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Northern Ontario Politics

Firm deal from Ont. needed [for Ring of Fire]: Cliffs VP – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – March 18, 2013)

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

The point man for Cliffs Natural Resources’ holdings in the Ring of Fire understands a change of government can slow negotiations.

But Bill Boor is looking to sign a “definitive document” with the province soon so his company can begin developing its Black Thor deposit.

The senior vice-president of global ferroalloys for the Cleveland-based company says when Cliffs will begin mining ore from the Ring of Fire is really out of his control. The company had hoped to start production by 2015 and has moved that date back a year at least to 2016.

Boor said Cliffs president and chief executive officer Joseph Car rabba told investors in February it would be “speculative” to say when the company would begin mining “because the uncertainties we need to get through are not completely in our control right now. We need help.”

One of the first things Cliffs is waiting on is for a tribunal of the Mining and Lands Commissioner to approve its application so the Ministry of Natural Resources can grant the company an easement to build an all-seasons’ road over claims staked by Canada Chrome, a KWG Resources Inc. Subsidiary.

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Feud over Ring [of Fire transportation] link drags on – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – March 18, 2013)

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

Two companies with high stakes in the rich Ring of Fire are awaiting a decision from a two-person tribunal that’s likely months away — and which could set a precedent when it is delivered.

The tribunal from the Mining and Lands Commissioner sat for seven days of hearings last month, listening to arguments from three lawyers from each of Cliffs Natural Resources and Canada Chrome Corporation, a subsidiary of KWG Resources Inc.

The application from Cliffs seeks an order for the Ministry of Natural Resources to grant an easement to Clevelandbased Cliffs, under the Public Lands Act, to lands claimed by CCC.

The Canadian company won’t grant consent to Cliffs to build an all-seasons road on lands it claimed after the massive chromite deposits of the Ring of Fire were discovered in 2007.

Part-time business partners, KWG has a 30% interest in the Big Daddy chromite deposit in which Cliffs has a 70% interest. But other than sharing ownership of that resource, the companies don’t see eye to eye on much else. “It’s really a competition between two companies for a link to a chromite deposit, that’s what it is,” said Daniel Pascoe, registrar/mediator with the Office of the Mining and Lands Commissioner.

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Too many roadblocks for northern roads? – by Lou Smyrlis (Canadian Transportation and Logistics Blog – March 13, 2013)

http://blog.ctl.ca/

With more than 15 years of experience reporting on transportation issues, Lou Smyrlis is one of the more recognizable personalities in the industry. An award-winning writer well known for his insightful writing and meticulous market analysis, he is a leading authority on industry trends and statistics.

Attending the Transport Institute’s Northern Exposure 2 conference in Winnipeg recently proved an illuminating foray into the challenges of serving Canada’s northern communities – admittedly the kind of stuff those of us who live and work in more forgiving climates, terrains and transportation networks don’t think much about, but should.

Why should we? Because our once isolated northern communities will become increasingly more economically important and demanding of better freight transport services.

Mining and energy exploration and development combined with population growth are the new realities for the country’s traditionally isolated northern communities. For example, there is $130 billion worth of mining investments projected over the next five years for Canada, most of it in the north.

At the same time, the population of remote northern communities is growing at 4-5% while the rest of Canada is growing at about 2%. And these growing communities will be in need of goods just like the rest of us.

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Stainless steel production good fit for north: MPP – CBC News Thunder Bay (March 14, 2013)

http://www.cbc.ca/thunderbay/

Gilles Bisson says Ring of Fire deposit has all the makings to get into stainless steel production

The MPP for Timmins-James Bay continues to push for stainless steel production from future development in the Ring of Fire mineral region. Gilles Bisson said he’s been in talks with another northern MPP and with industry. All agree stainless steel is an obvious fit for the region,” he said.

“We have all of the makings in the Ring of Fire in order for us to get into stainless steel,” he said. “Stainless steel is made up what? Chromite. It’s made up of iron ore, it’s made up of nickel, all of which is in the Ring of Fire.”

Bisson also said the north could have a production advantage because those raw materials would be close to a potential processing plant.

