Canadian Regional Media and Web Publications – Page 213

Ontario re-elects Liberals [Ring of Fire issues] – by Greg Klein (Resource Clips – June 13, 2014)

June 13, 2014

Mining was an issue but can a $1-billion promise inspire action on the Ring of Fire?

Repeated accusations of corruption didn’t stop Ontario voters from re-electing the provincial Liberals of Kathleen Wynne on June 12, this time with a majority government. Among the victors’ first priorities is a budget that was rejected by both the Progressive Conservative and New Democratic parties. Therein lies some possible good news for mining and exploration. The Liberals promised $1 billion to help open up the resource-rich challenge known as the Ring of Fire.

The bad news? As the Liberals are now firmly entrenched, so are the controversial mineral exploration regulations enacted last spring.

The Ring of Fire pledge was factored into the Liberals’ proposed May budget that brought down the minority government. But the money resurfaced as a campaign promise. Previously the government had talked about a billion-dollar commitment on the condition that the federal government put up an equal amount. Now, with that string unattached, the money would go into the province’s northern development corporation, an entity that hasn’t even been created yet.

How far a billion could go, or even twice that if the feds pony up, remains a nagging question for a region 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay that lacks a year-round transportation corridor, let alone other amenities.

Aroland First Nation rejects proposed open pit mine near Geraldton, Ontario – by Rick Garrick (Wawatay News – June 12, 2014)

June 12, 2014

http://wawataynews.ca/

Aroland has rejected the open pit mine proposed by Premier Gold Mines Limited near Geraldton over environmental concerns, including destruction of a 16-acre lake.

“My First Nation is generally supportive of sustainable mining development,” said Aroland Chief Sonny Gagnon. “Premier Gold wants to destroy Begooch Zaagaigan, a lake that supports our Aboriginal fishery. They just put a number on this lake – A-322 – and tell us they’re going to fill it in with mine waste. This is one of the worst project proposals I’ve ever seen. They’re going to seriously impact our lands and resources. Such a large and destructive project should receive the maximum examination possible – but instead, very little is being done under provincial or federal environment assessment laws. And virtually nothing has been done to consult with and accommodate the many serious concerns of Aroland First Nation.”

Aroland called on the federal government to hold a Panel Study Environmental Assessment on the project and the provincial government to hold a full Individual Environmental Assessment.

“It is shocking to me how much damage Premier Gold intends to cause and what it seems to want to get away with by avoiding scrutiny from environmental laws and Aboriginal consultation,” Gagnon said. “It is unclear whether Ontario will require more. We urge the Ontario government to use its laws to protect the environment, the water and our rights.”

Vale, stewardship partnership supporting stream rehab – by Lindsay Kelly (Northern Ontario Business – June 11, 2014)

June 12, 2014

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.

It’s been 15 years since a small group of volunteers decided to take on the rehabilitation of Sudbury’s Junction Creek. What started as a grassroots effort has resulted in a unique partnership with one of the world’s biggest mining companies.

Vale has been one of the Junction Creek Stewardship Committee’s most reliable and consistent industry partners since its inception in 1999, said Sarah Woods, the committee’s research manager and coordinator. The company has contributed both with financing and labour to rehabilitation efforts.

“We’ve had a (Vale) member on our board for a very long time, so they’ve been helpful not only with the financial and logistical components, but also as a source of information and expertise for the committee, which has been incredibly valuable,” Woods said.

Vale conducts the analysis of monthly water samples taken by the committee, while employees take part in annual creek cleanups.

Though much of what the committee does is hard to measure, fish studies conducted with the Co-operative Freshwater Ecology Unit in 2004 and 2008 show improved fish communities, which results from better water quality, Woods said.

Government may delay decision on Enbridge Northern Gateway: Rickford – by Jenny Uechi (Vancouver Observer – June 11, 2014)

June 12, 2014

http://www.vancouverobserver.com/

The federal government may delay a decision on the controversial Enbridge Northern Gateway, Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford said at an energy conference in New York. He said the Joint Review Panel’s report from December, which recommended approval with over 200 conditions, is still being considered.

“Obviously, this is an extensive report with 209 conditions, and the government obviously has the clear option of taking that on its face, or other options that would or could include delays,” Rickford said to reporters at the event, according to the Financial Post.

He added that the government was making “careful considerations” now and would respond to the report in the “not-too-distant future.” The government has until June 17 to announce a decision on the project.

