Page 8 By Frank Giorno The Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan CMMP was announced at the Prospectors and Developers Associ ation of Canada PDAC convention in T oronto in March 2019 The plan has the support of the Fed eral government eight provinces and three territories But two prov inces Ontario and Saskatchewan have announced their opposition to the CMMP In a world increasingly looking for sustainably and responsibly sourced mineral products Canada is un matched said Federal Natural Re sources Minister Amarjeet Sohi As global demand for sustainably developed resources grows Can ada must continue to capitalize on its natural and human advantage to ensure our competitiveness in global markets he added At this stage the CMMP is a docu ment that contains a vision for im proving the future of mining in Can ada The document also advances actions in six broad categories of activities that are important factors in mining The CMMP provides direction for the development of a modern min erals and metals industry in Cana da through 1 increasing competitiveness 2 the participation of Indigenous Peoples 3 community benefts 4 respect for the environment 5 scientifc and technological inno vation and 6 putting Canada in a position of global leadership in mining Improved Competitiveness T o increase competitiveness the plan calls for improving fnancing and taxation systems to support ex ploration It also calls for improving regulations by 2020 to make mining more efcient The plan calls for the development of an innovative public geoscience increased certainty on land access and land use The build ing of instructure by 2025 to unlock mineral potential in northern remote and isolated areas and creating op portunities for entrepreneurs to sup port community and regional devel opment Indigenous Participation The CMMP calls for improving Ind gineous People s participation by respecting treaty rights providing for meaningful engagement at the earli est stages of a project supporting communities with enhanced gover nance employment and business capacity for engaging with govern ments and industry supporting in digenous women to participate in the minerals sector The plan calls for in creasing opportunities for indigenous businesses by 2021 more training programs by 2022 and more agree ments between Indigenous com munities and mining companies by 2025 Environmental In the environmental feld the CMMP calls for the reduction of mining s en vironmental footstep by transforming mining waste into useful products and by reducing environmental li ability enhancing mine closures and reclamation and by implementing climate change reduction measures The plan calls for the the enactment of a national abandoned mine initia tive and a mining waste recovery program by 2020 It also calls for the adoption of best available technol ogy in new mines by 2025 Science and Innovation Science and Innovation are key driv ers of a reinvigorated Canadian mining sector The CMMP calls for the development of a modern and innovative mining sector supported by leading edge mining technology The plan calls for Incentives to sup port a supercluster type model for tackling large innovation challenges and a plan for transformative tech nologies by 2022 By 2025 the plan envisions the commercialization of new mining technology including next generation geoscience tools Community Benefts Communities with mining projects nearby expect to beneft from mining through employment and providing supplies and services The CMMP calls for optimal economic and so CMMP Hailed as T ool for Competiveness Contd on pg 8 But Scorned by Ontario Saskatchewan for too much Red T ape