Direct conflict

Dear editor:
It comes as no surprise that the recent changes proposed to the Mining Act by the premier’s office seem in direct conflict with the best interests of the residents of Northern Ontario.
By restricting free access to Crown land, the Ontario government simultaneously will cripple prospectors and junior exploration companies across the province while stalling an industry with tremendous potential for growth at a critical time for the north.
Had the Canadian Shield drawn interest to the area a century ago on the scale that it is today, it legitimately would have been called a “gold rush.”
And the only thing longer than the list of economically-viable projects being developed in the area would be the list of professionals, skilled tradesmen, and operators with experience in the forestry industry that could be employed in the mining sector without specialized retraining.
Regardless of what supporters of the proposed changes may believe, Northern Ontario is sustained by a resource-based economy. And when a primary industry (such as mining) prospers, the standard of living increases for everyone.
For proof of this, one need only look as far as Marathon or Pic River—obvious examples of that fact that mining was the only sector in Canada that had a weekly wage averaging above $1,000 in 2006.
With forecasts of the worldwide demand for mineral resources in the next 50 years exceeding the entire worldwide supply produced in recorded history, Ontario either can promote the growth of this industry now and reap the enormous benefits in the long-term, or as it is currently proposing, hamstring the entire future of the mining sector to unilaterally resolve some very sensationalized surface versus mining rights disputes.
This despite the fact there are a myriad of other potential solutions, and that only 1.72 percent of mineral rights claims in Ontario currently are in conflict, by adopting a “modern, updated, and fair” system of mineral rights claims similar to the stagnant and often corrupt system currently being used in Argentina.
Signed,
Cory Hercun
Geologist,
Rainy River Resources