Republic of Mining

Forestry move under MNR welcomed – by Ryan Lux (Timmins Daily Press – October 24, 2011)

October 24, 2011

The Daily Press, the city of Timmins newspaper.

Renewed sense of optimism expressed

While NDP House Leader Gilles Bisson was underwhelmed by Dalton McGuinty’s “stay the course cabinet,” he joined Ontario’s forest industry representatives in expressing tentative optimism for the forestry sector based on the minor cabinet shuffle.

In general, Bisson described McGuinty’s new cabinet as a “missed opportunity” to demonstrate a change in direction. However, he said the Premier’s choice of Thunder Bay’s Michael Gravelle as Minister of Natural Resources should give Northerners a glimmer of hope.

Fuelling Bisson’s hope for a rationalized approach to forestry at Queen’s Park is McGuinty’s decision to return the forestry portfolio under the responsibility of the ministry of natural resources.

Falling copper points to global pain – by Carolynne Wheeler (Globe and Mail – October 24, 2011)

October 24, 2011

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

BEIJING — The answer to where the global economy is headed may well be found in the piles of trash towering above the brick and tin shacks belonging to Beijing’s army of garbage recyclers.

On the northeastern edge of sprawling Beijing, the hardscrabble neighbourhood of Dongxiaokou is some 20 kilometres from the glittering skyscrapers that provide this community’s livelihood. Here, virtually every scrap left over from a modern life – used computers and mobile phones, household appliances, furniture, clothing, even paper and plastic bottles – is collected, sorted, broken down and sold for cash.

Traditionally, copper (HG-FT3.330.113.46%) has been among the most valuable materials for collection. But this week, after a month of sinking prices, no one is in a good mood.

Africa provides a rich seam for resources sector – by Kevin Rudd ( The Australian – October 24, 2011)

October 23, 2011

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/

Kevin Rudd is Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs

AFRICA is starting to surprise us. We have known for some time that the continent is changing. After the “lost decade” of the 1980s, many African governments have been democratising and liberalising their economies.

But when we find that, today, six of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world are from Africa, it’s worth taking a much closer look.

When we do, we see not only Africa’s growth, but the remarkable transformation of Australian business in Africa, particularly in the mining sector. Rewind 20 years, and the involvement of Australian resource companies in Africa was almost non-existent.

Now, about 40 per cent of all Australian overseas mining projects are in Africa. At least 230 Australian companies are active in the resource sector on the African continent. Between them, they are pursuing 650 individual projects in 42 countries. Their total investment is estimated at a whopping $24 billion.

B.C. shells out $30 million in settlement of [uranium] mining company case – by The Canadian Press (Canadian Business Magazine – October 21, 2011)

October 23, 2011

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/

VANCOUVER – At a time when British Columbia’s premier has staked her jobs agenda on a burgeoning mining industry, the province has agreed to hand over $30 million to one company in a settlement over what the company’s president called “dirty dealings.”

Boss Power Corp. and lawyers for the provincial government were scheduled to square off in court this month over the company’s claim that the province had effectively expropriated its uranium deposit 50 kilometres northeast of Penticton without compensation.

Instead, lawyers for the government agreed to the pay out, saying in a news release earlier this week that B.C. had reached a legal agreement for Boss Power to surrender all claims to its uranium and mining rights.

Canada hypocritical on a dangerous mineral [asbestos] – by Keeble McFarlane (Jamiaca Observer – October 22, 2011)

October 23, 2011

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/

We all no doubt remember the rushing cloud of whitish dust which ballooned out over southern Manhattan on the morning of September 11, 2001, as the iconic towers of the World Trade Centre fell in on themselves after the planes commandeered by terrorists crashed into them.

In addition to the almost 3000 people who died in the towers themselves, dozens of rescue workers and others caught in the cloud have since died from exposure to the dust. Many others developed serious lung problems which have severely affected their health and which will invariably shorten their lives.

That cloud was a toxic mixture of all the materials contained in those towering structures – gypsum wallboard, floor and ceiling tiles, disintegrated concrete, shredded paper, furniture, carpets and draperies, office chemicals, metal residue, even food blown to bits in the devastation and, saddest of all, people and their clothing. Perhaps most crucial was the 400 tonnes of asbestos, used as a fire-retardant.

Saskatoon is home to Canada’s fastest growing economy – by Jeannie Armstrong (The [Saskatoon] StarPhoenix – October 22, 2011)

October 23, 2011

http://www.thestarphoenix.com/index.html

The country’s top economists are in agreement. Saskatoon will continue to lead economic growth in Canada through 2013.

