BC Mining Week is a chance to both reflect on what this industry has meant to Canada as well as consider the great untapped potential it still holds.

Mining holds a special place in B.C.’s history; the venerable Hudson’s Bay Company dug coal on Vancouver Island in the 1840s and a few years later the discovery of gold on the Fraser River triggered a frenzy, attracting new Canadians from all over the world.

It’s a proud history and there’s an equally bright future as mining and resource development in B.C. continues to drive wealth and economic benefits for all people. That’s because mining creates jobs; good high paying jobs. In fact, there isn’t another industrial sector that produces as many jobs per dollar invested.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has just published a report on the BC mining industry noting that our sector spent $9.1 billion in 2011 and generated $9.9 billion, meaning for every Loonie spent, there was a corresponding $1.09 in benefits. That year our sector paid $805 million to the federal and provincials governments, while employing 9,310 people at an average salary of $115,700.

That’s why mining is a good business: it’s good for communities and it’s good for the province and it’s good for Canada.

And it’s also good for BC’s aboriginal people. Taseko has just signed an agreement the Tsay Keh Dene for advanced exploration of the Aley niobium project 140 kilometres north of Mackenzie, with access to jobs, training, contracting and supply opportunities. Mining creates long-term opportunities by giving people in-demand, highly transferable skills.

When we invest more than $1 billion, as we are proposing to do with our New Prosperity Gold- Copper project near Williams Lake, that money represents a direct investment in machinery, infrastructure, construction, and supplies. More importantly it’s an investment in people — in jobs.

Mining continues to be a strong community-based industry. We live where we work and care deeply about our surroundings. We employ some of the most sophisticated technologies known to science to ensure the greatest value is generated from the smallest possible footprint…
In New Prosperity there exists the potential to create 71,000 jobs directly and indirectly over its 20-year mine life deliver $10 billion in federal and provincial revenues and drive $9 billion in consumer spending in the province.

Those are palpable benefits and an indication of what just one mine can deliver in terms of value and benefit for people. Fortunately, British Columbia is blessed with significant mineral wealth and the expertise necessary to develop in a manner that can meet the highest public standards

The Value of Mining in the Cariboo-Chilcotin

As the owner and operator of the Gibraltar Mine, we know first-hand how powerful mining can be when it comes to delivering value and benefit for Canadians. The Gibraltar story speaks volumes about the potential of our province’s mineral resource sector to help sustain our economy.

Back in 1999, Gibraltar was slated for permanent closure. Common wisdom held that after 26 years of operation, and after directly and indirectly sustaining the livelihood of thousands of people, the mine had exhausted its value. But Taseko saw opportunity where others didn’t, bought Gibraltar and reopened it in 2004. Taseko then embarked on a $700 million multi-phase program of revitalization which will conclude at the end of this year with the permanent direct employment of 650 people.

In just 5 years (2005-2010) the cumulative economic and fiscal impact of the Gibraltar mine on the province of British Columbia is profound. The operation has generated $371 million in additional revenues for the provincial government and $408 million for the federal government. Consumer spending in the province has increased by $576 million, residential investment in the province is $174 million higher and non-residential investment is $520 million higher because of Gibraltar.

These are results that speak to the power of one mines’ ability to affect meaningful and positive change for communities. And as we work to realize our New Prosperity Gold-Copper Project, we will apply the same expertise that has transformed Gibraltar into a long-term, sustainable cornerstone of the regional economy.

With the support of our communities and government, we know that New Prosperity will not only match, but will surpass the significant social and economic contributions of its sister property, Gibraltar.