The 1,177-kilometre pipeline would bring oil sands bitumen from Alberta to Kitimat, BC, for shipment to Asian and U.S. markets. It has been fiercely opposed by Northern BC residents and a coalition of over 130 First Nations.

“The fact that the Harper government is even considering a delay speaks volumes to how unpopular this project is,” said ForestEthics campaign director Ben West.

Hard rock mining: The battles for hearts and minds – Editorial (Thompson Citizen – June 11, 2014)

June 11, 2014

The Thompson Citizen, which was established in June 1960, covers the City of Thompson and Nickel Belt Region of Northern Manitoba. The city has a population of about 13,500 residents while the regional population is more than 40,000. editor@thompsoncitizen.net

Hard rock miners extracting nickel, gold, copper, zinc, diamonds and other minerals in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Northern Ontario or Northern Manitoba, as well as many other places in Canada and around the world, along with those working in milling, smelting and refining, know something about stoicism and steadfastness amidst the battles for hearts and minds.

Jeff Mcinnes puts it his way in his “Thompson Talk” column today in the space adjacent to this at left: “Thompson people are a certain sort of folk. We come from all walks of life here. Some were born here and always knew what this town was to them: a place to live, to work and to raise a family. You worked at the mine, day-in and day-out, trying to make a living to support your family. Early, dark mornings drinking coffee while your truck warmed up under a blanket of snow, trying to wake up for a dozen-hour workday that seemed insurmountable, a mountain of mining to be climbed every day.”

Two historic hard rock mining events back in the news – one connected to Sudbury, the other to Yellowknife – have their own connections to and resonance right here in Thompson.

CAMESE studies impact of mining supply sector – by Jonathan Migneault (Northern Ontario Business – June 11, 2014)

June 11, 2014

The Canadian Association of Mining Equipment and Services for Export (CAMESE) has undertaken a study, funded by Ontario’s Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, to determine the province’s mining supply and service sector’s contributions to Canada’s gross domestic product.

“There have been various surveys done, but nothing with this depth of methodology,” said Jon Baird, CAMESE’s managing director.

The association has partnered with PricewaterhouseCoopers to analyze questionnaires 900 supply and service companies in the province have been asked to complete.

To measure the companies’ contribution to national GDP, the questionnaire is meant to determine the companies’ operating and capital expenses. Other surveys have measured revenues and employment numbers, but have never explored expenses and GDP contributions for the sector, he said.

Baird said the economic contributions of the mining supply and service sector have been hidden from view because many of the companies involved, such as the major banks, are involved with industries other than mining.

Ring of Fire bigger than an election issue: Thomas – by Richard Gilbert (Daily Commercial News – June 11, 2014)

June 11, 2014

http://dcnonl.com/

A construction leader in northern Ontario says the Ring of Fire is too important to be reduced to a point on a political party’s platform.

“The Ring of Fire is not an election issue, because it is a far bigger endeavour than is warranted by an election platform,” said Rick Thomas, manager of the Sault Ste Marie Construction Association. “Whatever government is in power will generate a lot of money from this project.”

Liberal leader Kathleen Wynne launched her re-election platform on May 25 in Thunder Bay, which includes investing $1 billion for the construction of a road to the Ring of Fire region in northern Ontario.

During an election debate in Thunder Bay on May 25, Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said her party would also contribute $1 billion for Ring of Fire infrastructure development.

Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak did not participate in the debate, but his party’s platform includes the repeal of the Far North Act, which involves the development of the Ring of Fire.

Editorial: The NDP – for now – by Brian MacLeod (Sudbury Star – June 11, 2014)

June 11, 2014

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

“The NDP’s intention to force companies to process more minerals in Ontario is dubious, but
it hasn’t really been tried. The party wants to establish a stainless steel industry in the
province, something advocated by mining analyst Stan Sudol. It would be interesting to watch
them try, rather than allowing so much unprocessed material from the Ring of Fire to leave
the country.” Sudbury Star Editor – Brian MacLeod

Northern Ontario has factored large in both the Liberal and NDP campaigns.

Unfortunately, the Progressive Conservatives have ignored the region. Party Leader Tim Hudak never once ventured north, he skipped the leadership debate in Thunder Bay, and has taken no time to explain his party’s policies to northerners. There is a sense that the party’s policy of eliminating 100,000 civil servants jobs will hit some northern ridings hard – especially Sudbury and Nickel Belt’s health and education sectors. And Hudak has not properly explained what the party would do with the $100 million Northern Ontario Heritage Fund.