He noted Canada is the only G8 country in the world that doesn’t make stainless steel and that Ontario’s energy policy should be overhauled to make stainless steel production more attractive to the private sector.

“There’s not hardly a jurisdiction in the world that has that advantage of … [having] everything nearby,” Bisson said. “We can bring it to one spot; we can melt it down once [and] save half the energy costs.”

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Northern cities fight for forestry – by Benjamin Aubé (Timmins Daily Press – March 14, 2013)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – With changes to Ontario’s forest regulations looming on the horizon, municipalities across the North are intensifying efforts to get the government to hear them out.

Earlier this week, the City of Timmins supported a resolution by the City of Kenora for what an associated report called “real sustainable forest management.”

The Kenora resolution, based on a backgrounder report written by the Ontario Forest Industries Association (OFIA) and the Northwestern Ontario Municipalities Association (NOMA), denounces some of the measures of the provincial government’s Endangered Species Act (ESA).

It states that less than half of 1% of Ontario’s forests are harvested each year, and that strict renewal plans must be in place before harvest.

It goes on to read, “Ontario’s forest sector already provides for the needs of species at risk through the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (CFSA), and that the forest sector is required to continuously update their management practices to be consistent with provincial recovery strategies developed under the Endangered Species Act.”

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Lobbyist hijacking of Queen’s Park must end – by Wayne Snider (Timmins Daily Press – March 6, 2013)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – Premier Kathleen Wynne is promising to give the North a new voice in the Ontario legislature, having formed a special Liberal committee to discuss regional issues. She even held a provincial cabinet meeting in Sault Ste. Marie last week to assure Northerners that the government’s new focus on the region is legit.

There are promises to bring Northern leaders and industry to the table, following a history of Queen’s Park ignoring the socio-economic well being of the North.

These promises are all fine and dandy. But if Wynne really wants to make a difference in the North, if she is really sincere about listening to our concerns, she must end one practice that has been going on for decades — even before the Liberals took over the reins of power. Stop letting special interest groups hijack the provincial government.

There are two obvious examples of where environmental lobbyists were allowed to mould legislation that negatively impacted the North: The cancellation of the spring bear hunt and the tabling of the Endangered Species Act. Both hurt the Northern economy, yet allow the government to showcase its warm and fuzzy side to voters in Southern Ontario who have no idea of the true impact these pieces of sh— … er, legislation, have on our region.

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Hudak attacks unions and [Ring of Fire] environmentalists – by Richard J. Brennan (Toronto Star – March 6, 2013)

The Toronto Star has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on federal and Ontario politics as well as shaping public opinion.

Tory Leader Tim Hudak is blaming unions and radical environmentalists for Ontario’s economic woes.

Unions and radical environmentalists are threatening Ontario’s economic progress, Tory Leader Tim Hudak says.

Hudak on Tuesday blamed unions — particularly public sector unions — for stalling Ontario’s economic recovery, and environmentalists for stalling development of the Ring of Fire, a vast northwestern Ontario mineral deposit.

“What the oilsands are to Alberta, what potash is to Saskatchewan, the Ring of Fire could be for the province of Ontario … it’s too bad that the Liberals seem to be captured by radical environmental groups,” Hudak told reporters at Queen’s Park.

Hudak said the Liberal government and the New Democrats are too busy listening to the unions and not the rest of Ontarians.

“The problem that we have is that we have public sector union bosses who are running the government right now. And they seem to have access to the front door to Kathleen Wynne as premier,” he said.

“I think it’s just unfortunate that the NDP and Liberals seem to be so singularly focused on appeasing the public sector union bosses, it’s causing a province to go bankrupt and it is costing us jobs. Nobody is going to invest in a province that has huge debts.”

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Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne’s PDAC Speech (March 4, 2013)


(L to R) Honourable Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario; Michael Gravelle, Minister of Northern Development and Mines (Photo by Stan Sudol – republicofmining.com

 

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

Good Afternoon. Thanks Michael for that kind introduction. I’d like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the New Credit.

I want to welcome to Toronto all of our friends from Northern Ontario and beyond. I’m excited to be here and to get a chance to talk to you about your work, and how it will inform the work that I’m going to do, along with our new government.

