This award honours an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding initiative, leadership and accomplishment in protecting and preserving the natural environment and/or in establishing good community relations during an exploration program or operation of a mine.
The PDAC has selected IAMGOLD Corporation to receive the Environmental & Social Responsibility Award for the company’s commitment to excellence in environmental stewardship, community engagement, and health and safety, particularly during exploration. IAMGOLD has operating mines and exploration projects in West Africa, South America and Québec.
The company’s frameworks for health and safety management and sustainability are informed by international standards and good practices (including the PDAC’s e3 Plus) and are used to create performance criteria and measurable results for all of its operations. The company was the top extractive company and third overall in the 2010 Globe and Mail’s ranking of environmental and social and governance performance of Canada’s largest companies in the S&P/TSX 60 Index.
This award, named for a former president of the association, honours individuals who have accomplished one or both of the following: made a significant mineral discovery; made an important contribution to the prospecting and/or exploration industry. The award may also be used to recognize an important mineral discovery in Canada.
Prospector Shawn Ryan wins this year’s Bill Dennis Award for his gold discoveries in Yukon. Ryan worked for close to 15 years to locate the source of the alluvial gold found in the Klondike gold fields. In 2004 he identified the anomaly that led Underworld Resources to its White Gold deposit and a subsequent $138-million takeover by Kinross. Ryan’s efforts and eventual success have had a positive impact on exploration in the Yukon, with a six-fold increase in exploration spending from $30 million at the beginning of this decade to an estimated $183 million in 2010.
Ryan worked for close to 15 years to locate the source of the alluvial gold that sparked the Klondike gold rush more than a century ago. In 2004 he identified the anomaly that led Underworld Resources to its White Gold deposit and a subsequent $138-million takeover by Kinross Gold Corporation. Ryan’s efforts and prospecting success have had a substantial impact on exploration in Yukon, stimulating renewed exploration interest and activity in the territory.
TORONTO (December 9, 2010) – Prospector Shawn Ryan will receive the Bill Dennis Award for prospecting success, the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) announced today. Ryan is one of six awards winners to be honoured at an awards evening on Monday, March 7, 2011, in Toronto during the association’s annual international convention (March 6-9).
Ryan worked for close to 15 years to locate the source of the alluvial gold that sparked the Klondike gold rush more than a century ago. In 2004 he identified the anomaly that led Underworld Resources to its White Gold deposit and a subsequent $138-million takeover by Kinross Gold Corporation. Ryan’s efforts and prospecting success have had a substantial impact on exploration in Yukon, stimulating renewed exploration interest and activity in the territory.
One of the discoverers of gold in the Klondike was Skookum Jim Mason. An award commemorating him is presented by the PDAC for aboriginal achievement in the mineral industry. The winner of the 2011 Skookum Jim Award is Jerry Asp who is being recognized for promoting mining’s benefits to aboriginal communities in British Columbia. Asp established the Tahltan Nation Development Corporation to provide construction and maintenance services to northern BC mines and was responsible for negotiating two mining impact and benefits agreements in the province. Read the rest of this entry »
The PDAC Thayer Lindsley International Mineral Discoveries Award recognizes an individual or a team of explorationists credited with a recent significant mineral discovery anywhere in the world. It reflects the global nature of mining and the fact that Canadians are making enormous contribution to this sector. This award is in memory of Thayer Lindsley, one of the greatest mine finders in all time.
Perry Durning and Frank (Bud) Hillemeyer are recognized for their outstanding record of grassroots discoveries in Mexico, particularly the San Sebastian silver-gold mine, the San Agustin gold deposit, the Pitarrilla silver deposit, and the Camino Rojo gold discovery.
Durning and Hillemeyer formed La Cuesta International in 1993 after roughly a decade together at Fischer-Watt Gold, an Arizona and Nevada-based mineral exploration firm.
La Cuesta’s first major discovery was the San Sebastian mine in Durango State, Mexico.
The PDAC Viola R. MacMillan is named after the PDAC’s longest serving president. It honours a person who has demonstrated leadership in management and financing for the exploration and development of mineral resources.
Ross J. Beaty is honoured for successfully founding and operating nine resource companies, including Equinox Resources, Pan American Silver Corp., Northern Peru Copper Corp., Global Copper Corp., and Magma Energy Corp.
