COMMENTARY — Mining in Canada: a look ahead

Federal Minister of Natural Resources Anne McLellan is writing this column at the invitation of “Keep Mining In Canada,” a national grassroots campaign designed to increase public awareness of the importance of mining in Canada.

Mining is important to Canada’s economic growth and job creation. The industry supports some 115 communities, provides high paying jobs for more than 300,000 Canadians and contributes $20 billion to our economy every year. Last year, for the first time since 1989, more mines opened or re-opened than closed. Exploration expenditures increased to some $600 million in 1994 from about $477 million in 1993.

The federal government recognized the importance of the resource sector in its plan for Canada titled “Creating Opportunity.” The importance of mining was emphasized in the Liberal Party’s Mining Agenda.

The federal government is addressing the mining industry’s specific concerns. Last year’s budget announced changes to the tax treatment of contributions made to provincially mandated mine reclamation trust funds. This federal commitment to mining and the successful conclusion of the Whitehorse Mining Initiative led to the inclusion of mining as one of six industrial sectors in the regulatory reform component of “Building a More Innovative Economy,” announced last December. The objectives of this initiative include reducing overlap and duplication; increasing certainty; reducing administrative delays; and decreasing costs for the public and private sectors. In the near future, I will bring forward a federal policy on sustainable development for minerals and metals, to help ensure that mining concerns are reflected in future government policies.

I recently joined provincial and territorial representatives from across Canada at the “Investing in the Americas” conference in Miami, Fla. I told investors and international mining media about Canada’s rich geology, infrastructure, skilled workforce, advanced technologies and investment climate.

The federal government is committed to the prosperity of Canada’s mining industry and to its sustainable development.