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PDAC e-News and Activities, April 27, 2007, No. 43
Page Index
23 students gear up for two-week, industry funded, exploration workshop
Implications of diamond royalty in Ontario need examination before
implementation
Board endorses move to make Qualified Environmental Trusts eligible for
flow-through
Submit your
photographs for e3 photograph contest
1st annual golf tournament to be hosted by PDAC Mining Matters
NRCan offers free digital topographic data over the Internet
Industry launches fund to clean up abandoned exploration sites in
northern Quebec
Survey winner receives
her gold wafer
Nunavut offers fuel tax rebate for mineral exploration
AME BC receives $100,000 to help fund First Nations community outreach
23 students gear up for two-week, industry funded, exploration workshop
The first annual student-industry mineral exploration workshop will be
held in Sudbury next month. This program has been organized by the
PDAC’s student affairs committee as part of its mandate to attract more
students into the mineral exploration industry. Twenty three senior
geoscience students from universities across Canada have been sponsored
to take part in the two-week workshop (May 5 to 19) which will cover
exploration techniques, mineral deposits, geophysics, geochemistry,
regulatory requirements, environmental, health and safety and corporate
social responsibility issues. Field trips to Timmins, Rouyn-Noranda and
Sudbury are also part of the program.
Click here for the names and photographs of the students attending
and the program.
Implications of diamond royalty in Ontario need examination before
implementation
In a surprise move, the Government of Ontario announced in its March 22
budget that it would introduce a new diamond royalty on the value of a
diamond mine’s output, up to a maximum of 14%. Hearings were held
earlier this week on the Bill that will enact the budget measures,
including this royalty. In a written submission, the PDAC points to the
possible effect of the royalty on Ontario’s competitiveness within
Canada and globally. The arbitrary way in which the government chose to
announce the new royalty, with no prior consultation with industry and
seemingly little research on its impact, is also a concern. “How these
new costs will affect current and proposed projects…” it states, “should
be a matter of detailed research and consultation by the provincial
government prior to any change in the taxation regime.”
Click
here for the full text.
Board endorses move to make Qualified Environmental Trusts eligible for
flow-through
A Qualified Environmental Trust (QET) provides for financial security
for mine reclamation purposes. Under Canada’s Income Tax Act,
contributions are deductible in the year of contribution. The program
was introduced in the mid-1990s but has not been successful in promoting
the funding of reclamation trusts. The PDAC is supporting an initiative
that is seeking to have the Income Tax Act amended to make QET
contributions eligible for flow-through share treatment. For more
information, please contact
MaryAnne Mihychuk,
director, regulatory affairs.
Submit
your photographs for e3 photograph contest
Friday, May 18 is the deadline for submission of photographs for the
second e3 Environmental Excellence in Exploration contest. Photographs
depicting the principles of e3, i.e., community engagement and
environmental practices during mineral exploration, are invited. There
are a number of contest prizes, including a one-ounce, gold maple leaf
coin for the best photograph submitted.
Click
here for contest details.
1st annual golf tournament to be hosted by PDAC Mining Matters
On Thursday, June 7, PDAC Mining Matters will host its first annual golf
tournament in support of its charitable efforts to educate students
about Canada’s geology and mineral resource endowment. The Diamond in
the Rough Golf Classic will be held at the Glenway Country Club in
Newmarket, Ontario, and offers companies an excellent opportunity to
profile their businesses to stakeholders, clients and colleagues.
Corporate teams will enjoy: golf, prizes, entertainment and contests;
food and product samplings; live and silent auctions; outstanding prizes
and giveaways; breakfast, lunch and dinner. More information
here.
NRCan offers free digital topographic data over the Internet
From the beginning of April, Natural Resources Canada began offering
free access to its electronic topographic mapping data. The department
is also permitting the free redistribution of these data. Go to
GeoGratis to
access and download the data. This new no-fee access policy builds on an
earlier national program called
GeoBase which
provides free access to various co-owned federal, provincial, and
territorial topographic data sets.
Industry launches fund to clean up abandoned exploration sites in
northern Quebec
Mining and exploration companies active in Quebec are behind a recently
launched program to clean up abandoned mineral exploration sites in the
Nunavik region of northern Quebec. The Fonds Restor-Action Nunavik has
been set up to raise enough money to clean up at least 25 sites that
have been identified as posing a major risk to the environment. The
money will be spent on measures to return the environment to its
original condition, e.g., hazardous materials will be removed, on-site
burns of combustible and non-toxic debris will be carried out. This
program, which also has government support, aims to demonstrate that
today’s exploration and mining companies take their social and
environmental responsibilities seriously. For further details about the
program, click
here.
Survey winner
receives her gold wafer
As part of its strategic planning process, the association conducted a
membership survey last year. The response was excellent, and again we
thank those members who participated. Winner of the gold wafer was
Merline Laure Djouka-Fonkwe, a post-doctoral student at Queen’s
University at Kingston.
Here she is seen receiving her gold wafer from PDAC director Michael
Doggett.
Nunavut offers fuel tax rebate for mineral exploration
We have been asked to remind our members that Nunavut has a fuel tax
rebate program for mineral exploration. Anyone with a current
prospecting licence is eligible for the rebate on fuel used in
machinery, equipment, registered snowmobiles, ATVs, and aircraft used in
exploration. The program took effect on April 1, 2006. For more details
about the program and how to apply for the rebate,
click
here.
AME BC receives $100,000 to help fund First Nations community outreach
The British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources
has given the Association for Mineral Exploration BC (AME BC) $100,000
to help fund the association’s First Nations community engagement
programs. The funding will be used principally to increase the First
Nations’ awareness, knowledge and understanding of the mining industry.
According to AME BC president & CEO Dan Jepsen, “This funding will play
a key role in providing resources for First Nations to explore
opportunities in mineral exploration and mining.” |
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