Digging for answers
Questions are being asked in the wake of political upheavals
Are riparian protection standards consistent for different industries? — Photo courtesy Kingsman Resources
The annual Minerals South Conference & Trade Show brings together stakeholders in the mining and exploration industry in southeastern B.C. to highlight regional exploration projects, review technical and geological data, provide information on environmental developments and discuss the issues of the day. At this year’s event, hosted by the Chamber of Mines of Eastern British Columbia and held at the Prestige Lakeside Resort & Convention Centre in Nelson, recent political events were very much on the minds of the attendees.
Those happenings—a provincial cabinet shuffle that included mining being placed into a new portfolio along with forestry, the resignation of Premier Gordon Campbell, the federal government decision not to grant approval for the Prosperity Mine project in Northern B.C.—have left many in the industry questioning the immediate future of pending and active exploration projects, and how much support they could expect from government agencies. While most of the guest speakers at the conference discussed the world-class geology and mineral potential in southeastern B.C., the last speaker, Ted Drummond, from Kingsman Resources Inc., voiced the frustration that many in the room were feeling.
“We’re not playing on the same field,” said Drummond, who was speaking of the disparity between permitting regulations and wait times for those in the exploration field compared to construction and energy projects. “A lot of these projects are time-sensitive—you might only have three or four months in the summer to do the work and then it’s too late. In the case of a larger exploration program, that could be $2 million dollars that goes into the local economy of a community like Golden, and if you don’t happen to have the permit right now to get going, then it’s lost for a year. And if they keep getting lost time, they will be moving out of British Columbia.”
Drummond’s presentation focused on steep environmental regulations or exploration companies pertaining to fish-bearing streams that seem to be at odds with what the government itself will approve for infrastructure projects. While exploration companies are required to provide extensive studies by approved biologists, Drummond said that independent power producers are not held to the same standards, even in the same drainages in which exploration companies are trying to operate.
Kingsman has several projects awaiting permits, including the “queen of the fleet,” the International Basin property near Golden. The potential for development is substantial, and the boost for Golden’s economy would be very beneficial. But until the permits are issued, Drummond—and many other exploration companies—remain in a holding pattern.
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