Beaty, who is foremost a geologist, says his ilk may be the only profession “paid to fail.” Of course, there are exceptions.
Since 1994, Beaty has raised more that $1 billion in capital and created shareholder wealth in excess of $4 billion.
Beaty, with a master’s degree in geology and a law degree, launched an empire in 1980 with the eponymous Beaty Geological, a contract geological services company that was later bought for shares in Beaty’s first public company, Equinox Resources. Equinox’s initial public offering, in 1985, netted $110,000.
The PDAC Distinguished Services Award recognizes an individual for one or more of the following: substantial contribution to the mineral exploration and mining development; considerable time and effort expended on behalf of the PDAC; outstanding contributions to the industry in finance, geology, geophysics, geochemistry research, or a related activity.
Nicholas C. Carter is being recognized for fostering mineral exploration and mining in Canada through his active role in a number of associations and professional societies.
Carter was born and raised in Little Long Lac, Ontario, not more than 200 yards from the headframe of the Little Long Lac gold mine. Carter’s father, a well known, meticulous mining engineer, who later managed the Little Long Lac mine, provided his son with a template for achievement.
Carter graduated from the University of New Brunswick in 1960 as a geologist and proceeded immediately to Michigan Technological University where he studied the iron formations of part of the Marquette Range as part of a master’s degree in geology.
The PDAC Skookum Jim Award is named after Skookum Jim, the Aboriginal leader of the group that discovered the Yukon Klondike goldfields, one of Canada’s most important mineral discoveries. Recipients of this award will have demonstrated exceptional achievement and/or service in a Canadian Aboriginal-run service business for the Canadian mining industry or a Canadian aboriginal exploration or mining company or made a significant individual contribution to the mineral industry either technically, through a business venture, or through a mineral discovery.
Willie S. Keatainak is recognized for his key role in negotiating the Raglan Agreement, encouraging others to take advantage of the opportunities that the Raglan mine offers, and his longstanding involvement in Nuvumiut Developments, an Inuit community-based company serving the mining industry.
Keatainak is on a mission to better the lives of his people, the Inuit living in communities in far northern Quebec, especially those in his home village of Salluit, situated on the northern tip of the Ungava Peninsula.
In the early 1990s, as the mayor of Salluit, Keatainak acted as the chief negotiator on a team seeking long-term economic stability for Inuit communities through the development of Falconbridge Ltd.’s Raglan nickel depostis, emplaced in the nearby Cape Smith-Wakeham Bay ultramafic belt.
The PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award recognizes an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding initiative, leadership and accomplishment in protecting and preserving the natural environment or in developing good community relations during an exploration program or operation of a mine.
De Beers Canada is recognized for establishing good community relations and ensuring environmental protection at its two diamond mines in Canada.
The company operates Snap Lake in the Northwest Territories and Victor in northern Ontario with about 850 full-time employees, and another 50 part-time and seasonal workers.
About 40% of Victor and one-quarter of Snap Lake employees are aboriginal.
Aboriginal communities are represented by four separate Impact Benefit Agreements at Snap Lake; three Impact Benefit Agreements and a Working Relationship Agreement are in place with the communities surrounding Victor.
As many of you are aware, since I joined the PDAC Board in 2004, I have been actively advocating for greater participation by aboriginal peoples in our industry and greater co-operation between companies and communities. Thor Lake has provided an opportunity to practice what I have been preaching and for Avalon to actively implement some of the community engagement principles of E3 Plus that PDAC has been encouraging all of its members to adopt.
In this regard, I have been very fortunate to have Bill Mercer, another vocal advocate for better CSR practice in our industry, as a committed and inspirational partner.
Perhaps the two most successful and innovative initiatives were the driller helper training program which is a largely a tribute to Bill’s prodigious energy and enthusiasm and the Naming Ceremony an ambitious undertaking organized by our equally energetic community advisor in Yellowknife, David Connelly.
The PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award recognizes an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding initiative, leadership and accomplishment in protecting and preserving the natural environment or in developing good community relations during an exploration program or operation of a mine.
Avalon Rare Metals Inc. is being recognized for its responsible exploration practices with respect to community engagement and its encouragement of skills training and employment for aboriginal people.
Before applying for a land-use permit from the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board or setting foot on its new Thor Lake property in the Northwest Territories, Avalon President and CEO Don Bubar introduced himself with letters written to four Dene leader in communities around Thor Lake.