[SASKATOON] FASTEST GROWING ECONOMY

The Conference Board of Canada, known for its conservative economic forecasts, says that Saskatoon’s economy will expand by 4.1 per cent this year, and will remain at the top of the economic growth leader board through 2013.The gap between Saskatoon and second place Calgary is quite significant, with Calgary’s economy expected to grow by 3.4 per cent.

What factors are contributing to Saskatoon’s sustained economic growth?

According to the Conference Board of Canada announcement, “Saskatoon is benefiting from strong resource development, while healthy population growth is bolstering the housing market.”

Chiefs aim to stop [Ring of Fire] review – by Harold Carmichael (Sudbury Star – October 21, 2011)

October 23, 2011

The Sudbury Star is the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper. hcarmichael@thesudburystar.com

First Nations leaders will take ‘ alternative measures’ — perhaps including an injunction — to stop an environmental review of Cliffs Natural Resources’ Black Thor chromite deposit in northwestern Ontario.

The Matawa Chiefs also called on Premier Dalton McGuinty and Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Friday to stop the review in favour of a joint environment assessment to be done in conjunction with natives.

“We will be forced to resort to alternative measures if Canada and Ontario continue to ignore the First Nations that are being impacted by the Ring of Fire developments,” Chief Roger Wesley of Constance Lake First Nation said in a release Friday. The Matawa Chiefs — who represent 8,000 people in nine Ojibway and Cree communities — held a news conference Friday in Thunder Bay to discuss their concerns.

Plan to stanch flow of ‘conflict minerals’ from Congo causes turmoil – by Geoffrey York (Globe and Mail – October 22, 2011)

October 22, 2011

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

JOHANNESBURG – The campaign began as an idealistic effort to halt a horrific epidemic of rape and murder in the heart of Africa. It burgeoned into a powerful consumer movement, culminating in a planned U.S. regulation that is terrifying some of the world’s biggest corporations.

And now, with companies such as Apple Inc. and Motorola desperately seeking an ethical stamp of approval for their latest tablets and smart phones, activists like Joanne Lebert of Ottawa are finding themselves in an unexpected position of influence. Their new certification scheme could help solve a political dilemma that is inflicting turmoil on thousands of African miners and Western corporations.

At the centre of this global battle are the “conflict minerals” – tin, gold, tantalum and tungsten – that have fuelled vicious wars and ruthless militias in the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of Africa’s biggest and poorest countries. Their proceeds are financing the warlords and armies that are responsible for millions of deaths and sexual assaults over the past decade in one of the world’s bloodiest conflicts.

Pipeline becoming flashpoint in U.S. politics – by Bruce Campion-Smith (Toronto Star – October 22, 2011)

October 22, 2011

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.

OTTAWA—The camera pans across bucolic images of the U.S. Great Plains — a rancher astride a horse as cattle graze in the background, grasslands, wheat fields, scenic landscapes.

“The bread basket of America. But today these lands are threatened by big oil and its plan to run a pipeline straight through this American heartland,” says the narrator. But not just any narrator.

The voice belongs to actor and director Robert Redford, who used a three-minute video this week to implore U.S. President Barack Obama to deny approval for the Keystone XL pipeline.

The pipeline, proposed by Canadian energy giant TransCanada Corp., would run 3,134 kilometres, from Alberta across six states, carrying half a million barrels of oilsands crude a day to Gulf Coast refineries in Texas.

[Ontario] Cabinet roles change in North – Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal Editorial (October 21, 2011)

October 22, 2011

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

THE NEW Ontario cabinet isn’t new at all; there isn’t a fresh face in it. But two changes are sparking much speculation here in the North.

Michael Gravelle is no longer Minister of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry. He was moved to Natural Resources to which Forestry has been added. This leaves his successor, Sudbury’s Rick Bartolucci, one less thing to look after in Gravelle’s place. It also suggests Premier Dalton McGuinty believes that mining needs undivided attention as exploration increases across the Far North. Bartolucci is also cabinet chair, adding to his stature.

The forest industry is in trouble and, hopefully, adding Forestry back to Natural Resources means the McGuinty government will develop a comprehensive approach to the boreal forest that enhances new commercial opportunities along with recreation and wildlife.

Timmins mining activity created a buzz in 1915 – by Karen Bachmann (Timmins Daily Press – October 22, 2011)

October 22, 2011

The Daily Press, the city of Timmins newspaper.

