THUNDER BAY, ON - May 1, 2009 - While the Hon. Michael Gravelle was tabling the legislation in provincial parliament today, local media in the city were briefed on the details of the act at Contact North.  In this photo Christine Kaszyki is shown reading the key points of the legislation to members of the press. The document summary follows.

• Proposals for the mining act would strengthen the Ontario mining industry be establishing a framework for improved social responsibility and increased certainty of rules and clarity of process in making investment decisions.
• It is this certainty of rules and clarity and timeliness of process that the industry needs to make investment decisions.
• The proposed amendments offer a balanced approach to mineral development that considers a range of interests while supporting a competitive economic climate for the minerals sector.
• The Act would set a framework that supports significant strides in Aboriginal consultation throughout the mining sequence, requires prospector awareness training before licensing and enables dispute resolution.
• It modernizes the way mining companies stake and explore their claims to be more respectful of private landowners and Aboriginal communities;recognizes Aboriginal and treaty rights; and. Addresses the issues of surface and mineral rights.

The session started with an economic overview of the value of mining to the province. In 2008 metal production in the province contributed $9.6 billion dollars in new wealth generation. The 27 top producing mines alone accounted for $6.6 billion of this amount.

The revised Act will incorporate some changes that are sorely needed. I am referring to the improved social responsibility part of the summary above. Some mines are worth billions of dollars and the old Act worked well at defining who should benefit from those resources, but it did not compel an equal level of social responsibility commensurate with a mines activities. In other words some communities were simply left out in the cold. The new act will compel consultation with aboriginal groups in particular, but also other community concerns before mining development can occur.

This is where the plan starts to show some flaws. While a great deal of last minute consultations took place in the “Far North” be fore the new Act was drafted the Act remains very much a made in Southern Ontario Mining Act.

One of the Modernization Highlights of the Act says that there will be a prohibition on new mine openings in the “Far North” until there is a community-based land us plan in place. If this act were law a few years ago how would it be possible for the people in the vicinity of DeBeers Victor mine ever put a land use plan into effect. There are virtually no near by inhabitants and it is almost certain that those who do would not have the skills to put such a plan forth. The panels answer to this question was in the “Far North” the ministry of Natural Resources would be responsible for putting such a plan into effect over a 10-15 year time frame. Considering that the “Far North” includes every thing north Lake Nippising one can see that Thunder Bay is in the “Far North”.

John Mason NW Regional manager Mines and Minerals Division mentioned that the Act clarifies and changes some of the rules pertaining to mining development and land ownership. There is more than one type of patent deed for property. Only properties with mineral rights who pay a mining tax qualify for ownership of the mineral rights on the property. Under the new Act when the mining claims on the property lapse for example from non payment of the mining tax, then the mineral rights will revert to the crown. This change has generated some controversy in the Kingston area of the province.

While an individual may own the surface rights on a mining claim, a company doing mining activity on that property is compelled to respect the rights of the land-owner, the mining company must remediate the property when there work is done, and in some cases there are provisions for the withdrawal of Crown mineral rights where the surface rights are privately held.

Recognizing that no Act of legislation is perfect, the new Mining Act will for the first time contain a Dispute Resolution Process. It may not result in the answer you are looking for, it may be exceedingly expensive to pursue but at least it is part of the Act.

There are a number of things that communities in the “Far North” can learn from our Aboriginal brothers and sisters. On is we all share this land, and the other is they have far more experience living on the short end of the stick. We are facing a parochial attitude by both the Provincial and Federal levels of government, and this mining act is reformed to ensure that the $9.9 billion dollars continues to flow into the Province’s economy. Even cities such as Sudbury and Thunder Bay major centres in the “Far North” will not have as much say in the development in our own back yard. We need to work together to press our case and get the best deal possible for our own sakes.

There are many mining projects in our district that are moving nicely along, some will replace older operations due to close but others will open to meet an increasing demand for the “Far North’s” mineral resources. Much of the money generated from mining has never stayed in the “Far North” and this includes the government’s portion of the take. The Hon. Michael Gravelle has put forth an improvement in the mining Act that is certain. It will work to expedite increased mining activity in this part of the province and it will provide clarity for those looking to invest in our part of the province.

Bert Rowson
LakeSuperiorNews.com

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