mine life of 17 years. More than half of those jobs — 13,149 — are expected to remain in the Northwest (5,719 during construction and 7,430 from mining). That is huge and it behooves students, their parents and schools to take advantage of it.
A conservative estimate puts potential tax revenue for all three levels of government at more than $16 billion. Imagine what that will do for budget deficit projections.
Such potential does not come with challenges, though this report confirms they are hardly without solutions. Political will is what will turn issues of aboriginal involvement, labour market dynamics and infrastructure deficiencies around.
Government and industry together can enhance multiple aboriginal opportunities around “developing full partnerships” in mining and related operations, the report says.
“It is imperative that the federal government take a leadership role” by recognizing aboriginal and treaty rights and clearly defining processes for “meaningful consultation” concerning the court-ordered “duty to consult.” This will also provide certainty so far missing regarding land management.
These projects mean that the Northwest must attract up to 45 per cent of all new entrants to the mining industry over the next decade. In demand will be miners, millwrights, heavy equipment operators and electricians. “Underrepresented groups” such as Aboriginals and women will be needed. So will getting students to consider a mining career and branding Northwest mining far and wide.
Inadequate infrastructure means $1.7 billion must be spent on roads, rail and power lines. The report doesn’t say who should build them but it helpfully notes this amount would be just 10 per cent of projected government revenue from these nine mines. Additional infrastructure will open the Northwest to further development.
A “major constraint” is electricity. Cliffs’ project alone has been delayed a year while it negotiated with the province for enough power at a competitive price. It has been suggested that 500 megawatts of surplus power exists within the Thunder Bay and Atikokan generating stations. They’d have to run at full capacity to produce it so the province must ensure conversions to gas (Thunder Bay) and especially biomass (Atikokan) are sufficient.
This study puts all stakeholders — “especially the federal and provincial governments” — on notice that what can be realized is extensive. It can transform the Northwest and has been said to provide the province with security on the scale of oil-rich Alberta. We look forward to the determination of all players to get it right.