The Ontario government's efforts to push the proposed Bill 191, the Far North Act, is being met with concern by De Beers Canada, whose representatives are calling for the bill to be rewritten.
At the Timmins Regional Economic Outlook Conference held at Timmins' Northern College campus on May 20, De Beers Canada's director of external and corporate affairs Tom Ormsby criticized the bill in its current form, referring to it as "a challenge."
"We support the general intent of the Mining Act, we don't have problems with the law of it, but we're really struggling with the Far North Act," said Ormsby.
In particular, he drew attention to the lack of solid economic targets in the bill, which stands as a problem for companies operating in the region.
"There are all sorts of environmental targets, which we completely understand, but not a single economic target," said Ormsby. "Not one road, not one railway, not one powerline, not one mine."
De Beers Canada's Victor Mine, which officially opened in July 2008, is located in Northern Ontario's James Bay Lowlands, 90 kilometres west of Attawapiskat.
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