Aboriginal and Inuit Mining and Oil/Gas – Page 255

Lack of Mining Oversight Jeopardizes the Far North – Environmental Commissioner of Ontario News Release

September 23, 2010

Toronto, 22 September 2010 – The Environmental Commissioner of Ontario says mining service companies are using claim staking, exploration, and related activities to circumvent the government’s promise to protect half the boreal forest in the Far North. In his 2009/2010 annual report released today, Gord Miller says this is putting the fragile environment of northern Ontario at risk.

Last year, two lines of mining claims hundreds of kilometres long were staked by mining exploration companies to accommodate future rail access leading out of the Ring of Fire, an area known to contain gold, diamonds and potentially the largest source of chromite in North America. “Using mining claims to cut rail lines across a giant swath of the boreal forest nullifies any reasonable discussion about how to plan the protection and the development of northern Ontario,” says Miller.

“Furthermore, the government’s silence on this staking implies that it approves this as appropriate under the Mining Act and its proposed Far North Act.”

The report also found that ineffective government oversight allowed service companies to illegally construct a mining camp and airstrips without approval.

Balance in Far North Bill – Toronto Star September 19, 2010 Editorial Comment on McGuinty Liberal’s “Far North Bill”

February 11, 2011September 23, 2010

The Toronto Star has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on Canada’s federal and provincial politics as well as shaping public opinion. This editorial was originally published on September 19, 2010.

For an extensive list of articles on this mineral discovery, please go to: Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

Beyond romantic notions of caribou running wild across endless tundra, most Ontarians know very little about the northernmost 40 per cent of our province.

Much of the land is barren and beautiful, but it is also facing increasing pressure for development; logging, mining and power companies all see great potential there. The First Nations, who have long called the region home, need a say in determining the future of the land and an assurance that they will benefit economically from its development.

The province, on the other hand, needs to balance these interests with environmental protections for the northern boreal region, a globally significant ecosystem. The provincial government’s Far North Act, Bill 191, would achieve that balance.

So it is unfortunate that the chiefs of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) territory are threatening that there will be “no peace on the land” if the government passes the bill in the coming days.

Revenue Sharing is Only Fair, but Not All First Nations are Treated Fairly – by David Hill

September 13, 2010

David Hill is director and senior advisor of GMG Consulting Services. Reach him at david@gmgconsulting.ca. He has over 18 years of experience as a manager, senior policy advisor, project manager, program developer, communications coordinator and issues management advisor to the provincial government, Aboriginal communities and organizations, and private sector clients across British Columbia. He is a highly skilled and experienced facilitator, trainer, supervisor, planner, public speaker and writer and has professional training in project management and public speaking.

In addition to his direct experience with Aboriginal communities, Hill has also worked as a senior advisor and manager for Aboriginal relations for the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, during which time he facilitated engagement between Aboriginal communities and the mining and petroleum development industries, and negotiated consultation, accommodation and benefit sharing agreements between Aboriginal communities and the provincial government.

Commentary

British Columbia’s first agreements to share mining revenue with three First Nations are being hailed as “game changers” and “the new standard for participation.”

These are indeed important agreements to be celebrated, and the leaders of the Stk’emlupsemc and Tk’emlups First Nations and the McLeod Lake Indian Band who negotiated the Economic Development Agreements should be commended for their efforts and the benefits they are bringing to their communities. First Nations communities and their members deserve to benefit from an industry that generates more than $300 million a year in tax revenues and royalties in British Columbia.

However, the agreements touted by the Government as “historic”, should not necessarily represent the new standard.

In fact, there is a serious flaw in the system.

The Political Storm Watch on Fish Lake [Taseko Mines Tailings]- by Wendy Stueck (Globe and Mail-September 11, 2010)

April 6, 2011September 13, 2010

Wendy Stueck is a reporter for the Globe and Mail, Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous impact and influence on Canada’s political and business elite as well as the rest of the country’s print, radio and television media.

