February 4, 2012 – Republic of Mining

Our national shame [Aboriginal living conditions] – by Mia Rabson and Mary Agnes Welch (Winnipeg Free Press – February 4, 2012)

February 4, 2012

This article came from: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/

Natural resources may transform northern Manitoba reserves from poverty-stricken to prosperous. Human resources may transform First Nations from have-nots to self-sufficient

No boat trip in Manitoba is prettier than the one between Garden Hill and St. Theresa Point, dodging dozens of tiny, pincushion islands made of bedrock and pine trees.

The Island Lake region should be a quintessentially Canadian jackpot of mining, logging, hydro development and high-end tourism catering to eco-adventurers and rich American sport fishermen. Instead, it’s a national shame.

There appears to be only one thing that will make reserves in northern Manitoba viable communities able to rise above the poverty that’s shackled generations: natural resources.

At the recent Crown-First Nations Gathering in Ottawa, chiefs had education, health care and housing on the brain. But the one resounding theme was a desire to get Ottawa and the provinces to the table so First Nations can finally start reaping the benefits of the natural resources they believe are bountiful on their traditional lands.

McGill asbestos study flawed, epidemiologist says – by Gil Shochat and Joseph Loiero (CBC News – February 2, 2012)

February 4, 2012

This article is from: www.cbc.ca

Government plans to approve asbestos sales to developing world

A major 40-year study on asbestos safety completed by a group of scientists at McGill University is flawed, lacks transparency and contains manipulated data says Dr. David Egilman, a professor at Brown University, health activist and longtime industry critic.

The study, which followed the health of 11,000 miners and mill workers in Quebec between 1966 and the late 1990s, is used by the Chrysotile Institute — a lobby arm funded by, overseen and closely associated with both Liberal and Conservative governments — to promote the use of asbestos overseas.

According to Egilman, as the dangers of asbestos became better known in the 1960s, the industry decided to do its own research and hired Dr. John Corbett McDonald at McGill University’s School of Occupational Health. Industry documents obtained by CBC News showed it wanted to conduct research similar to that in the tobacco industry, which stated that “Industry is always well advised to look after its own problems.”

Rob McEwen: Mining magnate with a vision – by Gordon Pitts (Globe and Mail – February 4, 2012)

February 4, 2012

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

Rob McEwen, the near-billionaire nationalist, philanthropist, libertarian, gold-loving, regulation-hating metals magnate, is as steamed as the plate of tagliatelle pasta sitting in front of him.

“It’s the parentalness of government that pisses me off. Get out! We have to take risks on our own,” he says.

The 61-year-old is reacting to the roadblocks encountered in his new mining venture, the latest chapter in a colourful and wildly successful career highlighted by converting a struggling gold mine in Northern Ontario into a global colossus called Goldcorp. The mining tycoon is merging two junior companies to form what he hopes will be his next – perhaps last – big winner. But the regulatory and governance process has taken three months longer than expected, costing $6-million in legal and advisory fees.

“This is an unnecessary tax on shareholders,” he fumes, his usually soft voice rising above the lunchtime clatter at Canoe, a darling of Bay Street expense accounts sitting 54 floors above downtown Toronto. “Wouldn’t we be better served to, say, cut a cheque to our shareholders as a dividend?”

China faces hurdles in [Canadian] oil patch – by Claudia Cattaneo (National Post – February 4, 2012)

February 4, 2012

The National Post is Canada’s second largest national paper.

Thanks to acquisitions in the last few months, the three top state-controlled Chinese oil companies have become full participants in the Canadian oil and gas scene and are in control of projects in a Western industrialized economy for the first time.

But being in control doesn’t guarantee success. Now that they are in charge of their Canadian operations, Chinese players are facing the same hurdles as other foreign acquirers to make them work – plus a few more due to cultural differences.

“They are still on a learning curve. The jury is out on how they are going to manage those companies,” said Gordon Houlden, a former senior Canadian diplomat in China who is the director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta.

NEWS RELEASE: Mining Contributed $36 Billion to Gdp, 300,000 Jobs, New Report Finds $139 billion in new projects planned in the next decade

February 4, 2012

OTTAWA, Feb. 2, 2012 /CNW/ – Mining in Canada is back and growing according to the latest report by Mining Association of Canada (MAC). MAC’s annual Facts & Figures 2011 finds that mining in Canada has not only recovered from the 2008 economic crisis, but is now entering a period of significant and sustained growth.

Canada’s mining sector contributed $36 billion to the national GDP in 2010, and employed 308,000 workers in mineral extraction, smelting, fabrication and manufacturing. An additional 3,215 companies supplied engineering, geotechnical, environmental, financial and other services to mining operations.

In 2010, the value of Canadian mineral production rose by 31% and mineral exploration increased by 35%. The industry exported $84.5 billion worth of metals, non-metals and coal in 2010, which accounts for 21.2% of Canada’s total exports.