The Mining Act, 1990, has a significant role in protecting Ontario’s vast mineral resources and brings forth a set of policies in which promote responsible mining development and extraction. The provincial government plays an integral role in the provinces mining industry because the Act requires that all mineral claims must be recorded and accepted by the Crown which from then the two parties discuss a lease fee for the mineral rights. After locating a mineral claim in an area deemed open by the Crown, there are two options available for leases, the first being “The holder of a mining claim may elect to apply for a lease of the mining rights only.” (Government of Ontario, 2017), while the second option allows both the surface rights and …show more content…
In 2009, the passing of Bill 173, also known as the Mining Amendment Act brought forth various changes that were created with the input of representatives from the mining industry, environmental groups, municipalities, private citizens, and Aboriginal communities (Pratt & Smitherman, 2009). The discussions between the government and these groups helped lead to the implementation of new regulations that promote mineral exploration and development in a manner that recognizes Aboriginal and treaty rights.
The Mining Act does a very good job at protecting certain aspects of the environment such as ensuring that over exploitation of minerals does not occur, or making it mandatory to have a plan in place for closing the mine as well as assuring that there is money to do so. Although there are many things that this Act does right, there are also areas in which there are issues and should be improved. One of the first issues pertaining to this Act is the impact that it fails to mitigate regarding water quality. In areas where mining development occurs, the water quality is drastically affected and a study found that “water from waste rock piles has an ionic profile distinct from unimpacted catchments” (Carey, Wellen, & Shatilla, 2015), meaning that in order to mitigate the impact of the runoff measures must be put in place to limit it. Secondly, the Act does not involve
1) Within this bill the changes that brought the most concern to the Aboriginal people were the changes within the Indian Act, the Navigation Protection Act, and the Environment Assessment Act ("Legal Objectives," n.d.). Not only did these changes within this bill anger the Aboriginal people of Canada, the passing of this bill itself resulted in a resentment that was felt throughout all of the Aboriginal communities within Canada. The Aboriginal people of Canada felt that they were not consulted during the creation of the bill. Consequently, one could argue that the Aboriginal people of Canada were not consulted therefore, were miss-represented in both the creation and the passing of the legislative Bill C-45.
For various reasons, the Canadian government continues harmful practices in lieu of the concerns from Aboriginal peoples. Returning to McGregor (2004), the power imbalance that exists between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people is apparent (p. 398), especially regarding oil extraction. So long as “western” theories of production and management are followed, opposing ideals will not dominate. There are large profits to be made in the Athabasca region from resource extraction. As a result, the Canadian government reduces the region to a marketable commodity (Latulippe,
In 1976 the Fraser government passed the Aboriginal Land Rights Act. Several state governments passed their own Land Rights Acts, which recognised aboriginal and Torres Strait islander claims to land and guaranteed them royalty payments from mining companies working there. Some laws enforced by the government became challenging for most indigenous people to abide by. Through the analysis of this information we understand the impacts the government and its laws had towards the indigenous society of
“None can say except approximately; for the ten percent royalty imposed by the Canadian government.” This quote relates to the stricter laws of what the miners had to go through, but later in the article it mention that all minder if they wanted to mine must have a license, pay ten dollars, and if they want the claim they would have to have gone to the records office. The article shows the many rules and regulations on what the miners would have to do in order to collect
The tar creek mining site originally was owned by a Native American tribe, the Quapaw. The Quapaw wanted to keep these lands, but the Bureau of Indian Affairs deemed members opposing a transaction to mining companies “incompetent” (1). In such a case the business could continue and the Bureau of Indian Affairs sold the lands to mining companies. In essence these lands were stolen from the Quapaw because they were ripe for mining. These mines were then used from approximately 1891 to 1970. In the 79 years the mines were open 1.7 million metric tons (~3.75 billion pounds) of lead and 8.8 million metric tons (~19.4 billion pounds) of zinc were withdrawn from the mine (2). The entire area around Tar Creek is known as the tri-state mining
I would have to say that from the reading that it can be very harmful for the coal mining chemicals to seep into the ground into our drinking water.
