More public education needed on industry, the environment

Environment and the mining industry was one of several topics touched on by Corona (TSE) President Peter Steen when he addressed a recent district meeting of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum in Thunder Bay, Ont. Steen, who moved to Vancouver this summer to direct the company’s mining operations, talked of the challenge today of protecting the environment and the need for mining industry representatives to educate the public.

“We are an extractive industry,” Steen said. “We change Mother Nature. We impact the landscape. We consume water in many of our processes; we give off particulates and other output into the air.

“There will continue to be significant pressure on the mining industry to change and to improve not only its mining practices but its environmental impact practices.

“There will continue to be emphasis and demand upon the industry with respect to safety in our operations. And there will continue to be public controversy around some of our operations.

“Let’s face it, our industry is critically important to the country, but it is not understood by the citizenry.

“I find it fascinating as a colleague recently observed that the level of concern for the environment seems to go up at the same time the level of awareness and understanding of science and scientific discipline is declining.

“The public, generally speaking, knows less about mining technology than it did 25 or 50 years ago. People know less generally speaking about how the biosphere works than they did two decades ago, and yet they become concerned about the environment without understanding the true value and impact of mining and other natural resources operations on the environment.

“This means we have a tremendous public education job to do if we are going to have a meaningful nationwide policy for the environment, one which will allow our industry to flourish in an economically beneficial and responsible manner.

“We have to be prepared to meet these challenges intelligently, and we can. And we have to be willing to talk to audiences throughout the country, and not just talk to ourselves, but to the community as a whole.

“We need to tell people convincingly about the responsible attitude that our industry is taking, especially with regard to the environment.”