As I was on my way here today, I was thinking about how inspirational you are to a politician like me. As prospectors, a key part of your efforts come down to the belief – the deep seeded knowledge – that if you keep working and working, if you stay focused on your goal, eventually there will be a big pay-off.

In mining, just like in government, hope springs eternal! And trust me, I need that kind of motivation right now! But really, the work that you do holds many lessons for what I am working toward on behalf of this province. You are the embodiment of hard work, dedication and resolve.

It is not an industry for the weak of heart. But your association also bridges the expanse between Ontario’s history and its future.

Resource development – that unstoppable quest for value in our natural landscape – that is a proud part of who we are.
As a province, but also as a nation. This is the work on which Ontario has been built.

Mining is the reason that Toronto is the financial services centre of Canada.

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NEWS RELEASE: Ring of Fire could be stainless steel powerhouse: Bisson

QUEEN’S PARK – Timmins-James Bay MPP Gilles Bisson made the following statement in the provincial legislature today about the Ring of Fire mining development.

“We’ve listened to this government now in three budgets—probably three or four—and at least two throne speeches talk about the wonderful opportunity that presents itself in the Ring of Fire in northern Ontario. We have some of the best mineralogical ability in that part of the province when it comes to chromite, when it comes to nickel, when it comes to other metals.

“We’re looking at this government and saying, ‘Where have you been for the last three or four years?’ There is an opportunity here to position Ontario as a stainless steel producer. You need chromite, you need nickel and you need iron ore, all things that belong here in Ontario, and if all we’re trying to do is to create a mine up in the Ring of Fire, I think we’re selling Ontario short. We should be trying to position this as a stainless steel play for the province of Ontario.

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Changes to [Endangered Species Act] ESA, a step in right direction: OFIA – (Timmins Daily Press – February 25, 2013)

The Daily Press is the city of Timmins broadsheet newspaper.

TIMMINS – Like many Northerners, John Kapel doesn’t like the idea of urban southern Ontarians having such a strong influence on Northern resources.

“We should be the ones dictating what we want to do with our North up here, not people in southern Ontario who sit in a cubicle and don’t even have a clue what a freakin’ poplar or birch tree is,” said Kapel, owner of Little John Enterprises sawmill in Timmins.

The province’s much-maligned Caribou Conservation Plan has been cited by both local industry and municipal leaders as just another product of the southern Ontario’s influence on Queen’s Park.

“We’re going to lose 25% of our forest” for industrial use within the Abitibi River region because of this plan, Kapel said. “It’s just sad that we as Northern Ontarian people have to put up with this B.S. from southern Ontario. It’s pathetic.”

The Ontario Forest Industries Association has had to tiptoe in explaining why it was encouraging Northerners to support recent changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) despite its encompassing of the controversial caribou plan.

The Ministry of Natural Resources had outlined new measures under the ESA in an Environmental Registry posting. The period for inviting public input ended Monday.

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Dalton McGuinty: Canada’s greenest premier ever – by Stewart Elgie (Toronto Star – February 25, 2013)

The Toronto Star has the largest circulation in Canada. The paper has an enormous impact on federal and Ontario politics as well as shaping public opinion.

Former Ontario premier moved to control urban sprawl and phased out coal-powered generation.

Stewart Elgie is professor of law and economics at the University of Ottawa (he discloses that the Ontario government has been one of many funders of the research institute he directs).

A handful of Canadian political leaders have left impressive environmental legacies. Mike Harcourt ended B.C.’s “war in the woods,” creating a world class parks network and tough new forestry rules. David Peterson pioneered the blue box recycling program, and made great strides in fighting acid rain and water pollution across Ontario (together with environment minister Jim Bradley).

Brian Mulroney, voted Canada’s greenest prime minister, passed three major environmental laws and played key roles in pushing global treaties on species loss, ozone depletion and climate change. But Dalton McGuinty is the greenest of them all, as a review of his environmental record reveals.

Let’s start with controlling urban sprawl — a huge problem in southern Ontario. McGuinty’s government passed the Places To Grow Act, requiring cities and towns to grow within their existing footprints (up, not out).

