| AME BC welcomed the continued growth in the BC and global economy in the second quarter of 2010. In May, the Conference Board of Canada projected 3.8% real GDP growth for BC in 2010, exceeding national growth of 3.3%. Last year, in comparison, the GDP in BC shrank by 3.0%. Even with some recent market volatility, there are many relative signs – higher commodity prices, improved credit access, and increased investments as compared to last year – that bode well for the future of mineral exploration and mine development in BC. Exploration is the lifeblood of mining and with 28 new mineral deposit discoveries made in BC recently, the future looks healthy indeed. There are currently over 350 active exploration projects underway and more than 30 proposed new mines in the province, of which close to a quarter are in final permitting and nearing production. On June 11, AME BC thanked Peace River South MLA Blair Lekstrom for his service as BC Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, and welcomed his successor in the provincial cabinet, Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett. We look forward to working with Minister Bennett, who had previously served as Minister of State for Mining from 2005 to 2007, in his new role. Randy Hawes continues to serve as Minister of State for Mining. AME BC helped to sponsor Team Miracle’s three-person First Aid team at the BC Mine Rescue Competition, which was held from June 4 to 6, in Fernie. The team did very well in raising awareness of safety and the Mining for Miracles fundraising campaign. As well, AME BC members have run an annual survey of health and safety performance in the western Canadian mineral exploration sector since 1982, and this year, we have collaborated for the fifth year with the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada on the nationwide Canadian Mineral Exploration Health & Safety Survey. A record 110 companies filled out the survey on their 2009 activities, and we look forward to even higher participation in the 2010 survey. Back on March 27, AME BC hosted the seventh annual safety workshop that attracted 53 registrants, the highest registration number since 2005. For AME BC, the second quarter of 2010 was marked by increased discussions with the provincial government on key issues such as exploration project permitting, access to lands open for mineral exploration, support of geoscience and having a ministry well resourced to serve the growing mineral exploration and mine development sector. The Association has maintained a steadfast approach when advocating for the 2-Zone land use model so that future land use decisions actually bring increased certainty to our members. As part of this effort, we travelled to Atlin in June to meet with the Taku River Tlingit First Nation and Atlin community members to continue a very detailed and direct discussion about the draft Atlin Taku Land Use Plan and mineral exploration and development challenges and opportunities. As well, we continue to hold the government to their commitment to provide compensation to impacted mineral tenure holders in the Flathead Valley and have received assurances recently from Minister Bennett that compensation will be paid, with, or without, American money from Washington, D.C.”
Over the last three months, AME BC has continued to facilitate broader industry discussions with Regional Exploration Groups regarding the provincial government’s proposed mineral tenure changes. We have also communicated industry’s concerns to the provincial government regarding Bills 8 and 20 and their respective changes to sections of the Mineral Tenure Act (MTA). As well, we thanked the provincial government for Bill 15, which called for the re-establishment of approximately 15,000 hectares of mineral lands previously protected. These areas are now incorporated in mining/tourism zones which allow for mineral exploration and mine development. Federally, while AME BC is very supportive of the principles of corporate social responsibility, we remain strongly opposed to Bill C-300. A more welcome recent sign has been demonstrated by the federal government through their commitments to reforming the duplicative environmental assessment process. BC Mining Week, from May 9 to 15, was one of many events in which AME BC has participated in over the spring. The Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum conference was held simultaneously in Vancouver and AME BC was proud to participate in the Mining in Society pavilion, which educated students, future employees and the general public about our sector. AME BC members also helped raise $1.45 million for BC Children’s Hospital in the annual Mining for Miracles fundraising campaign. At the April 30 Speaker Series luncheon, we successfully hosted Aboriginal Relations & Reconciliation Minister George Abbott and Beverley Clifton Percival or Gwaans (Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs and Chair of the BC All Chiefs’ Task Force). And following AME BC’s participation in the Nanwakolas Council’s First Nations Resource Opportunities Conference in Nanaimo on May 5, we continue to engage with aboriginal communities to build stronger, more respectful relationships. Simultaneously, the new BC Aboriginal Mine Training Association is taking the first steps towards training the mineral exploration and mining workforce of the future and building the provinces overall capacity. Throughout April, we collaborated with Canadian Blood Services on the Mining Community Challenge, in which 25 participants helped potentially save up to 75 lives through donating blood. On May 18 we were also pleased to host another successful AME BC Invitational Golf Tournament in Richmond where over 140 golfers participated. The tournament raised $21,000 for Dr. Sheila Stenzel’s Mineral Resources Education Program of BC and $1,155 for The Prostate Centre at Vancouver General Hospital. AME BC also participated in the Kamloops Exploration Group conference, the Minerals North conference held in Prince George, and numerous local government conferences along with Geoscience BC and the Mining Association of BC. An important achievement took place at the BC Chamber of Commerce (BCCC) AGM held in Vancouver from May 27 to 29, when two key policy areas related to mining and investment in geoscience (both the BC Geological Survey and Geoscience BC) were raised to priority status areas in 2010 for the BCCC. Recently, AME BC members have been developing guiding principles for geoscience and continuing to explore options for longterm funding for Geoscience BC, which will in turn increase grassroots investment and spur rural economic development. AME BC also continues to support the Northwest Transmission Line, which is currently moving through its environmental assessment and public review period and could potentially stimulate over $15 billion in capital investment in the vicinity of the “Golden Triangle” in northwestern British Columbia. On June 1, we welcomed Rick Conte to the AME BC staff as Vice President, Technical and Regulatory Affairs. As many of you know, Rick was the Executive Director with Mineral Titles Branch, a part of the provincial Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, since 2002. Rick will be an asset to the AME BC staff and organization and will help to immediately and effectively communicate our members’ positions and challenges on a number of challenging issues, such as land use planning, permitting and environmental assessment, mineral tenure and rights, geoscience and economic incentives. On behalf of the staff and board of AME BC, I thank all the volunteers and members of the Association for their efforts to build a stronger, more unified industry in 2010. No matter where you are in the world, I wish you well in your prospects. Have a safe day, every day. Best regards, Gavin C. Dirom, M.Sc., P. Ag.
President & CEO, AME BC
www.amebc.ca Printer Friendly Version  | |  Gavin C. Dirom
M.Sc., P. Ag.
President & CEO,
AME BC
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