Cadia Holdings Pty Ltd and Newcrest Operations Ltd (NOL) owned land in New South Wales, granted to them by the State of New South Wales under the Mining Act 1992 (NSW). From July 1998 to March 2008, Cadia conducted mining operations in which it recovered minerals including copper and gold, and paid royalties to the Minister pursuant to the Mining Act 1992 (NSW). The Minister referred to the Case of Mines[1], claiming that the mine owned by Cadia was a “royal mine” containing gold that belonged to the Crown prerogative, and as a consequence the copper was also the property of the Crown. Cadia
Minerals can affect society in many ways for example; Surface mining destroys vegetation across large areas, increasing erosion. Open-pit mining uses huge quantities of water. Acid mine drainage is pollution caused when dissolved toxic materials wash from mines into nearby lakes and streams. Minerals is approximately 80 percent of mined ore consists of impurities that become wastes after processing. These wastes, called tailings, are usually left in giant piles on the ground or in ponds near the processing plants (Figure 12.9). The tailings contain toxic materials such as cyanide, mercury, and sulfuric acid. Left
In 1982, the federal government of Canada enshrined the rights of Aboriginals in Section 35(1) of the Constitution Act, hereby recognizing and affirming the “existing aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada.” Although the Constitution Act played a vital role in setting a resolute framework in establishing the
The General Mining Act of 1872 encourages people and companies to prospect for minerals on federally owned land. This encourages US citizens and businesses to stake a claim on the plot of land and patent the claim for about $5 per acre. (Withgott) Until recently, there was no requirement to restore the land after mining. Several mining techniques have been used over the years. From strip mining, subsurface mining to open pit, placer, and mountaintop mining.
Prepare a 10- to 15-slide Microsoft® PowerPoint® presentation summarizing the costs and benefits of the proposed mine. Include the following elements:
Since the 1970s, the mining industry has dominated the PNG economy as ones of its largest exports. However, environmentalists are concerned that large scale mines and plantations, invested in by Australia, will negatively affect the water quality and therefore health of people living
I learned that mines were abandoned and in this case we have the responsible helping out. In other cases like the Gold King Mine in Colorado that it was used in the early 1900’s, the responsible that abandoned the mines were from Canada and are no were to be found. The problem with these mines is that when they extract all the uranium and there is no need for the mines, these mines need to be abandoned and closed. Unfortunately, there was no cleanup process when the mines were abandoned. Leaving the areas contaminated and the water from the rain transporting the contamination to other areas. 100 years ago, there was no standard on how to properly abandon a mine. Now days, the EPA and the state environmental departments are responsible to enforce the proper abandonment procedures and make sure the closure will not contaminate nearby areas or the water used for drinking, crops, and other human and animal uses. The runoff of the mine contamination can increase the total dissolve solids (TDS) in the nearby waters, making it non usable for human consumption and fish
In our days, mining for resources is inevitable. The resources we need are valuable in everyday life. Such resources mined up are coal, copper, gold, silver, and sand. However, mining poses environmental risks that can degrade the quality of soil and water, which can end up effecting us humans if not taken care of and many of the damages are irreversible once they have occurred.
The mining industry has seen an explosive growth from the past few decades. It has played an important role in economic growth, infrastructure development and a raise in the living standard of the whole world. According to the Australian National Accounting System, the mining sector has made contributions of 9.8% GDP growth to the Australian economy between 2008 to 2009 (Australia Bureau of Statistics, 2012). However, the mining industry has caused many environmental issues such as adverse effect to air, land and water quality and continues to affect global environment as a whole. According to the World Health Organization, it evaluated that 25% of worldwide death are directly associated with environmental pollution (Blacksmith Institute, n.d). This essay will outline the environmental issue raised by the mining industry with pinpoint focus on the effects to air, water and land. It will also provide strategies for mining companies to improve the environmental conditions.