The Tories say they would finish four-laning Highway 69 – sometime. That doesn’t cut it.

Hudak’s focus on the deficit is commendable, but the speed at which he wants to eliminate it – one year faster than the other two major parties – is bound to have a significant impact on the North. A Hudak government would suppress Northern priorities to debt reduction.

Our home and golden land [Ring of Fire] – by Andrew Reeves (This Magazine – June 9, 2014)

July 23, 2014June 9, 2014

http://this.org/

Inside the First Nations’ fight for a piece of north Ontario’s $60 billion mega mines

Deep in Ontario’s north sits the Ring of Fire, an as-yet undeveloped cluster of mineral claims worth an estimated $60 billion—but only if you’re being conservative. Some industry experts, including James Franklin, former chief geologist with the Geological Survey of Canada, believe an additional $140–$190 billion in economic value exists there from gold deposits alone. For a region with little economy to speak of, the potential for multi-generational mineral riches has been deemed a godsend. Many in the province have called it Ontario’s oilsands, and meant it as a compliment.

Others have dubbed it the new Klondike, a reference to its hoped-for ability to shape the region. In truth, the Ring of Fire has the potential to be the single largest mineral deposit in Canadian history, and could far outstrip the economic and social impact of both iconic Canadian developments.

Yet, the region is also home to many other things besides precious metal buried miles underground. Tucked into the northern boreal forest, the Ring of Fire is primarily First Nations land, full of bogs and fens, roaming caribou herds, stunted tamarack and black spruce trees, all of it growing among thousands of shallow rivers and lakes dotting the landscape. This is the North, and the North is not a quiet place. As Ontario’s headlong rush to develop the Ring of Fire begins now in earnest, it’s about to get louder—just not in the way many might assume. This time, the region’s First Nations leaders don’t want to halt development: They want to make sure they get their share.

Bob Rae calls treaties the “trillion dollar exchange” that created two worlds we must now bridge – by Linda Solomon Wood (Vancouver Observer – June 1, 2014)

June 9, 2014

http://www.vancouverobserver.com/

“It’s ridiculous to think people would say: I have all this land, millions and millions and millions of acres of land, I’m giving it to you for a piece of land that is 5 miles by 5 miles and a few dollars a year. To put it in terms of a real estate transaction, it’s preposterous, it doesn’t make any sense.”

In Fort McMurray today, Bob Rae called treaties a “trillion dollar exchange” that took place in one of the world’s biggest real estate negotiations between the crown and First Nations as Canada was born.

The former head of the Liberal Party stood at the podium of the “As Long as the Rivers Flow: Coming Back to the Treaty Relationship in our Time” conference and gave a powerful speech on the need for governments to develop a new way of negotiating.

Rae spoke of “two separate narratives” that have evolved between “two separate worlds” and of the need to bridge these worlds.

“Whatever arrangements were worked out a hundred years ago clearly don’t work out today,” the former Ontario premier with piercing blue eyes told the group. “We aren’t getting good governance for First Nations people, getting support, getting revenues…A lot of people say the reserves don’t function. Whose fault is that? Who built that system? It was built as a way of setting First Nations aside. Let’s have the courage to move beyond how history has defined some of these relationships and say this just isn’t working.”

Liberals developing Ring of Fire at the pace of ‘a sleepy turtle’ – by Darren MacDonald (Sudbury Northern Life – June 05, 2014)

June 6, 2014

http://www.northernlife.ca/

The Liberals are developing the Ring of Fire at the pace of “a sleepy turtle,” the audience at the all-candidates debate for Nickel Belt were told Thursday night.

While the barb was from NDP incumbent France Gélinas, it was a metaphor embraced by Liberal candidate James Tregonning, who argued better a slow pace than to make major mistakes.

Thursday’s debate was sponsored by the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce and held at Confederation Secondary School in Val Caron. It featured Marck Blay of Progressive Conservatives, Heather Dahlstrom of the Green Party, as well as Gélinas and Tregonning.

With the election a week away, it was one of the last opportunities for candidates to make their pitch for support. But it was also the last in a debate-heavy week, and many familiar themes were discussed. As has been the case in debates in Sudbury and Nickel Belt, the Ring of Fire was discussed early and often.

Gélinas said many people, even in Northern Ontario, don’t understand the magnitude of the chromite and other mineral discoveries in the remote northwestern Ontario site.

