Save Our North goes national

Save Our North, the grassroots organization that has been spreading like wildfire across northern Ontario, recently launched a national campaign that will solicit support from resource-based communities throughout Canada.

At a meeting of the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM), where the campaign organizers received a warm welcome, an expanded program called “People for Resources” was born.

As part of the new effort to convince politicians of the importance of mining and other resource industries to the Canadian economy, each of the 125 communities represented by FONOM will be responsible for contacting a “twin” community in another province.

Ontario’s participants will initially focus their efforts on provinces like British Columbia, Quebec and Newfoundland, where mining and forestry contribute significantly to the economy but where people are worried about job security.

“A lot of people out there fear for their jobs and that’s a strong emotion to tap into,” said geologist Steve Parry, chairman of the Save Our North committee and president of the Porcupine Prospectors and Developers Association (PPDA).

Parry hopes that by getting the ball rolling now, People for Resources will be able to make an impact on government policy before the federal election in 1993.

About 65% of Canada’s federal ridings are resource-based, the PPDA notes in a recent newsletter.

“I agree with the approach,” says Jack Patterson, managing director of the British Columbia & Yukon Chamber of Mines. “But there may not be the same interest in mining that you get in Ontario.”

Patterson said that because British Columbia prospectors are spread thinly throughout resource communities that are largely forestry-based, it will be difficult to persuade town mayors to consider exploration an important part of their agenda.

Frustrated by government apathy toward mineral exploration and development in his own province, Parry and his colleagues launched Save Our North in Timmins, Ont., last December. Within four months, they had managed to garner enough regional support to attract Premier Bob Rae’s attention. Accompanied by three of his ministers, Rae showed up at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada Conference in Toronto to voice his support for the mining industry.

“I happen to be one of those who believe very strongly that our resource industries are going to be a critical part of contributing to a positive change for this province,” the premier told a shoulder-to-shoulder audience. At a news conference after the speech, Mines Minister Shelley Martel fleshed out Rae’s words by calling for a “one-window” approach to permitting of advanced exploration projects that would replace today’s lengthy and complex procedure.

Environment Minister Ruth Grier was also applauded when she said prospectors should be free of liability for environmental problems created by former property owners. “Ruthless,” as most prospectors had come to know her, turned out to be sympathetic after all.

A government-sponsored television advertisement is also in the works. Following the theme of “where would you be without mining?”, the commercial will likely depict, for example, a tranquil family dinner suddenly interrupted by knives and forks, glasses, electrical wire and everything containing minerals hurtling out the window, says Parry.

Another government initiative under way is a review of Ontario’s incentives for mineral exploration. Save Our North has suggested a number of alternatives, including an allowance for companies with exploration offices in the north and a tax break for individuals who invest in exploration. Parry says the provincial response came none to soon. He says Ontario’s prospectors are beginning to feel threatened by the comprehensive incentive programs available on both the province’s borders.

“We’re sandwiched between Quebec and Manitoba right now. We’ve got to do something before even more money leaves the province.”

In 1991, just over $100 million was spent in exploration in Ontario compared with $141 million in 1990 and $218 million in 1989. At this rate, most geologists argue, the province will never be able to replace the ore reserves that pump billions of dollars into the economy each year.

But if Parry ever feels discouraged, he need only look south to see a similar campaign that has grown exponentially since its launch two years ago. Tapping “a predictable backlash against excessive protectionism” in the U.S., the Colorado-based coalition “People for the West” has spread to 75 communities in 14 western states and has doubled its paid membership to more than 4,000 since January.

At last count, the group had gathered 330,000 signatures for a petition in support of mining, forestry, oil and gas exploration, grazing and recreation on public lands which will be sent to Washington once the 1-million signature mark has been reached.

“We certainly support the protection of fragile ecosystems, but there has to be a balance between environmental responsibility and economic benefit to all Americans,” said Barbara Grannell, executive director of Western States Public Lands Coalition, the organization that launched People for the West.