INDUSTRY SUPPORT: Feds pledge millions for mineral industry

TORONTO — This is Mining Week in Canada (May 11 to 17) and also the annual meeting of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) held May 10 to 13. It was the perfect opportunity for the Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Natural Resources Canada, to outline the government's planned support for the mineral industry.

"Working together, we are reinforcing the foundation for long-term success and helping to build a mining industry that can compete economically, environmentally and socially with anyone in the world, anywhere in the world," Raitt said.

The new federal initiatives include:

• Accelerated funding of $8 million (from $22 million to $30 million this year) for the Geo-mapping for Energy and Minerals (GEM) program. Launched last year, the $100-million GEM program is completing geo-mapping of Canada's north for future mineral exploration and will also contribute to geo-mapping in southern Canada. One completed survey was released, with more expected, in advance of the field season.
• $250,000 in funding for the Canada Mining Innovation Council. CMIC is working to enhance the competitiveness of a responsible Canadian mining industry through excellence in research, innovation and commercialization.
• The Green Mining Initiative will support the development and demonstration of new green technologies and processes to enable improved environmental performance throughout the mining lifecycle thereby creating new opportunities for Canadian mining technology and service industries.
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Centre of Excellence. This is a new centre, which will be hosted by the CIM. It will help to ensure that Canadian mining companies are world leaders in CSR.

This year's federal budget already extended and enhanced a range of other initiatives that support the mining sector: tax credits, access to financing, training and development, and investments in infrastructure. The government's Economic Action Plan also created the $1-billion Community Adjustment Fund to help alleviate the effects of local economic downturns, particularly in mining and other resource-based communities.

The Natural Resources website is at www.NRCan.gc.ca.