Ontario could win big with new US emissions standards – by Ryan Lijdsman (Troy Media – June 5, 2014)

June 5, 2014

http://www.troymedia.com/

Move to renewables would give a boost to province’s Ring of Fire and rare-earth industry

EDMONTON, AB, Jun 3, 2014/ Troy Media/ – During the height of the “great recession” there were very few politicians or business leaders who were focused on anything but short-term economic recovery. By 2010, both the Western Climate Initiative’s cap-and-trade program and the European Emissions Trading system (ETS) were mired in economic and structural problems; most people believed that greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction and cap-and-trade programs were all but dead.

Today cap-and-trade is being resurrected. Political decisions in the EU have stabilized the ETS, Quebec and California have established a multi-jurisdictional carbon trading program that not only demonstrated cap-and-trade can work across borders but it provided a model for new carbon reduction rules announced this week from the Obama Administration.

Cap-and-trade provides a market-based approach to controlling pollution through economic incentives. A central body sets a limit on pollutants which are then sold to firms in the form of emission credits. These limits are reduced over time and firms must hold permits for what they emit. If companies need more permits, they must buy them from others who have reduced their emissions, thus creating a market value for the credits and an economic incentive to reduce carbon emissions.

Cap-and-trade will put America on a course to meet its international climate goal, and put it in a better position to influence other big polluter nations, including Canada.

What’s missing in election commitments to stoke Ontario’s Ring of Fire? – by Ramsey Hart (MiningWatch Canada – June 5, 2014)

June 5, 2014

http://www.miningwatch.ca/

Like moths to a flame, Ontario’s political leaders have been circling the potential mining developments known as the Ring of Fire during the 2014 election campaign. Advancing development in the area received ink in the Liberal, NDP, and PC platforms and was a focal point of the northern leaders debate.

The Liberal platform continues their budget promise of $1-billion for infrastructure but removes the condition of federal support. Under the Liberals’ watch a “Framework Agreement” has been signed between Ontario and the Matawa First Nations beginning a process for dialogue on environmental monitoring, infrastructure, economic development and revenue sharing.

The NDP platform also commits to investing in the region. Though no amount was specified in the platform, at yesterday’s leaders debate Andrea Horwath committed to $1-billion and “more if necessary.” The NDP platform also references working with First Nations regarding training and revenue sharing.

The PC platform makes no commitment to investing but promises to eliminate the Far North Act, which they see as an impediment to the area being developed. There are no other specific commitments from the PCs and no reference to working with First Nations.

Glencore to spend up to $400M on emissions upgrades – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – June 5, 2014)

June 6, 2014June 5, 2014

http://www.northernlife.ca/

Company hosted public forum Monday to share plans

Glencore expects to spend up to $400 million to make modifications to its Falconbridge smelter so it can meet new provincial standards for its nickel emissions.

The company hosted a public forum Tuesday to bring the community up to speed on its plans to meet the new, and more stringent, air quality standards.

The province’s new air quality standards, under Ontario Regulation 419/05, will take effect on July 1, 2016.

The new standard will switch from a daily averaging period — where contaminants cannot exceed 2 ug/m3 (micrograms per cubic metre of air) — to a yearly averaging period with a contamination limit of 0.04 ug/m3. One microgram represents one millionth of a gram.

Cathy Grant, an air standards and risk management specialist with the Ministry of the Environment, said she and her colleagues determined the new standard would be more representative of industrial emissions with a yearly average. Companies are still limited to a daily upper-risk threshold of 2 ug/m3.

Plan wouldn’t cost taxpayers a dime: KWG – by Jonathan Migneault (Sudbury Northern Life – June 04, 2014)

June 5, 2014

http://www.northernlife.ca/

Ontario Northland key to opening Ring of Fire

A plan by KWG Resources to extend rail infrastructure to the Ring of Fire would not cost taxpayers a cent, said the company’s vice-president of exploration and development, Moe Lavigne.

“That’s very doable,” Lavigne said. “There are a lot of people who love to invest in infrastructure. There’s no reason to reach into the taxpayers’ pockets for that.”

The company has taken to social media to reach out to the electorate with its proposed plan to hand Ontario Northland the reins for development in the Ring of Fire chromite deposit.

“Ontario Northland was created to develop northeastern Ontario, which it did,” Lavigne said. “This is really an extension of the reason why it was put into existence in the first place.”

Under KWG’s proposed plan Ontario Northland would become the development corporation for the Ring of Fire and issue bonds to raise capital for a railroad to the remote region of northwestern Ontario.