Page 53 AuRico/YOUNG-DA VIDSON MINE Page 52 By Gregory Reynolds The Matachewan First Nation is among the many or gani - zations and companies enjoying benefts from the devel - opment and operation of the Y oung-Davidson Gold Mine, now owned by AuRico Gold Inc. Previous owner Northgate Minerals Corporation struck the right note to establish a good relationship with the band when it opened talks even before it acquired the key property back in 2005. At a fag raising ceremony at the mine site on March 4, 2010, then Chief Richard W incikaby said “thanks to the hard work of so many dedicated people we are here today to celebrate a better future for all of us. Northgate came to us in good faith even before they ac - Community appr eciation and encouragement was voiced by municipal and First Nation leaders for Northgate Minerals an - nouncement of the construction of the Y oung-Davidson Mine in Matachewan Mar ch 4, 2010. Fr om L-R ar e: Kirkland Lake Mayor Bill Enouy , Elk Lake Reeve T erry Fiset, Chief Richar d W incikaby , Matachewan First Nation; Matachewan Reeve Beverley Hine, T immins Mayor T om Laughr en, Jason Batise, W abun T ribal Council and MPP David Ramsey . First Nations beneft fr om quired the property and we have benefted from a close and open relationship in the spirit of working together .” During mine development, Northgate worked closely with the various surrounding communities and in July 2009 signed an Impact and Benefts Agreement (IBA) with the Matachewan First Nation, a member community of the W abun T ribal Council and AuRico also signed an IBA with the T emagami First Nation in July 2012.. The council handles the negotiations for mining and hydro-electric agreements on behalf of its six mem - ber communities: Beaver House, Brunswick, Chapleau Ojibwe, Matachewan, Flying Post and Mattagami. The W abun traditional territories take in a lar ge section of Northeastern Ontario that includes the major gold and base metal mining and exploration camps in T immins, Kirkland Lake, Matachewan and Gogama. The graduates of the Under ground Miner T raining program, which was provided under the Matachewan Aboriginal Access to Mine Jobs T raining Strategy (MAA TS), were hired on the mine project. MAA TS was a three-year $4-million initiative announced in Febru - ary 2009 by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC). “W e worked with First Nations to develop a mining training program and when the opportunity arises we can pull them into the work force,” mine general manager Luc Guimond explained. “If we do not have immediate openings those who take the course can obtain their Under ground Common Core certifcate and take their skills to other mining compa - nies in the T immins Gold Camp or further afeld if they choose,” Guimond added. This program operated between 2010 and March 31, 2012. A partnership strateg y was developed by the W abun Council and Northgate and the federal and pro - vincial governments provided the funds. At a ceremony on May 26, 201 1 where six graduates of the MAA TS program joined the mine’ s workforce, MAA TS executive director Anne Batisse said “our grad - uates here today are exceptionally fortunate in that they are moving on to employment right away . They are not just going on to another job; they are embarking in min - ing careers. I am very plea sed with how well everyone, including Northgate Minerals, Dumas Contracting and Matache - wan First Nation, have worked together to provide these graduates with valuable training.” Former chief and Elder Mario Batisse said “back when I was chief we had to work hard just to get a little fund - ing to put our people to work on projects here and there. Those times were tough and it was not easy for First Na - tion people to fnd employment. Thanks to the development of these training and employ - ment opportunities with Northgate at their Y oung David - son Mine, our people are starting rewarding careers in mining.” The mine began commercial production in September of 2012 and has a life of 18 years. The Matachewan First Nation is located about 30km southeast of the community of Matachewan and about 60km west of Kirkland Lake of f of Highway 66. It is home to a growing commun ity and the First Nation is actively taking part in partnering and working with the resource devel opment industry in establishing mutually benefcial agreements. Y oung-Davidson Mine AuRico/YOUNG-DA VIDSON MINE