Aboriginals and pro-development groups are on a collision course as they await decision on $800-million B.C. mining project

On the surface, Fish Lake looks serene – a sun-dappled body of water where fish jump in the shadows of snow-capped mountains.

But this lake, about 125 kilometres southwest of Williams Lake in British Columbia’s rugged Chilcotin Territory, is the heart of a battle that has put the federal and provincial governments on a collision course, pitted predominantly aboriginal concerns about the environment against the prospect of jobs and investment in a hard-pressed region, and raised fears of violent confrontations if a proposed mine goes ahead.

The federal government is to make a final decision on the proposed Prosperity copper-gold mine, which the B.C. government has already approved, as early as this month.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Canada’s Mining Exploration Sector: Doing the Right Thing Wherever We Work – Jon Baird (June 23, 2009)

September 12, 2010

Jon Baird, Past President of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), gave this speech to the Economic Club of Canada on June 23, 2009

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Thank you for your generous introduction, Bill. In a 2007 speech here at the Economic Club, National Chief Phil Fontaine of the Assembly of First Nations didn’t pull any punches.

He opened his talk by describing the poverty, suffering and frustration that too many of his people live with.
He called for businesses to join the AFN’s Corporate Challenge and work together with First Nations to help address long standing problems and alleviate poverty. The National Chief described the resource industry as a natural partner for First Nations and called on both groups to work together for their mutual benefit.

So it’s fitting that the PDAC is here today to publicly introduce our new corporate social responsibility initiative, e3 Plus: A Framework for Responsible Exploration.

Aboriginal people and Europeans have been working together on the hunt for minerals in Canada since Jacques Cartier arrived here 500 years ago looking for, he said, “gold, rubies and other gems.”

The PDAC marks the industry’s long connection with Aboriginal people with the Skookum Jim Award, which is presented at our convention in Toronto every March. It recognizes Aboriginal achievement in the industry. Skookum Jim was a Tagish man who led the group that discovered gold in the Klondike in 1896 and touched off the Yukon gold rush.

Those of you outside the mining community may not be aware of how closely geoscientists in this country work with First Nations people.

Thunder Bay’s Confederation College, Mineral Sector Train Aboriginal Students for Mining Jobs – Ian Ross

August 23, 2010

This article was originally published in Northern Ontario Business in the December, 2009 issue. Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North.

The next generation of mining employees will include many First Nations participants

Building a home-grown workforce has always been an important to Henry Wetelainen, president of Bending Lake Iron Group.

The Thunder Bay-based junior miner is partnering with Confederation College to run a prospectors course at the company’s iron ore deposit near Ignace in northwestern Ontario.

For his Aboriginally-owned, family-run company, Wetelainen said it’s always been a driving interest in his family to get First Nation youth interested in the grass roots end of the mining cycle.

“This is important to us as a company,” said Wetelainen, who has students from remote First Nation communities such as Gull Bay, Kasabonika and Big Trout Lake. “What’s an agreement with the First Nations worth if you can’t live up to it?”

Hollywood’s Avatar Imitates Ontario Mining/Aboriginal Conflicts – by Juan Carlos Reyes

February 20, 2012August 22, 2010

Juan Carlos Reyes is the organizer of the annual Learning Together conference and an aboriginal consultant with Efficiency.ca. He is passionate about human rights and works tirelessly to help improve the lives of Canadian aboriginal people. This column was originally published in May 2010.

There still may be a few among you who have yet to see James Cameron’s epic blockbuster Avatar. My advice: Go see it! The movie offers an interesting vision of colonial mentality — something to which many Aboriginal people will relate. Here’s my take on it: White Americans travel to a distant planet to mine an invaluable mineral.

They hire researchers and scientists to placate the indigenous population (called the Na’vi) by socially infiltrating the community and attempting to convince them to move to more “suitable” locations. When the ruse fails, the mining company gets fed up and redefines the term “explosive climax.” The hero of the story, a white American military recruit, switches sides and helps lead the Na’vi to victory.