After several attempts at convening a meeting, Bubar was able to sit down with Dene leaders at a neutral location.
They were surprised that Avalon had not applied for a land-use permit before requesting a meeting. Other companies either had received or applied for land-use permits and then sought permission to enter Dene land.
The PDAC Bill Dennis Prospector of the Year Award honors the memory of past PDAC president Bill Dennis who was one of the association’s staunchest supporters during its formative years and a prominent and respected prospector. This award is presented to individuals or groups who have made a significant mineral discovery, offered noteworthy contributions to the PDAC, or have been involved in some important service or technological invention or innovation that helped improve the Canadian prospecting and exploration industry.
John D. Harvey, Donald Hoy, Richard Nemis, Neil D. Novak and Mac Watson are recognized for the significant base metals and chromite discoveries in northern Ontario’s Ring of Fire.
In 2002, Neil Novak, as vice-president of Spider Resources Inc., was seeking kimberlites in the James Bay lowlands in a joint venture with KWG Resources Inc.
Novak had found 1.1-billion-year-old, diamond-bearing kimberlites under 130 metres of sand and limestone. De Beers Canada Exploration, curious about Novak’s work, formed a JV with Spider-KWG to look at their geophysical and geochemical database.
Novak’s expertise led De Beers to launch a reverse-circulation drill program near McFauld’s Lake, northern Ontario.
The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) represents the interests of the Canadian mineral exploration and development industry. The association was established in 1932 in response to a proposed government regulation that threatened the livelihood of Ontario prospectors. The William (Bill) W. Dennis Prospector of the Year Award is presented to individuals or groups who have made a significant mineral discovery, offered noteworthy contributions to the PDAC, or have been involved in some important service or technological invention or innovation that helped improve the Canadian prospecting and exploration industry.
Originally looking for diamonds, in 1993, Albert Chislett and Chris Verbiski instead, discovered one of the world’s major nickel sulphide deposits near Nain, Labrador. The deposit was eventually bought by Inco Limited and most experts confirm the deposit will be a major source of nickel and regional prosperity for generations to come.
Mr. Chislett was born in Islington, Trinity Bay, Newfoundland in 1949. After studying business administration at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in Toronto, and working in the accounting department at Swift Premium in Ontario for five years, he established a successful construction company in St. John’s and operated it for 15 years.
His interest in geology and mineral exploration began in the late 1980s, stemming in part from his love of the outdoors. In 1988 he started operating an independent mineral exploration company and began prospecting full time. He was soon one of the most active prospectors in the province, and was the first to receive a provincial Prospector’s Assistance Program grant.
The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) represents the interests of the Canadian mineral exploration and development industry. The association was established in 1932 in response to a proposed government regulation that threatened the livelihood of Ontario prospectors. The William (Bill) W. Dennis Prospector of the Year Award is presented to individuals or groups who have made a significant mineral discovery, offered noteworthy contributions to the PDAC, or have been involved in some important service or technological invention or innovation that helped improve the Canadian prospecting and exploration industry.
Charles E. Fipke discovered Canada’s first diamond mine in the Northwest Territories about 300 kilometers northwest of Yellowknife.
Mr. Fipke is recognized as a leader in the diamond indicator mineral industry and has published a number of papers and articles that are widely used in the industry. In 1983, he founded Dia Met Minerals Ltd. The company went public the following year with the help of many local Kelowna investers.
As founder of the company, Mr. Fipke is credited with the original discovery of the Point Lake diamondiferous kimberlite pipe, where diamonds, including those of gem quality, were returned from drilling and bulk sampling program. The discovery was made after more than ten years of tenacious field exploration.
Mr. Fipke was born in Edmonton and received a bachelor of science degree (honours) in geology from the University of British Columbia. In the early part of his career, he worked as a geologist for Kennecott Copper Company in New Guinea; for Samedoan Oil Company in North Queensland, Australia; and for Johnesburg Consolidated Investments, in Barberton, South Africa.
The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) represents the interests of the Canadian mineral exploration and development industry. The association was established in 1932 in response to a proposed government regulation that threatened the livelihood of Ontario prospectors. The William (Bill) W. Dennis Prospector of the Year Award is presented to individuals or groups who have made a significant mineral discovery, offered noteworthy contributions to the PDAC, or have been involved in some important service or technological invention or innovation that helped improve the Canadian prospecting and exploration industry.
