Quebec offers bright spot as PDAC rides out rocky time

There was a hint of anxiety in the air at this year’s annual Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention in Toronto, as representatives of the mining community pondered a rocky road ahead. While company executives called for immediate action to improve mining’s battered public image, unemployed exploration geologists roamed the halls hoping to find that elusive job lead.

“Never in my 30 years (in the business) have conditions combined to be as tough and challenging as they are to-day,” said Frank Pickard, president and CEO of Falconbridge. “Whether we like it or not, the mining industry is not making the grade.”

But amid the doom and gloom was a collective determination to ride out the current recession and take steps to ensure Canada’s mining industry avoids the fate of the dinosaur.

About 2,700 delegates (the turnout down slightly from last year) showed up to catch up on the latest developments in the industry. Speakers who focused on everything from the environment to their experiences in developing gold mines, were greeted by a receptive audience that, at times, came close to filling the Royal York Hotel’s expansive Concert Hall.

“The technical program has been very successful,” said Saley Lawton, a PDAC spokesperson. “The papers have been excellent, especially the talks on the environment.”

The core shack was a hive of activity and excitement as dele-gates examined core from some of 1990’s best exploration plays, including the Lynne zinc project in Wisconsin, the Freewest gold deposit in northeastern Ontario and the Grevet copper-zinc play in Quebec.

And, despite a disastrous fiscal year, including millions of dollars in writedowns, delegates were determined to have a good time as they splurged on well-stocked hotel suites and rekindled old friendships.

In keeping with the convention’s theme, “Mining’s vital role in society,” Pickard and fellow speaker Kirkland Lake Mayor Joe Mavrinac stressed the part mining has played in building and sustaining Canada’s northern communities.

Even New Democratic Party leader Audrey McLaughlin had a good word to say about the historical contribution mining has made to the Yukon, her own constituency. Although the bulk of her luncheon speech was devoted to the question of national unity, she did offer tentative support for Quebec’s exploration incentive program at a press conference after the lunch.

But the prevalent message coming from convention speakers was that the industry had better pull up its socks with regard to the environment, labor and it overall public image, or face a continuing downturn.

“Making money from mineral production is becoming increasingly difficult,” said Hugh Wynne Edwards, president of Terracy Inc. and science adviser for Teck (TSE). He added that in order live up to the challenges ahead, miners must become faster, cheaper and greener.

The PDAC itself, led by incoming president Fenton Scott, faces the challenge of successfully promoting the mineral industry in the coming year. Growing concern about the association’s role prompted about 150 people to attend the early-morning annual general meeting. Although the PDAC-proposed slate of 16 directors was elected at the meeting, 15 other persons expressed an interest in taking on the job.

Much later, at the annual awards banquet, representatives from British Columbia captured a number of awards. Geologist Ron Netolitzky was named Prospector of the Year for his efforts in exploring and financing both the Eskay Creek and Snip deposits in British Columbia. And Robert Hunter and Robert Dickinson, who were instrumental in financing the Mt. Milligan gold-copper porphyry project in the province, walked away with the Developer’s award.

Lise Bacon, Quebec’s deputy premier and minister of energy and resources, presented the awards. She offered what were perhaps the most encouraging comments of the convention. Despite the nationwide economic downturn, Quebec’s tax incentive scheme, she said, has kept the province’s exploration sector alive.

A recent study, Bacon said, indicated that a $10 million investment in Quebec’s mining sector generates 177 jobs and an annual payroll of $5.7 million, compared with 155 jobs and $2.8 million in the private sector.

“These figures are very persuasive and fully justify government support for mining,” she said.

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