Thanks, Iain.
Certainly, succinctly put, the deposits in the Ring of Fire, whether they be KWG or Noront's chromite deposits or the lead project, which was the Eagle's Nest copper-nickel deposit that Noront wishes to develop by an east-west road, without access, are not deposits. They are not economic mineralized zones that can be mined at a profit, the true definition of a mineral deposit, and that is the concern. That is a stall point. The lack of common ground between indigenous communities, both levels of government and the people of northwestern Ontario and industry to go forward is the stall point at this point.
I'd now like to delve into the finance side. I appreciate Mr. Dirom's remarks on the flow-through share, the Canadian exploration expense piece as well as the mineral exploration tax credit. Just by way of background, our recommendation would be that these two sister programs under flow-through shares be extended nationally for a three-year period, if not put in place permanently. They're certainly a boon to exploration. Mr. Dirom touched on a few of the basic observations from this program, and I'd like to touch on them as well, and some other quick points that embed the notion.
Over the last 10 years, junior exploration companies that have spent the high-risk money have made 70% of the discoveries in Canada. That 70% figure stands out again. The junior exploration company sector has accounted for 70% of all financing raised by exploration companies in recent years as well. Certainly the junior exploration sector relies on those discoveries.
If the ultimate form of flattery is theft of an idea, Australia, in 2016, adopted the METC program and rolled it into their flow-through system, and it really is one of the reasons they have become the top jurisdiction for exploration in the world.
Those flow-through funds must be spent in Canada. They are really a boon to economic development in northern and remote communities, including those with indigenous people.
Speaking of indigenous people, I believe there's a real opportunity for the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, the Ontario Mining Association, AME BC, and the Mining Association of Canada to work with government and work with industry to promote the sector more fully, in a more fulsome manner, and to have that tied to economic development, strategic planning, and land-use planning within communities including aboriginal communities, and to really illustrate the opportunity for a career and a business development opportunity. We're seeing 87% of business contracts pre-qualified and then awarded on the back of the New Gold project or the Greenstone Gold project, two of Canada's newest gold mines, flowing to indigenous companies and businesses. It's a huge number. We're seeing employment levels at 23% of the Musselwhite mine, one of the earliest collaboration impact benefit agreements in Canada, which has been renewed four times. Those employment numbers again are at about 23%. There's 32% direct workforce employment at the New Gold site, at that particular location, even though their production does not start until mid-2017. So these are great models that should be shouted from the rooftops and used as case examples to illustrate the value proposition and the opportunity.
My last piece is on the Geological Survey of Canada and geoscience to stimulate exploration. One thing we've seen in the last few years is an erosion of the overall budget for targeted geoscience initiatives, even though we're in TGI-5 now with respect to the Geological Survey of Canada program. There's a requirement, simply put, to have sufficient funding for mineral deposit studies, regional geophysical programs, working on third-dimension structural and crustal studies, and advanced geochronology—that is, the age-dating of rocks—which really contribute to discovery rates and really elevate that proposition in Canada.