Ford clears the way for mine development, minister tells Sudbury audience – by Jim Moodie (Sudbury Star – January 24, 2019)

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Mining projects in the region will now go forward with fewer hurdles and costs, a provincial cabinet minister assured participants of a resource development conference Wednesday.

“I want the industries in Ontario to know that they have an ally and a partner in this government,” said Greg Rickford, MPP for Kenora-Rainy River and minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines, as well as minister of Indigenous Affairs. “That we’re committed to supporting and protecting and launching mining projects across Ontario.”

That includes expediting development in the Ring of Fire, which Rickford said is long-overdue. “In southern Ontario there are folks who still think there are active mine sites up there,” he said. “But despite the decade of talk and more than $20 million invested in this region, there are still disappointingly no shovels in the ground.”

The Ontario government of Doug Ford is determined to change that, he said, and will be “making announcements in the very near future” concerning the Ring of Fire — or what Rickford prefers to call a Region of Prosperity.

“Our government has made a commitment to open up the incredible resources located in this region and I plan on delivering on this project,” he said. “Moving forward, we want to make sure that this major economic opportunity creates jobs, generates revenue and builds infrastructure, and that Indigenous communities and their businesses share in the risks and the rewards.”

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