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Ontario has a dead government walking – by Rex Murphy (National Post – February 23, 2013)

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

Wynne cannot win. The Ontario Premier’s coming electoral loss-to-be was written long before she became Liberal leader earlier this month. The now infamous story of the cancellation of two Ontario gas plants in Oakville and Mississauga — the latter during the last election — continues oh-so-justly to hound the Ontario Liberals. It has utterly blasted Liberal credibility in Ontario.

Yesterday, for the second time, Ontario Power Authority officials were fidgeting on camera about documents that were overlooked or skipped in previous searches on the file. They were at awkward and uncomfortable pains to assert that in this unfolding mess nothing had been held back deliberately. It was all blamed on a bad “search” heading. Something to do with computers.

Their assertion was echoed with even greater gaucherie in the Ontario legislature by Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli. He was heard to boast: “We took the initiative when we found out about these documents to release them of our own volition.”

Wow. Their own volition, eh? The Minister was actually bragging about doing what the law and honour require him to do. Truly we are in a golden age of democracy and public accountability.

Well, whether it was from fear that the documents would find the light anyway, or some last minute spasms of piety on the part of the now tattered Liberal government, release a new batch of documents they did.

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Fedeli ‘disappointed’ [Ontario Speech From the Throne] – by Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles (February 20, 2013)

http://www.nugget.ca/

Northern Ontario was only given passing reference in the 17 pages of Tuesday’s Throne Speech, says Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli.

“I’m very disappointed. There can’t be anyone in Northern Ontario that is happy with a half sentence in 17 pages,” he said Tuesday afternoon following the speech.

“I would have liked to hear specifics about the ONTC. Maybe that they’ve realized they’ve made mistakes, will hit the pause button and do a strategic review of all assets.” Fedeli said he also wanted to hear the government promise to keep rail freight in public hands.

“That would have changed the scope of Northern Ontario,” he said. “It’s very frustrating.” Transportation needs in the North and improving transportation to the Ring of Fire in Northwestern Ontario were among a list of priorities in Tuesday’s Throne Speech.

However, what that means for the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission remains unknown. Fedeli said the Throne Speech was a real opportunity to acknowledge the government is on the wrong track. Instead, he said it sounded very familiar – like former Premier Dalton McGuinty.

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Minister arrives with cheque book open – by Kris Ketonen (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal – February 20, 2013)

Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario.

The Thunder Bay airport is expanding its industrial park with the help of a grant from the federal government. The $1.5 million given to the airport on Tuesday was one of several business grants announced by FedNor Minister Tony Clement in Thunder Bay on Tuesday.

In all, Clement announced that more than $4 million would go to various Thunder Bay companies and agencies. “This is a big announcement for Thunder Bay,” Clement said in an interview.

“It shows, here in Thunder Bay, the depth of entrepreneurial innovation that’s going on. “This shows that these economic building blocks are working in Thunder Bay,” he said at the airport.

The money granted to the airport will allow the creation of several new industrial lots along Derek Burney Drive, along with the extension of the road, said airport CEO Scott McFadden.

“We actually broke ground already in anticipation of getting an early start for the next construction season this summer,” McFadden said. “It’s all very timely. We have a need for more airside accessible lots, and this should create at least three.”

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Feds coy on plan for Ring – by Carol Mulligan (Sudbury Star – February 20, 2013)

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper.

It would be putting “the cart before the horse” to draw con-c lusions about how much money the federal government would spend to develop infrastructure for the Ring of Fire, or its dialogue with aboriginal people about the development, says Tony Clement.

The first order of business for the Treasury Board president, appointed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper last week to spearhead federal involvement in the massive project, is to listen, Clement told The Sudbury Star on Tuesday.

Clement, who is also the minister responsible for FedNor, spoke at lunch to the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce, telling the business crowd the Ring of Fire “is no ordinary mine development.”

The chromite deposits, located in the James Bay Lowlands, have the potential to create 5,000 direct and indirect jobs, and be a source of revenue for Northern Ontario and beyond for decades, said Clement.

Cliffs Natural Resources, one of the companies seeking to open a mine in the Ring of Fire, wants to build a chromite smelter in Capreol, creating up to 500 jobs in the Sudbury area. Next to the Alberta tar sands, the Ring of Fire chromite deposits represent the largest natural resource project in Canada. 

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