Ontario Mining – Page 310 – Republic of Mining

Ring of Fire development could move quickly: Kaszycki – by Chris Kornaki (Special to Wawatay News – March 3, 2011)

March 26, 2011

Wawatay News is Northern Ontario’s First Nation Voice with offices in Sioux Lookout, Timmins and Thunder Bay. This article was posted on their website on March 3, 2011. James Thom is the Editor – jamest@wawatay.on.ca

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

Christine Kaszycki is determined to work with First Nations to make sure no one is left out in the cold around the Ring of Fire. Kaszycki, assistant deputy minister for the Ring of Fire Secretariat with the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry (MNDMF), promised to balance the needs of industry and First Nations if a mine is in production by 2015.

Her job includes “working with the First Nation communities to ensure they have got the capacity they need to meaningfully participate and to ensure they have the right kinds of supports in place to actually engage as this project moves forward,” Kaszycki said.

She said MNDMF is listening to the communities about what they want and need from development to put the right kinds of programs and frameworks in place to allow it to happen. The province recognized the Ring of Fire – located in the traditional lands of Webequie and Marten Falls – as one of the most significant recent discoveries of minerals in the world.

Housing bonanza hits a snag in booming Kirkland Lake – by Nick Stewart

March 25, 2011

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. This article is from the March, 2011 issue.

Low assessments, high development costs pose major challenges

The explosive need for new homes in Kirkland Lake is being thwarted by low assessment values and expensive infrastructure improvements. After years of wishing for opportunities to grow its dwindling population, the City of Kirkland Lake is struggling to accommodate the thousands of people soon to be pounding on its doors.

With low assessment values and limited finances, the municipality largely lacks the resources it needs to build out the infrastructure that has suddenly become necessary to house a strong influx of mining workers. Estimates provided by the city indicate that 2,000 full-time production workers will be in place by 2013, with an additional 1,500 needed through development and construction of new projects.

“It’s really ironic, because 10 years ago, we were sitting at a table with the senior levels of government and saying, ‘We’re dying, we need your help,’ and we were told there were no programs in place to help us,” said Wilfred Hass, the city’s economic development officer.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Chief’s gather in Timmins to discuss resources – by Kate McLaren (The Daily Press, March 24, 2011)

March 24, 2011

Kate McLaren is a reporter for The Daily Press, the city of Timmins newspaper. Contact the writer at news@thedailypress.ca.

“The government has a responsibility to protect First Nations people, and it’s their
duty to consult. That duty should not be given to the industries themselves, unless
it’s agreed upon through talks between First Nations people and government officials.”
(Raymond Ferris – Ring of Fire co-ordinator for Matawa First Nation)

As First Nation chiefs from 49 Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) communities gather this week for the 2011 Winter Chiefs Assembly, the theme of the conference — Our Land, Our Resources — reflects current frustrations in First Nations communities.

“The discussions are centred around resource development, as it applies to both the written and spirited intent of Treaty 9,” said NAN Grand Chief Stan Beardy. “A hundred years ago, we signed a treaty that gave us peaceful and shared land, and said we would share in any wealth generated from that land.”

The conference, which began on Tuesday and concludes Thursday, features various presentations. Beardy said one of the highlights was the discussion around proposed mining developments in the Far North.

“The focus is around the implementation of these various treaty rights. We’d like the government to be more respectful of those rights.”

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) Ring of Fire Investigative Report (October 18, 2010)

March 23, 2011

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (more commonly referred to as APTN) is a Canadian broadcast and cable television network. APTN airs and produces programs made by, for and about Aboriginal Peoples. It is noted as the first of its kind in the world and is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. (Wiki) APTN Investigates, with host/producer Cheryl McKenzie, …

Canada’s mining sector has pulled up its environmental SOx

March 21, 2011

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

Canada’s mining industry has made significant improvement in its environmental performance on many fronts from 1998 to 2008, according to a federal government publication. The “Mining Sector Performance Report” was produced by Natural Resources Canada in consultation with an external advisory committee. It included representation from industry, academia, provincial governments, Aboriginal groups and non-governmental organizations.

