Top Ten on "Mining Round-up Conference"

Courtesy of Hon. Pat Bell - BC Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation:

1. A new agreement with First Nations in the north that provides certainty around resource development along with a reduced backlog of mining permits will help create jobs in the mining sector, Premier Christy Clark announced in her speech to Round Up 2012. The plan also includes a government-to-government Strategic Land Use Planning Agreement with the Kaska Dena Council that will guide future resource development within its traditional territory, but outside the new plan area. The agreement covers more than 7.4 million hectares from the Dease-Liard region to Mackenzie.

2. The latest provincial safety statistics show the B.C. mining industry has not experienced a mine operations fatality since September 2009, the longest period of time without fatalities since 1898.

3. B.C. experienced its second consecutive year of rising mineral exploration expenditures in 2011, as the mineral exploration and mining industry continued a dramatic upward trend. The preliminary regional estimates for exploration expenditures are $463 million in 2011, up 35 per cent from $341 million in 2010. It also represents a 1,500 per cent increase over the 2001 figure of $29 million.

4. Today, two major mines are under construction in the province – Mt. Milligan copper gold mine between Fort St. James and Mackenzie and New Afton copper gold mine near Kamloops. The Province also recently permitted Barkerville Gold Mines Ltd.’s Bonanza Ledge property in December 2011, with construction expected to start this year.

5. The mining industry and related minerals sectors employed over 29,000 people in 2011. The ‘Canada Starts Here: BC’s Job Plan’ commitment to expand nine mines and open eight additional mines by 2015, is expected to generate an increase of mine-operation revenue estimated at $1.6 billion per year once these projects are fully operational and create about 1,800 new and sustain more than 5,000 jobs because of longer mine lives.

6. If you’re interested in a fairly detailed map of mining activities in BC the most current one is available here

7. The Mining Association of BC has a great Career website at http://www.mining.bc.ca/min_careers_consider.htm if you know of anyone looking for work.

8. There was a great editorial in the Vancouver Sun on our Jobs Plan as it relates to Mining. http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Editorial+Jobs+plan+Clark+family+first+agenda/6064567/story.html

9. Did you know that 8 years ago Gold was less than $300 per ounce and today it’s averaging $1,650 per ounce?

10. Total mining revenue revenues for 2010 was $7.9 billion with 8,195 direct employees earning and average of $108,100.