Page 8 Page 8 ership efciency productiv ity and corporate social responsibility Ontar io has every opportunity to be not just a model mining jurisdiction but also an indispensable link in the world s mineral supply chain W orker health and safety is a top pri ority Over the past 30 years Ontario miners have built a robust safety cul ture achieving a 96 improvement in losttime injury frequency While this makes Ontario one of the safest mining jurisdictions in the world and mining one of the safest industries in the province our focus remai ns fxed on achieving zero harm The province s mining industry is evolving to meet society s changing needs and expectations as well as our own exacting standards From adopt ing lower emission and renewable ener gy technologies to developing the world s frst fully electric mine Goldcorp s Borden Lake Mine near Chapleau Ont innovation is the key to ensuring the industry s global com petitiveness and future success Ontario s mining companies under stand the imperative to challenge the industry status quo about half of Ontario s mines introduced innova tions in 2014 As Ontario moves to ward a lowcarbon innovation and knowledgebased economy in the 21st century and beyond mining will continue to play a crucial role Realizing mining s full potential to contribute to sustainable economic and social progress requires the col laborative action of government companies and society Mining com panies function in a fercely competi tive and increasingly mobile global market and Ontario mining compa nies proftability is challenged by the combination of falling or stagnant global commodities prices and rising input costs The industry still feels the efects of the global downturn in com modity markets an extende d period of lower prices and volatile demand for many comm odities has resulted in a signifcant impact on earnings bal ance sheets and investor perceptions of the industry Regrettably there is evidence that Ontario is not as competitiv e as we used to be Our jurisdiction has high labour and ener gy costs which limit revenue potential and dampen invest ment especially in difcult economic times Not withstanding those challenges mining creates more economic val ue as measure d by Gross Domestic Product for the ener gy used than most other industries Unlike in tra ditional manufacturing however an extremely long timeline and lar ge capital expenditures are needed to discover a viable ore deposit and bring it into production A complex regulatory environment results in a particularly expensive and timeintensive process T o overcome these challenges it is important to un derstand and benchmark our current contributions strengths and failings while identifying new opportunities and drivers to enhance Ontario s com petitiveness After all by improving the condi tions for minin g to invest and fourish in Ontario we will accelera te prog ress toward the achievement of our economic and social development goals leveragi ng Ontarians innova tion and leadership potential says Hodgson Ontario moves toward a lowcarbon innovation knowledgebased economy Contd from pg 6