“One cannot report on the industry’s performance without noting the significant progress in environmental protection,” said the report. “The mining sector, through multi-stakeholder initiatives, regulatory and financial instruments and science and technology has demonstrated its environmental commitment through reductions in energy intensity, air emissions and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as increases in environmental expenditures, including remediation and decommissioning.”

“This change in performance has taken place against a backdrop of rising public expectations, which has challenged the industry to extend its practices beyond regulatory compliance to environmental stewardship.”

There has been a tremendous growth in investments in the environment. Between 1997 and 2006, environmental expenditures on operating costs rose from $796.1 million to $960.9 million and environmental capital expenditure increased from $420.9 million to $453.6 million over the same time period.

Kirkland Lake gold district seeing strong activity – by Nick Stewart

March 21, 2011

Gold adding a shine to exploration

As a camp which has lived and died on the back of gold, it’s perhaps no surprise that the Kirkland Lake district is thriving on the fortunes of the precious metal. Related exploration continues to shine in the region, as more and more drills are put into the ground to suss out the next major gold deposit or resource expansion.

“With the price of gold being between $1,300 and $1,400 an ounce, it makes it pretty easy to raise money on the market for gold projects,” said Gary Grabowski, resident regional geologist for the Kirkland Lake district. “That’s what’s being looked at here, as you can imagine. Kirkland Lake is about gold.”

To put it into perspective, Grabowski says that the value of assessment work filed for the district in 2010 was $19 million; comparatively, it reached $27 million in 2009 and $17 million in 2008. “In previous years, we used to think if we got $8 million to $10 million that it was a really good year.”

Keeping Thunder Bay in the picture for Ring of Fire refinery – Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal editorial (March 15, 2011)

March 17, 2011

The Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal is the daily newspaper of Northwestern Ontario. This opinion piece was originally published on March 15, 2011.

MAYOR Keith Hobbs is trying hard to position Thunder Bay as the logical location to process chromite from the giant Ring of Fire mineral deposit far to the north. In competition with officials from other Northern Ontario communities, Hobbs has made a good case.

Thunder Bay has the services, the manpower and expertise, the transportation and the electrical energy needed for a project of this size. And sizable it will be, requiring enough electricity to power a community of 300,000 people. It will be the largest single user of power in the province, which puts enormous pressure on the provincial government to provide what Cliffs Natural Resources, the main Ring of Fire developer, refers to as “a key input. The availability of a large, reliable, long-term and cost-competitive supply of electricity is a key consideration in siting the ferrochrome production facility.”

Cliffs identifies Timmins, Sudbury and Thunder Bay as potential locations, though it has gone so far as to use Sudbury as its base case model for planning purposes because it is already an important mineral processing centre. Hobbs has gone to some lengths to ensure Thunder Bay remains fully in Cliffs’ consideration and he’s got an Ontario Power Generation plant as one ace along with a Seaway port that Sudbury does not have.

Governments should fund railroad to Ontario’s Ring of Fire mining camp – by Stan Sudol

June 29, 2011March 17, 2011

This column was published in the March 17, 2011 issue of Northern Life.

Stan Sudol is a Toronto-based communications consultant who writes extensively on mining issues. stan.sudol@republicofmining.com

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

“In the next 25 years, demand for metals could meet or exceed what we have used
since the beginning of the industrial revolution. By way of illustration, China needs to
build three cities larger than Sydney or Toronto every year until 2030 to accommodate
rural to urban growth.” (John McGagh, Rio Tinto – Head of Innovation)

Commodity Super Cycle is Back

The commodity super cycle is back, and with a vengeance. China, India, Brazil, Indonesia and many other developing economies are continuing their rapid pace of industrialization and urbanization. In 2010, China overtook Japan to become the world’s second largest economy and surpassed the United States to become the biggest producer of cars.

