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Mining Association of Canada Releases 2009 Facts and Figures

On August 31, 2009, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) released its annual Facts and Figures 2009 publication. The document's release coincides with the 66th annual Mines Ministers meeting being held in St. John's, N.L., where federal, provincial and territorial energy and mines ministers are to discuss the obstacles and opportunities facing the energy and mining sectors as a result of the downturn in the global economy.

The document highlights the importance of the sector in the Canadian economy, which in 2008 contributed $40 billion to Canada's GDP, while paying an approximate $11.5 billion in taxes to Federal, Provincial and Territorial coffers. From an employment standpoint, in addition to being of key importance to remote communities, the sector employed 351,000 workers involved in mineral extraction, smelting, fabrication and manufacturing and created business opportunities for an estimated 3,140 suppliers who provide equipment, consumables and expertise to the industry, including hundreds of manufacturing, engineering, geotechnical, environmental and financial firms.

MAC comments that while the impacts of the worldwide recession on the Canadian mining sector were very real, with companies operating below capacity and where operations in some 32 mines were closed or suspended over a six-month period, the industry will continue to be a significant contributor to the Canadian economy. As a consequence, it will be critically important that Canada's natural resource ministers maintain and enhance their dedication to economic development. Advocacy for infrastructure projects, for improved regulatory efficiency, for more open access to land, for northern development, and for tax incentives to encourage increased investment, will remain fundamental to the industry's continued success and to a stronger Canadian industry.

In a statement made today, MAC's President and CEO Gordon Peeling reminded the ministers that "Minerals and metals help build the products and infrastructure essential to modern life. The mineral exploration and mining industry makes a significant annual contribution to the Canadian economy, including through payments to governments, and its output is fundamental to the emergence of clean energy technologies".

Canadian Provinces Look Towards Electricity to Reduce Carbon Emissions

The Province of Nova Scotia has recently passed legislation which will apply to Nova Scotia Power Inc. (the company that provides 97 percent of the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to the province) aiming at reducing carbon emissions at the province's coal-fired electric utility by 2.5 million tonnes by the year 2020.

"This is a major stride forward in meeting the province's goals to combat climate change and its effects", said Sterling Belliveau, Minister of Environment. "This will help achieve the key reductions called for in the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act, which commits the province to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least ten per cent below 1990 levels by 2020 and significantly reducing emissions that cause air pollution."

Nova Scotia's Government has released a Provincial Climate Action Plan and a companion Energy Strategy of which the recent electricity regulations are a part.

The Energy Strategy reports that 46% of emissions in Nova Scotia are attributable to electricity generation, and 75% of the province's electricity comes from coal, the province's "Dirtiest Fuel". The Province looks to harness its renewable resources of wind and tidal energy with the goal of exporting such renewable energy to neighboring jurisdictions. Nova Scotia has acknowledged that substantial investment will need to be made in the province's energy infrastructure and electricity grid to achieve its goals.

Alberta is also implementing changes to electricity legislation. As a further move to implement the Provincial Energy Strategy, Bill 50, the Electric Statutes Amendment Act was introduced to Alberta's Legislature on June 1, 2009 which will amend three statutes the Alberta Utilities Commission Act, the Electric Utilities Act and the Hydro and Electric Energy Act. Bill 50 is designed to transform energy transmission infrastructure in Alberta as conceptualized by the
Immediate and Potential Critical Transmission Infrastructure Map prepared by Alberta Energy. Bill 50 supports sustained economic prosperity and clean energy production and is set to be debated in the fall sitting of Alberta's legislature.

The Global Energy Network Institute has recognized Alberta's commitment to electricity infrastructure as a way to conserve energy resources and incorporate renewable energy resources into Alberta's energy grid.

Improving Alberta's electricity transmission and new critical transmission infrastructure is essential to implementing Alberta's Provincial Energy Strategy and maximizing the future growth of renewable energy resources such as wind, hydro and biomass energy as well as reducing Alberta's carbon footprint by minimizing waste and loss in electricity transmission within the province.

Interestingly, and on a related note, a number of new technologies are being developed to advance energy infrastructure such as the smart infrastructure technology, reported in the New York Times:

"Smart infrastructure is a new horizon for computer technology. Computers have proven themselves powerful tools for calculation and communication. The next step, experts say, is for computers to become intelligent instruments of control, linking them to data-generating sensors throughout the planet's infrastructure. "We are entering a new phase of computing, in which computers will be interacting with the physical world as never before," said Edward Lazowska, a professor of computer science at the University of Washington."

Alberta's legislature will commence it's fall session on October 26, 2009. We will keep you posted on the status of Bill 50 as it unfolds.