Karen Bachmann is the director/curator of the Timmins Museum and a local author.

HISTORY: Social activities also made big news in the Porcupine Camp

Out and about in the Porcupine in 1915 – here are a few items (OK, some serious, some gossip) that made the papers that year. Front page news for June of that year included the exciting announcement that the mill at Schumacher Mines was to be completed by July, and that they were very quickly sinking another 200 feet at the mine (they had already sank 300 feet).

Fifty men were working underground with another 14 on the surface, but it was predicted that many more men could look forward to steady employment at the site.

Not to be outdone, Pike Lake Gold Mines in Deloro Township, run out of New York City, was actively exploiting their six claims. A bunkhouse, kitchen, blacksmith’s shop and office were built. Twenty men were hired to sink the initial shaft by hand and to build the road into the property, located about four miles south of South Porcupine.

Bartolucci, Gravelle, give North presence at Queens Park – by Brian MacLeod (Sudbury Star – October 22, 2011)

October 22, 2011

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

Premier Dalton McGuinty has said its development will play a
key role in the province’s recovery from the loss of hundreds
of thousands of manufacturing jobs during the recession. And
mining commentator Stan Sudol says the Ring of Fire has the
potential to end poverty among isolated First Nations bands
within a generation, if it’s managed properly. (Sudbury Star
Managing Editor Brian MacLeod – Oct/22/2011)

Thursday’s cabinet appointments by the Liberal government worked out as well as could be expected for Northern Ontario.

Sudbury MPP Rick Bartolucci returns to Northern Development and Mines, where he was minister from 2003-07. And Thunder Bay’s Michael Gravelle moves from MNDM to Natural Resources, which also takes over forestry. He replaces Brampton-Springdale MPP Linda Jeffrey.

Stan Beardy, Grand Chief of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, and Thunder Bay’s chamber of commerce welcomed Gravelle’s appointment, saying he is familiar with the issues affecting the distressed forestry sector.

Ontario Mining Association welcomes “new” mines minister

October 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

The Ontario Mining Association would like to offer its congratulations – and re-congratulations – to the province’s new Minister of Northern Development and Mines Rick Bartolucci. Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty had his new Cabinet sworn in yesterday. This is the first Cabinet appointments following the October 6 election.

The new Cabinet is trimmed down to 22 and all members are familiar faces. Mr. Bartolucci, who represents the riding of Sudbury, was elected for a fifth term of office. He previously served as Minister of Northern Development and Mines from 2003 to 2007 before handling other portfolios — Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services. This time around he has the additional duty of being Chair of Cabinet.

Mr. Bartolucci understands mining and Northern Ontario and the OMA looks forward to working with him again to promote and encourage the responsible development of the province’s mineral resources to benefit all Ontarians.

Iron ore the latest commodity to slide – by Brenda Bouw (Globe and Mail – October 21, 2011)

October 21, 2011

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

Iron ore was the one commodity left largely unscathed in the recent market rout, until now. The price of the key industrial commodity, which is used to make steel, has slumped in recent weeks and is expected to keep dropping as demand falls on a weakening Chinese economy and fallout from the European debt crisis.

Steel mills have been cutting iron ore purchases as they curb production, while major iron ore producers such as BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto PLC move forward with plans to ramp up output of the mineral.

The combination of lower demand and increased supply is putting pressure on iron ore prices, which had held steady even as other key industrial metals such as copper and aluminum were in freefall.

MININGWATCH NEWS RELEASE: ATTEMPT TO REVIVE PROPOSED PROSPERITY MINE MUST END NOW Oct 19, 2011

October 21, 2011

Source: http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/861389/attempt-to-revive-proposed-prosperity-mine-must-end-now

Posted on behalf of the Tsilhqot’in National Government-MiningWatch

[MiningWatch is providing logistical support to the Tsilhqot’in during their Ottawa vist and will continue to support them with techncial reviews of the project and communications support.]

Company submits option already reviewed and found to be worse than original plan

OTTAWA, October 19, 2011: The Tsilhqot’in Nation, supported by BC and national chiefs, today called on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) and the federal government to reject the re-bid Prosperity mine project without further waste of time and tax dollars.

“The company is on record admitting this new option is worse than the one that was rejected last year, and a CEAA review panel has already agreed with that assessment,” said Chief Joe Alphonse, Chair of the Tsilhqot’in National Government, which represents six First Nations.