During a recent speech in Calgary, Mark Carney, the Governor of the Bank of Canada remarked, “Commodity markets are in the midst of a supercycle. …Rapid urbanization underpins this growth. Since 1990, the number of people living in cities in China and India has risen by nearly 500 million, the equivalent of housing the entire population of Canada 15 times over. …Even though history teaches that all booms are finite, this one could go on for some time.”

At the annual economics conference in Davos, Switzerland, held last January – where the most respected world leaders in politics, economics and academia gather – the consensus was one of enormous global prosperity predicting that, “For only the third time since the Industrial Revolution, the world may be entering a long-term growth cycle that will lift all economies simultaneously…”

John McGagh, head of innovation, at Rio Tinto – the world’s third largest mining company – has said, “In the next 25 years, demand for metals could meet or exceed what we have used since the beginning of the industrial revolution. By way of illustration, China needs to build three cities larger than Sydney or Toronto every year until 2030 to accommodate rural to urban growth. This equates to the largest migration of population from rural to urban living in the history of mankind.”

The isolated Ring of Fire mining camp, located in the James Bay lowlands of Ontario’s far north, is one of the most exciting and possibly the richest new Canadian mineral discovery made in over a generation. It has been compared to both the Sudbury Basin and the Abitibi Greenstone belt, which includes Timmins, Kirkland Lake, Noranda and Val d’Or.

Early bird incentive attracts So You Think You Know Mining (SYTYKM) video competition entries in advance of March 31 deadline

March 17, 2011

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

The Early Bird incentive has helped to attract 13 excellent entries into the Ontario Mining Association’s third annual So You Think You Know Mining (SYTYKM) high school video competition before the March 31 deadline. These videos from all areas of the province, which were received electronically at the OMA before midnight March 10, are eligible for all video award categories and for the draw to win the $500 Early Bird prize.

This year’s SYTYKM competition is bigger and better than ever with $25,500 available in cash and prizes. To learn more about submitting a two to three minute video on the benefits of mining click on the SYTYKM box at the OMA website www.oma.on.ca. Judging from some of the Early Bird entries, OMA e-news items are being used as a source for ideas and information by student film makers.

In order to help spread awareness of SYTYKM, the OMA ventured into the realm of social media and used Facebook as a venue to promote the competition from the start. This year, the OMA is also using Twitter. As of today, there are 168 followers on Twitter and the number is growing as the SYTYKM deadline approaches. Many of the tweets address the philosophical question “can rising global demand for greener cutting-edge products and services be met without mining?” Check it out @OntMiningAssoc on Twitter.

NEWS RELEASE: Mining Watch – Video: Oral Promises/Broken Promises Shows Alternative Interpretation of Ontario’s Treaty 9 (February 25, 2011)

March 17, 2011

Feb 25 2011 This video by MiningWatch Canada questions the jurisdiction of the Ontario provincial government over the traditional territories of northern Ontario’s First Nations, and the government’s right to unilaterally grant access to the resources within these territories to mining companies or other industries. First Nations signed a number of treaties with the …

OMA member profile: North American Palladium — helping us all breathe easier

March 16, 2011

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

We should all be able to breathe a little easier with Ontario Mining Association member North American Palladium’s plans for expanding production. Palladium is resistant to oxidation and high temperature corrosion and is useful in eliminating harmful emissions from internal combustion engines. Autocatalysts are the major end use product of palladium, converting more than 90% of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen into carbon dioxide, nitrogen and water vapour.

The company’s Lac des Iles mine, which is located approximately 85 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, has been in production since 1993. It has about 200 employees and it is one of only two primary palladium mines in the world.

At this time, North American Palladium’s Lac des Iles mine is involved in a multi-faceted $270 million mine expansion program. The goal is to increase production from 95,000 ounces of palladium in 2010, to 165,000 ounces in 2011 and then gradually building up to 250,000 ounces in 2015 at significantly reduced cash costs, which are expected to be less that $150 (US) per ounce. The current palladium price is in the $800 (US) per ounce range.

Ring of Fire buring issue for Cliffs – Peter Koven (National Post-March 10, 2011)

March 16, 2011

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper. This article was originally published in the Financial Post on March 10, 2011. pkoven@nationalpost.com

Bill Boor knows he is in a tricky situation with the Ring of Fire, and that whatever decision he announces in the coming months will upset a lot of people.

