Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon, committee members. As the chair mentioned, my name is Paul Hébert. I'm the vice-president, government relations, with the Mining Association of Canada. I bring regards from my president, Pierre Gratton, who was invited to appear but had t

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  To start with the investment in education and training, it's not something we've quantified yet, but it's absolutely a top priority for mining companies because of the really dramatic labour shortage. They're investing more in recruitment, but they're investing more than ever bef

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It is really across the entire spectrum of occupations. There are definitely some examples of partnerships that are very effective. In the Raglan project in northern Quebec, in Ungava Bay, they're having success developing their workforce and having aboriginal people access hig

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  On-reserve mining traditionally has been a bit of a black box, quite frankly. Mining companies have been in the dark about what's required and what the processes are, and that's why we were heartened to learn that Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada has recently em

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  My understanding is that it's a lack of understanding and awareness of what the processes are. When Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada embarked on their process, they asked the question of industry: are on-reserve mining regulations working? The answer from indust

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Sure. One I would point to is not too far from your neck of the woods. It's actually a partnership between New Gold's New Afton mine and the Tk'emlups Indian Band. That is quite a far-reaching impact benefit agreement. They have a great partnership with the Tk'emlups Indian Band.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  The challenge is that most of the IBAs are private agreements, so it's difficult to get into the agreement and hold it up as a best practice. However, some are available, and Natural Resources Canada and Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada have an inventory of thos

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It's not my understanding that a downloading is being envisioned; it's more that it's an issue of elimination of duplication. In cases where there are two environmental assessments taking place, one federal and one provincial, the mechanism would be in place that only one assessm

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  In the far north, the territories, the one big issue would be the resolution of land claims, so that all parties can have a more clear understanding of where they stand and their authority. If I had to choose one, that's what it would be.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I can begin by answering the last question. The exposed situations in Attawapiskat make it clear that there are some considerable challenges involved. Those situations are making me wonder. For instance, we know that De Beers earned $325 million through contracts with companies

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Sure. Members of the Mining Association of Canada are bound to participate in a program called Towards Sustainable Mining, or TSM for short. TSM outlines a number of performance standards in a number of areas, ranging from tailings management to GHG emissions and energy use, to c

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I would point to TSM. It is an award-winning program. As recently as a couple of weeks ago, at the PDAC, we won an award. We won awards from the GLOBE Foundation. We've had recognition from Five Winds. TSM is exceptional, in that it requires companies to publicly report against

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It has definitely become part of the culture of mining companies now to report on an ongoing basis on corporate social responsibility, community engagement, and environmental performance. It's part of the annual reporting culture, and it's often on more than an annual basis. They

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Correct. That's exploration, mining, smelting, and refining. Semi-fabrication is captured within that as well.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes. The way the workforce is sliced and diced differs according to StatsCan definitions of national occupational classifications.