Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, honourable members and fellow witnesses.
On behalf of Her Worship, Mayor Marianne Matichuk, members of city council and the citizens of the City of Greater Sudbury, I am very pleased to be here this morning to discuss some of our history in mining and resource development in northern Ontario. It's a subject we've been dealing with for more than 100 years.
Greater Sudbury is an undisputed global centre of mining expertise. Over the past 130 years, billions if not trillions of dollars in nickel, copper, platinum, gold, and many other minerals have been mined, milled, smelted, and refined in our city. Today, even with more than a century of mining activity, an estimated $40 billion of mineral reserves have been currently identified, and constant exploration adds to this total every day. We are the largest geographic municipality in Ontario. Within our municipal boundaries, there are approximately 7,000 workers employed directly in mining production and mineral processing, while about twice that number work in the mining supply and services industries.
Nowhere else in the world will you find this level of mining activity within a fully urban city. Our community is an outstanding example of where the mining industry has been and where it's going. We lived through the environmental devastation of the antiquated mining and mineral processing methods that were in place up until the 1960s. People in Sudbury and our constituent communities of Garson, Copper Cliff, and Coniston faced the sulphurous fumes of the roasting beds and smelters, living in a landscape devoid of vegetation and hostile to the eye, but over the past 40 years, we have reclaimed our environment by planting almost 10 million trees, neutralizing acidic soils, and improving lake water quality.
Our mining industry partners have joined us in these efforts and made substantial changes to their processes and facilities. Sulphur emissions have been reduced by as much as 90%, dust has been controlled, and tailings drainage is now treated and contained. The result is a regional capital of 160,000 people in a city that contains over 330 freshwater lakes amid the natural beauty that is northern Ontario. We are a green and beautiful city, but we remain a mining giant. In 2011 alone, operations in Greater Sudbury produced 106,000 tonnes of nickel, 164,000 tonnes of copper, more than 3,000 tonnes of cobalt, and more than 73,000 ounces of precious metals.
Where does this leave us? What can the City of Greater Sudbury offer to your study on mining and resource development in northern Canada?
We believe very strongly that Sudbury's history and experience provides a unique perspective and significant lessons for new developments such as the Ring of Fire. We believe as well that the federal government has an important role to play in advancing these developments and the entire mining and mineral processing industry in the coming decades. More than ever before, Canada requires a national mining strategy, a policy framework that recognizes the high-tech, research-driven nature of modern mining and positions the resource-rich areas of our country to realize maximum benefits from the riches under our feet.
There is no doubt that the consolidation and expansion of international mining players will continue to have an impact on our resource sector. It is important that global companies be able to invest in Canada, as they are able to access the large amounts of capital required to bring large projects like the Ring of Fire into development and production. At the same time, however, it is critical that the federal government ensure that Canada’s natural resources are developed in a way that benefits the region and the province in which they are found. This balance is challenging to achieve, but is critical to the long-term future of our resource sector.
The next 10 to 20 years present an historic opportunity for Canada in terms of mineral development. Global demand for commodities will allow continued expansion of our mining sector, and new discoveries are being readied for development on a regular basis. The challenge for the federal government is to respond with a regulatory regime that protects the legitimate interests of Canadians while encouraging timely development.
At the present time, Canadian mines and mining companies have a technological and political advantage over emerging areas. We need to maintain this momentum by responding aggressively to develop our in situ resources.
As mining opportunities like the Ring of Fire continue to expand in more remote areas of Canada’s north, there is a need for the federal government to work proactively to assist in workforce development. These new projects will require thousands of workers directly, and a great number along the supply chain. Local communities, particularly first nations, need active support and capacity-building programs in order to realize the potential of these opportunities. At a macro level, federal policies should allow access for foreign workers when necessary, but they should ensure robust local workforce development prior to moving offshore.
The federal government can also assist by helping communities such as Greater Sudbury and our industry partners to counter the misconceptions and misperceptions of modern mineral development. Today’s Canadian mining industry has changed dramatically from the practices of the past and operates in a manner that is sensitive to the environment and to its local host communities. It offers excellent employment opportunities for educated and skilled workers alike, and will provide important economic development opportunities for all of northern Canada.
Mining and mineral processing is an industry that has learned the lessons of the past and adapted to current realities. We need to communicate this message in order to foster the workforce expansion required to meet the Canadian industry’s current and future needs. We need to communicate this message in order to create the political will to move projects forward to production with shorter timelines.
To take full advantage of existing and emerging opportunities, strategic infrastructure investments will be required. The federal government must share in these investments, in partnership with other levels of government and the private sector, of course. This new infrastructure development should be strategic, so that it enhances community and economic development in addition to simply meeting the goals of resource development. One example of this infrastructure development is a project in Sudbury called the Maley Drive extension, which we've been trying to put forward for the last few years; this project will simply to take the 15 million tonnes of ore that is moved across our city streets every year and put it on a drive so that is going to be more feasible and easier to handle. Another example would be the transportation corridor to the Ring of Fire. If this were also connected with James Bay, it would be a good way for the federal government to get involved in open access to James Bay and the lower James Bay area.
As you continue to examine the future of mining in northern Canada, we urge you to consider both sides of the mining equation: on the one side, the need to encourage investment and to bring new projects on stream, and on the other, the need to for reasonable regulation to maximize benefits to local communities, to provinces, and to the people of Canada as a whole.
I'd like to thank you for your time and attention this morning.