“It’s a byproduct of what I think has been a pretty transparent approach that we’ve taken here,” the president of ferroalloys at Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. said in an interview at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada conference.

“You can be very transparent and try to work in good faith to come to the right answer, or you can keep your cards close to your chest, don’t get people excited and just slam an answer down, which I think is less likely to be optimal.”

Cliffs is leading development of the Ring of Fire, an ultra-rich source of chromite and other metals located in a very remote corner of the James Bay Lowlands in Northern Ontario. The provincial government views it as crucial for economic development in the North, where it is expected to become the next major Canadian mining camp.

Peat: solution for power-plant mercury pollution (June 25, 2006) – Stan Sudol

June 28, 2011March 16, 2011

This column was originally published in the June 25, 2006 issue of Northern Life.

Stan Sudol is a Toronto-based communications consultant who writes extensively on mining issues. stan.sudol@republicofmining.com

Due to pollution concerns, the recent announcement to keep coal-power plants open was not easy for the provincial Liberals, but Ontario is facing power shortages. They had no choice. It was a tough but pragmatic and responsible decision.

The government still plans to replace coal-fired generation as soon as possible without compromising electricity production. Unfortunately, one of the biggest drawbacks is mercury contamination.

Before the GTA’s Lakeview plant closed last year, Ontario’s five coal-fired stations produced about 527 kilograms of mercury which was almost one-third of all mercury emissions in the province.

The McGuinty government has been severely criticized for backing out of its commitment to the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment to reduce toxic mercury discharges by 50 percent – now an unattainable goal. However, there is a solution for mercury pollution. Peat fuel – a biomass energy source-is abundant in Northern Ontario.

Energy Lessons for Ontario from Finland (March 26, 2006) – by Stan Sudol

June 28, 2011March 16, 2011

This column was originally published in the March 26, 2006 issue of Northern Life.

Stan Sudol is a Toronto-based communications consultant who writes extensively on mining issues. stan.sudol@republicofmining.com

The Ontario government is committed to closing the province’s four coal-fired generating plants by 2009 due to pollution concerns. This will eliminate 6,500 megawatts of power generating capacity, about 20 percent of production. These four power stations cost billions of tax dollars to build, and with regular maintenance, could continue running for decades. As a consequence, Ontario taxpayers will have to needlessly spend billions more to construct new gas-fired generating plants – powered with a very expensive source of energy that is in short supply.

We are entering uncertain times in a new globalized economy where reasonably priced energy is a key factor for investment decisions. Ontario’s manufacturing might is being put at risk with policies that don’t accommodate sensible and sustainable development of local energy sources.

Concerns about high sulphur and mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants are being cost effectively addressed around the world. Many jurisdictions significantly reduce these pollutants by co-firing coal with a variety of locally-derived biomass fuels.

Energy lessons for Ontario from the Irish Celtic Tiger (March 3, 2006) – by Stan Sudol

June 28, 2011March 16, 2011

This column was originally published in the March 3, 2006 issue of Northern Life.

Stan Sudol is a Toronto-based communications consultant who writes extensively on mining issues. stan.sudol@republicofmining.com

Ireland, well known as the “Celtic Tiger,” has become an industrial showcase for economists around the world. In the early 1970s, one of the most backward regions of Europe began a series of policy initiatives that transformed the country into a knowledge-based economy with a standard of
living higher than the United Kingdom and Canada.

One Irish initiative that could apply to Ontario was an energy policy committed to using indigenous fuel to help offset expensive imports of oil. That local energy source was peat fuel, and surprisingly the largest accessible deposits in the world are in Ontario.

Peat fuel has been a source of heat in Ireland for centuries. Its use for electricity started in the 1950s and supplied just under 40 percent of total power generation by the mid-1960s. Currently, peat fuel supplies about 12 percent of the country’s power needs. Last year, two new peat-fired power plants were opened at a cost of $570 million (US).