James Cameron has received a lot of heat over this movie. But I think that Avatar was developed brilliantly. Some reviews claim that Cameron’s idea was to portray the Black or Muslim or indigenous experience. Regardless of his motivation, the movie succeeds in its depiction of the way industrialized nations have “taken over” in many developing countries.

Nunavut’s Inuit and Agnico-Eagle Partner and Embrace Mining to Secure Their Futures – by Marilyn Scales

August 7, 2010August 5, 2010

Marilyn Scales is a field editor for the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication. She is one of Canada’s most senior mining commentators and visited Baker Lake, Nunavut to file this article.

A true partnership has been forged by Agnico-Eagle Mines and the Inuit of Baker Lake, Nunavut, one that treats the land with respect and provides a modern future for young members of the community. The elders have embraced Agnico’s vision of gold mining. They know mining will provide education, training and well-paying jobs for many years. And most importantly, they trust Agnico to be a responsible steward of their land.

The Meadowbank project offered many firsts for all involved. It is the first project Agnico has pursued in the Arctic. It is the first gold mine in Nunavut (and currently the only mine). It is the first to be developed on Inuit land. It is the first mine to be covered by a water compensation agreement, signed in April 2008 with the Kivalliq Inuit Association.

The Inuit elders have embraced Agnico’s vision of gold mining.
They know mining will provide education, training and well-paying jobs for many years.

Agnico gained control of the Meadowbank deposit when it purchased Cumberland Resources in 2007. Cumberland had great success exploring the deposit in the previous decade. A pre-feasibility report was completed in 2000 and updated five years later. The takeover of Cumberland cost $710 million, but it increased Agnico’s gold reserves by 23%.

The acquisition brought with it 10 Crown mining leases and three Nunavut Tunngavik exploration licences in the Kivalliq District, 70 km west of Baker Lake. Three deposits -Portage, Goose Island and Vault -dot the property along a 25-km-long trend. The gold deposits are of Archean age and hosted within volcanic and sedimentary rocks.

Mining Projects and Aboriginal Communities – Respect and Consultation Must be Part of the Environmental Process – by David Hill

August 3, 2010

This commentary is from the digital version of the Canadian Mining Journal, Canada’s first mining publication.

Commentary

Recently I heard Mike Kaplan, president and CEO of Aspen Skiing Co. in Colorado, say “Progressive companies aren’t thinking in terms of ‘or’, but of ‘and’: short-term financial performance and long-term growth, being environmentally and socially sound, and fiscally successful.”

Kaplan’s idea reminded me of the current controversy surrounding the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA)’s deliberation over the fate of the Prosperity mine, a multi-billion dollar project proposed by Taseko Mines. The most controversial aspect of the project is the destruction of Teztan Biny, more commonly known as Fish Lake, which includes a significant rainbow trout habitat, and which is considered sacred by the Tsilquot’in people. The BC environmental assessment (EA) office approved Taseko’s application, and the BC government hopes the CEAA will rubber stamp the project as well.

Perhaps not surprising, the Tsilquot’in Nation are among the loudest opponents of the project as it’s being proposed. The Tsilquot’in have expressed significant concerns over the long-term effects of the project on the environment, and the resulting infringement on their inherent rights, and feel they have been shut out of the review process so far.

Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR) Working to Increase Aboriginal Participation in Mining Sector – by Lindsay Forcellini

June 30, 2010

Lindsay Forcellini is the Marketing & Communications Coordinator for the Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MiHR)

Bridging the gap: Mining Essentials Program poised to increase capacity for Aboriginal employment in mining

The Assembly of First Nations and the Mining Industry Human Resources (MiHR) Council are developing Mining Essentials: A Work Readiness Training Program for Aboriginal Peoples to create more employment opportunities for Aboriginal peoples and to provide a practical solution to recruitment challenges currently facing mining employers.

Aboriginal peoples have a strong history and future role in Canada’s mining industry and many Aboriginal communities are located within close proximity of Canada’s mines and exploration sites. Mining Essentials will ensure Aboriginal peoples have the essential skills and work-readiness training needed to enter the mining industry, increasing their capacity for employment in one of Canada’s highest paying industrial sectors.

