Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Hello. Aanii. Good morning to everyone. Thanks to the members of the committee for this opportunity to appear today.
As the chair said, I'm Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk, executive director of the Goodman School of Mines at Laurentian University. I'm also the president and CEO of MIRARCO Mining Innovation, and I hold an NOHFC industrial research chair in biomining and bioremediation. I'm based in Sudbury, Ontario, one of Canada's historic mining regions and a global centre of mining innovation. My remarks today focus on the relationship between critical minerals, research capacity and Canada's long-term defence sovereignty.
I'd like to start with one point: Canada's defence sovereignty is inseparable from its mineral sovereignty. Modern defence systems are fundamentally materials-dependent. Advanced communications systems, aerospace sensors, autonomous systems and electrified military infrastructure all rely on secure access to critical minerals such as nickel, copper, cobalt and rare earth elements.
Canada is very fortunate to possess significant mineral resources. However, the real strategic vulnerability today is not our geology; it is our processing capacity and supply chain dependence. In many cases, Canadian minerals are exported for refining and upgrading abroad before returning as inputs into advanced technologies. This reliance on foreign-controlled processing exposes Canada and our allies to supply disruption, export controls and geopolitical pressure.
Canada's defence industrial strategy recognizes that securing supply chains is key for inputs of critical minerals and essential to operational readiness and sovereignty. Put simply, geology alone does not provide security. Domestic processing capability and innovative, integrated supply chains do.
One of the most immediate opportunities to strengthen the capability lies in Canada's legacy mine waste. Across the country, more than 10,000 historical mine waste and tailings deposits contain recoverable concentrations of nickel, copper, cobalt, rare earth elements and others. These deposits represent significant elemental reserves. In Sudbury alone, for example, legacy tailings are estimated to contain 8 billion to 10 billion dollars' worth of nickel, and it is similar for copper and cobalt.
Mine waste valorization offers several strategic advantages. First, it can provide near-term domestic sources of critical minerals. Second, these projects should have shorter permitting timelines and lower capital costs compared to new greenfield mines. Third, when paired with emerging technologies, such as biomining or other low-energy recovery methods, it can reduce energy intensity while also advancing environmental remediation and reducing long-term impacts. From a national security perspective, mine waste should therefore be reframed as a latent strategic mineral reserve available for near-term development.
Canada has begun recognizing this opportunity through initiatives such as Natural Resources Canada's mining value from waste program. However, to fully realize this potential, we need to accelerate the national tailings database, resource evaluation, processing technologies and domestic mineral upgrading capacity.
This brings me to the role of research in universities. Recovering minerals from tailings is not straightforward. These materials do not behave like primary ore bodies. Each deposit requires tailored processing approaches and piloting scale-up. This is where Canada's research ecosystem becomes critical.
Canada has a strong and growing capability in metallurgy, mineral characterization, AI applied to process optimization, technologies such as biomining, and cold region mining systems. These areas intersect directly with defence priorities related to supply chain resilience, advanced materials and energy security.
Universities and colleges, of course, are foundational to this capability. We conduct the discovery research that underpins new mineral recovery technologies. We train the engineers, metallurgists, material scientists and skilled trades required for sovereign capability. We operate piloting facilities, like those that I've built at Laurentian and MIRARCO in Sudbury, that can help move technologies from lab discovery to industrial deployment. A strong defence industrial base is therefore built not only on factories, laboratories and piloting facilities, but also on classrooms.
At Laurentian University, for example, we recently launched the minerals and mining strategy, which is designed to strengthen our role as Canada's mining university during a period of geopolitical change and rising demand for critical minerals. Many of the initiatives we've outlined in that strategy, from mineral processing and advanced materials to automation and battery technologies, align specifically with emerging defence priorities.
In closing, I would humbly like to offer six recommendations for consideration.
First, recognize mineral processing and recovery as sovereign defence capabilities.
Second, treat mine waste valorization as a strategic reserve strategy.
Third, embed mineral and materials expertise within defence research advisory structures.
Fourth, invest in secure university and applied research infrastructure supporting defence-relevant mineral innovation.
Fifth, align critical minerals workforce development with the Canada defence skills agenda.
Sixth, ensure Canadian intellectual property arising from mineral innovation is protected within procurement and commercialization frameworks.
Canada has the mineral endowment, the research capacity and the industrial expertise to strengthen allied critical mineral supply chains. The opportunity now is to connect those strengths into a coherent strategy that supports economic prosperity, environmental sustainability and national security.
With that, I close my statement. Thank you.