Post by Max on Dec 1, 2007 14:07:39 GMT -3
It was bold and forthright when released in September 2006. But more than a year later, little has changed in Greater Sudbury since the Claiming Our Stake! Building a Sustainable Community was released, particularly in its call for a greater share of the mining wealth being produced in the Sudbury Basin.
Claiming Our Stake! sought to define a sustainable and equitable partnership between the city and the mining industry.
"The City of Greater Sudbury intends to forge a dynamic partnership with the new owners of Inco and Xstrata Nickel," said the report. "This new relationship must encourage a sustainable development that will benefit both the local community and the new owners by equitably sharing the enormous wealth of the Sudbury Basin. This partnership will be based on the commitment of industry, government and the community to investing in the opportunities that are before us."
The report identified 21 investment opportunities required to make the Sudbury Basin the premiere high-tech mining centre for the 21st century.
It called on the mining industry to make significant investments in local operations, training and education, research and innovation, local business and a sustainable community.
The 24-page report called for a "stronger corporate presence" by the mining companies through the relocation of Canadian head offices to the city, full funding of pension plans, more investment in local exploration, training and educating young people to consider mining as a career and making the Centre for Mining Excellence and Innovation a priority. It even proposed a Community Trust Fund, which would be built up through a portion of mining profits.
The report also called for a change in corporate taxation policy. At the moment, the municipality only receives 15 per cent of the tax dollars Vale Inco and Xstrata Nickel pay. The federal government gets 50 per cent of those tax dollars and the province 35 per cent.
The report was prepared by the Community Stakeholders' Task Force on the Future of the Local Mining Industry, a 12-member panel that included then mayor Dave Courtemanche, former Inco executive Jose Blanco, and John Gammon, director of mining initiatives at Laurentian University.
Greg Baiden, a Laurentian University engineering professor who was also a member of the panel, said there is still hope that the report's recommendations will be acted upon.
"I think a lot of them are long-term things," said Baiden, who is also Canadian Research Chair in Robotics and Mine Automation. "People should be pouncing on the report and doing what (Sudbury Star) are doing. 'Where are we? What have we done as a community? What has been done to implement this?' "
Baiden worked 15 years as Inco's manager of mine research and was one of 10 senior individuals running the Ontario division before moving to Laurentian. He said mining needs to be viewed in a different light.
"One of the things I am quite disturbed about in this respect is mining properties," he said. "Miners (companies) are able to mine the ores of the communities they are in as a privilege. It's a privilege bestowed on them by the society in which they are in ... When you start looking at 200, 300, 400 years in length, it's as much a societal claim as it is a mining claim ... I don't see societal leaders standing up."
Baiden said as an Inco insider, he saw the start of a corporate move to more community involvement, sponsorship and leadership, which was a good thing.
"But, when companies go offshore, I'm not sure it happens," he said. "It's a long-term itch that concerns me."
Baiden added it's also very uncomfortable for him to know a good portion of the mining wealth generated in Greater Sudbury ends up in Toronto and Ottawa, while the people who generate that mining wealth "have to drive to work on potholed roads."
That's the best sign that the two senior levels of government don't fully understand how important the mining industry is, he said.
"(Greater Sudbury) is one of the most important places in the world for mining equipment," said Baiden. "We lost, as a country, Massey-Ferguson. I'm a big fan of Mining Technologies International. It's the last mining equipment manufacturing facility that's left in Canada. We have to support these guys.:
Baiden is not surprised that synergy talks are underway between Vale Inco and Xstrata Nickel.
"The mining companies are going to do what they need to do to find the things that are going to be profitable," he said. "It makes a lot of sense to put the two organizations together in one way, shape or form."
Baiden said it's a strong possibility some type of joint-venture partnership could result out of the talks, with Vale Inco focusing on nickel and Xstrata Nickel on copper.
"You may see Xstrata, if they don't have a big-enough presence in nickel, want to get out of nickel," he said. "There may be a trading of metals. 'We will take your nickel concentrate for copper concentrate."
Claiming Our Stake! sought to define a sustainable and equitable partnership between the city and the mining industry.
"The City of Greater Sudbury intends to forge a dynamic partnership with the new owners of Inco and Xstrata Nickel," said the report. "This new relationship must encourage a sustainable development that will benefit both the local community and the new owners by equitably sharing the enormous wealth of the Sudbury Basin. This partnership will be based on the commitment of industry, government and the community to investing in the opportunities that are before us."
The report identified 21 investment opportunities required to make the Sudbury Basin the premiere high-tech mining centre for the 21st century.
It called on the mining industry to make significant investments in local operations, training and education, research and innovation, local business and a sustainable community.
The 24-page report called for a "stronger corporate presence" by the mining companies through the relocation of Canadian head offices to the city, full funding of pension plans, more investment in local exploration, training and educating young people to consider mining as a career and making the Centre for Mining Excellence and Innovation a priority. It even proposed a Community Trust Fund, which would be built up through a portion of mining profits.
The report also called for a change in corporate taxation policy. At the moment, the municipality only receives 15 per cent of the tax dollars Vale Inco and Xstrata Nickel pay. The federal government gets 50 per cent of those tax dollars and the province 35 per cent.
The report was prepared by the Community Stakeholders' Task Force on the Future of the Local Mining Industry, a 12-member panel that included then mayor Dave Courtemanche, former Inco executive Jose Blanco, and John Gammon, director of mining initiatives at Laurentian University.
Greg Baiden, a Laurentian University engineering professor who was also a member of the panel, said there is still hope that the report's recommendations will be acted upon.
"I think a lot of them are long-term things," said Baiden, who is also Canadian Research Chair in Robotics and Mine Automation. "People should be pouncing on the report and doing what (Sudbury Star) are doing. 'Where are we? What have we done as a community? What has been done to implement this?' "
Baiden worked 15 years as Inco's manager of mine research and was one of 10 senior individuals running the Ontario division before moving to Laurentian. He said mining needs to be viewed in a different light.
"One of the things I am quite disturbed about in this respect is mining properties," he said. "Miners (companies) are able to mine the ores of the communities they are in as a privilege. It's a privilege bestowed on them by the society in which they are in ... When you start looking at 200, 300, 400 years in length, it's as much a societal claim as it is a mining claim ... I don't see societal leaders standing up."
Baiden said as an Inco insider, he saw the start of a corporate move to more community involvement, sponsorship and leadership, which was a good thing.
"But, when companies go offshore, I'm not sure it happens," he said. "It's a long-term itch that concerns me."
Baiden added it's also very uncomfortable for him to know a good portion of the mining wealth generated in Greater Sudbury ends up in Toronto and Ottawa, while the people who generate that mining wealth "have to drive to work on potholed roads."
That's the best sign that the two senior levels of government don't fully understand how important the mining industry is, he said.
"(Greater Sudbury) is one of the most important places in the world for mining equipment," said Baiden. "We lost, as a country, Massey-Ferguson. I'm a big fan of Mining Technologies International. It's the last mining equipment manufacturing facility that's left in Canada. We have to support these guys.:
Baiden is not surprised that synergy talks are underway between Vale Inco and Xstrata Nickel.
"The mining companies are going to do what they need to do to find the things that are going to be profitable," he said. "It makes a lot of sense to put the two organizations together in one way, shape or form."
Baiden said it's a strong possibility some type of joint-venture partnership could result out of the talks, with Vale Inco focusing on nickel and Xstrata Nickel on copper.
"You may see Xstrata, if they don't have a big-enough presence in nickel, want to get out of nickel," he said. "There may be a trading of metals. 'We will take your nickel concentrate for copper concentrate."