In 1961, while prospecting for a syndicate funded by Fred Jowsey of Denison Mine fame, Walter Baker discovered a 3,000 foot long gold bearing shear west of the Williams Claim that hosted a small gold resource formerly drilled by Teck Hughes.
He would go down in mining history as the old Kirkland Lake prospector who first suggested to Donald McKinnon that claims around the CPR whistle-stop of Hemlo might be worth looking into. Mr. McKinnon did look at those claims in northwestern Ontario and they are now the site of three of Canada’s major gold mines and many in the mining industry, might consider this prospector of wide repute as the “godfather” of the Hemlo mining camp.
Born in 1904 on the east side of Lake Winnipeg in the small village of Manigotogan, Manitoba, Walter Baker began prospecting at the age of nineteen in the Rice Lake Greenstone Belt.
He joined the San Antonio Gold Mine exploration staff in his early twenty’s and prospected almost every summer for that company focusing on virtually all of the remote greenstone belts extending through northwestern Ontario and northeastern Manitoba up until 1950. That year, he accepted a prospecting position for Teck Hughes and for the next nine years worked for that company using Kirkland Lake as a base.
The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) represents the interests of the Canadian mineral exploration and development industry. The association was established in 1932 in response to a proposed government regulation that threatened the livelihood of Ontario prospectors. The William (Bill) W. Dennis Prospector of the Year Award is presented to individuals or groups who have made a significant mineral discovery, offered noteworthy contributions to the PDAC, or have been involved in some important service or technological invention or innovation that helped improve the Canadian prospecting and exploration industry.
Alex Mosher came from a family that has been mining and prospecting in Canada for three generations. Although born in 1900 at the Eureka Gold Mine in Nova Scotia, Alex grew up and started is prospecting career in Cobalt.
In 1927, with his brother Murdock, he staked the Central Patricia gold mines. He played a key part in staking the Ashley Gold Mines in the Matachewan area in 1930. The following year, again along with his brother, staked a bloc of claims during the Little Long Lac staking rush that later became the Mosher Long Lac Gold Mines.
He participated in the first gold discovery in Yellowknife in 1938.
He also located and staked the first radioactive vein in 1947 at Otter Rapids on the Abitibi River, the first of its kind outside of the Northwest Territories, discovered the iron-ore Griffith Mine at Bruce Lake in 1953, in Northwestern Ontario, and the Chimo Gold Mines in Quebec in the mid-sixties.
During 1967 and 1968, Mr. Mosher was president of PDAC and together with W.W. Denis gave guidance and support to the Association in its early struggle to stay alive and effective. He was also inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame in 1990.
The PDAC Thayer Lindsley International Mineral Discoveries Award recognizes an individual or a team of explorationists credited with a recent significant mineral discovery anywhere in the world. It reflects the global nature of mining and the fact that Canadians are making enormous contribution to this sector. This award is in memory of Thayer Lindsley, one of the greatest mine finders in all time.
The PDAC Viola R. MacMillan is named after the PDAC’s longest serving president. It honours a person who has demonstrated leadership in management and financing for the exploration and development of mineral resources.
The PDAC Distinguished Services Award recognizes an individual for one or more of the following: substantial contribution to the mineral exploration and mining development; considerable time and effort expended on behalf of the PDAC; outstanding contributions to the industry in finance, geology, geophysics, geochemistry research, or a related activity.
The PDAC Skookum Jim Award is named after Skookum Jim, the Aboriginal leader of the group that discovered the Yukon Klondike goldfields, one of Canada’s most important mineral discoveries. Recipients of this award will have demonstrated exceptional achievement and/or service in a Canadian Aboriginal-run service business for the Canadian mining industry or a Canadian aboriginal exploration or mining company or made a significant individual contribution to the mineral industry either technically, through a business venture, or through a mineral discovery.
The PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award recognizes an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding initiative, leadership and accomplishment in protecting and preserving the natural environment or in developing good community relations during an exploration program or operation of a mine.
The PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award recognizes an individual or organization demonstrating outstanding initiative, leadership and accomplishment in protecting and preserving the natural environment or in developing good community relations during an exploration program or operation of a mine.
