COUNTERPOINT: Antiquated view of mining - TheChronicleHerald.ca

Re: “Driven to extraction,” (Oct. 28 opinion piece by Joan Baxter). One of the biggest challenges the mining and quarrying industry faces is outdated perceptions about it, such as those found in this article. No one would judge today’s auto industry by its safety and environmental standards of the 1950s, yet people do sometimes judge mining by what it was like in the distant past. The reality is today’s mining industry is a sophisticated, high-tech business that is vital to our economy and way of life.

We set the highest standards for environmental management. After all, mining companies are made up of people who care as much about the environment as anyone else and who also want to leave a better world for their children.

Reclaimed mines and quarries are now beautiful natural spaces, such as at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Acadia Park in Westville and Kiwanis Park in Truro. Reclaimed sites are also used for other purposes such as the Cabot Links golf course in Inverness, the Pioneer Coal Athletics Field in Stellarton and the Dartmouth Crossing shopping centre.

Our educational website — http://ift.tt/2y0Qoux — explains in layman’s terms how the industry works today and how it is stringently regulated by the provincial government to ensure the environment is properly protected.

Everything Nova Scotians want — from excellent health and education systems to opportunities for our kids to stay home instead of moving away — ultimately depends on creating jobs and growing our economy. Our industry employs 5,500 Nova Scotians and generates $420 million per year in economic activity.

Ms. Baxter took particular issue with mining coal and gold, but consider this: Three major new mines are opening here in 2017 — one for coal and two for gold. They represent hundreds of new jobs for Nova Scotians and hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment in the province. The average wage in our industry is $55,000 per year, the highest of any resource industry and on par with the province’s financial services sector. These are excellent jobs, mostly in the rural areas that are in such need of economic opportunity.

We also need the materials we take from the ground to support our modern society. For example, coal is an essential fuel in Nova Scotia, and in most jurisdictions around the world. It generates over half of Nova Scotia’s electricity and it is helping keep our electricity rates from rising further. While Nova Scotia’s use of coal is declining, the electricity it provides cannot be replaced easily or quickly by any other source. Coal is also used in manufacturing products such as steel and cement.

Gold has a wide range of uses, including in virtually all electronics. Just imagine a world without computers, cell phones and electronic medical equipment. Gold also has other medical applications, including in diagnostic procedures and treating certain cancers.

Mining and quarrying is an environmentally responsible industry that provides essential materials to society. It is not your grandfather’s mining industry.

Sean Kirby, executive director, Mining Association of Nova Scotia.