By Cheryl Jahn

Mining Future In BC Is Bright

May 10, 2018 | 3:01 PM

According to the PricewaterhouseCoopers report, there are sixteen operating mines in BC, like Mount Million northwest of Mackenzie. It goes on to show steady growth year over year. The Mining Association of BC is touring the province, talking about the benefits of mining: it has put 30,000 British Columbians to work and generates more than $800 million in provincial taxes. But it’s a tough sell in the Lower Mainland.

“People in Vancouver love clean-energy vehicles and, when you tell them they’re going to need four times the amount of copper, it really catches their attention. Everyone’s toting a cell phone or an i-Pad.,” explains Lindsay Kislock, the Vice President of Corporate Affairs for the Mining Association of BC. “Things that people take for granted come from metals and minerals that are mined in BC. You have to draw that connection for people because if you can’t grow it, you have to mine it.” 

And Alec Morrison with the Mining Suppliers of BC says Prince George will benefit a great deal from things like the Blackwater Mine south of Vanderhoof when it gets its Environmental Assessment approved this summer.

“Just look at the companies that are along [the BCR Industrial Site]. You’ve got Finning, you’ve AJ Forsythe, you’ve got Brandt, you’ve got Cummins. Probably Prince George is one of the easiest places on Earth to see the benefits of mining because all these companies are the ones that supply services to the mines.”

The Association says BC is flush with factors that bode well for mining: there’s an abundance of the resource, there’s a strong labour force and easy access to ports. 

Fire

Fire on Anderson Street causes $100k in damages

36m ago

Walmart

Damaged wall closes Walmart until further notice

2h ago

Cannabis summit

BC Craft Cannabis Summit kicks off Friday in Prince George

4h ago

“But we’ve got to watch out for the things that can trip us up,” says Kislock. “We need to make sure that we have a clear, consistent and understandable regulatory framework we need a way to incent carbon reduction that doesn’t impact global competitiveness and we have to watch out for a regulatory and tax framework that doesn’t affect competitiveness.”

Without that, investor confidence will be shaky.