The Mining Essentials Program was conceptualized after MiHR’s 2009 needs-assessment revealed national interest in an essential skills program for the industry. This pre-employment mining training program is a potential entry point to MiHR’s Canadian Mining Credentials Program, with curriculum based on industry standards. The benefits of the program include consistency in learning outcomes, increased worker mobility and bridging the gap between career seeker skill levels and employer demand level for skills.

Honourable Michael Gravelle – Minister Northern Development, Mines and Forestry – Speech at Ontario Mining Association Annual Meeting (Ring of Fire and Aboriginal Mining References), North Bay, Ontario – June 15, 2010

February 11, 2011June 17, 2010

For an extensive list of articles on this mineral discovery, please go to: Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

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Thank you, Steve [Steve Wood, Vale / OMA Director] and good day, everyone.

I am very pleased to address members and guests of the Ontario Mining Association this afternoon. It’s a pleasure to be back in North Bay, and to enjoy your hospitality.

First let me give my heartiest congratulations to Chris Hodgson and his staff on OMA’s milestone 90th anniversary.

I’m very proud of the longstanding positive working relationship between the Ontario Mining Association and my ministry.

We share a passionate for working collaboratively to build on the strengths of mining for the good of all Ontarians.

That collaboration is also reflected in the OMA’s own positive relationships with First Nations and Métis communities, the supplies and services sector, and mining-sector stakeholders overall.

And my Ministry appreciates your valuable input to our government’s initiatives and programs.

The last decade has been record breaking for Ontario, with one of the best mining cycles in our history. By the same token, the industry has also had a couple of very tough years.

But there are signs of recovery, progress and opportunity:

Building The Growth Plan For Northern Ontario – by Honourable Michael Gravelle, Ontario Minister of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry

December 8, 2010June 9, 2010

Important steps are being taken as we work to finalize the Growth Plan for Northern Ontario.

Since the proposed plan was released last October, it has generated close to 300 submissions from individuals, municipalities, educational institutions, industry and community organizations across Northern Ontario. More than 1,400 northerners participated in 10 public information sessions, and more than 40 videoconferences, meetings and workshops. Many groups organized special meetings to bring together communities and individuals from across sectors to discuss their input.

As part of our government’s efforts to consult with Aboriginal peoples, 10 regional workshops were held and more than 260 people from First Nations, Métis and Aboriginal organizations reviewed the proposed plan and provided input. We also met with more than 130 northern youth including high school, college and university students, and young professionals building their careers in the North.

The HR Challenge for Mining Sector in Aboriginal Territories – by Juan Carlos Reyes

June 8, 2010

Given that Aboriginal communities have the fastest growing youth demographic in Canada and that most new exploration and mining developments are near Aboriginal communities, it makes sense for the shortage of workers in the mining industry to be offset by the recruitment of these youth. But the reality seems to be quite different. Far too few Aboriginal youth are entering the mining industry. Unless we do something about it, this trend will continue and they will continue to be under-represented in the industry.

Most of us are familiar with the concept of a ghost town — a community that has been virtually abandoned by human inhabitants — usually because of the failure of economic activities that supported the town. Due to the cyclical nature of the minerals industry and the fact that mining exploits non-renewable resources, mines are notorious for leaving ghost towns in their wake. Why is this relevant to this article? It is because most First Nations communities would be ghost towns without government assistance provided to support the membership.

Most remote First Nations have an extraordinarily high unemployment rate — some even as high as 90 per cent. Although there are many candidates for potential work, there is no industry to provide the much-needed employment. Community members are trapped in these virtual ghost towns with no potential or hope for change. But even if an “employment fairy” was to appear in such a community and magically create opportunity for everyone, this would not solve the problem. There are generations of potential employees who have not acquired the basic skills that are expected of today’s workers. For most Aboriginal people, the integration curve into the mainstream employment world is therefore very steep.