Despite it being a challenging year, MAC and its members continued to achieve significant accomplishments throughout the year. For example, 2014 was MAC’s busiest year on record in terms of its advocacy efforts—a reflection of the vast set of challenges and opportunities facing the sector. MAC was highly engaged with government officials and parliamentarians on a variety of issues that affect the industry’s competitiveness, including the regulatory environment, taxation and fiscal regimes, trade and development, Aboriginal participation in mining, infrastructure, transportation, innovation and R&D, and skills training. Our annual advocacy day, Mining Day on the Hill, in November was the largest ever, with our mining delegates meeting with senior government and political officials throughout the National Capital Region to communicate the industry’s needs to thrive and compete for global mining investment.
In 2014, MAC’s advocacy efforts were highly focused on the regulatory regime for mining. Recent years have seen significant regulatory changes that impact the sector, including the federal government’s current review of the Metal Mining Effluent Regulations, and major regulatory reform that began in 2012 that introduced a new Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, a new Navigation Protection Act, and changes to the Fisheries Act. Throughout 2014, MAC advocated for the mining industry’s needs at the federal level for a reasonable, timely and efficient environmental assessment and permitting process, as well as federal-provincial coordination and a smooth implementation of the legislative changes. Although federal environmental assessments are much better managed today than they were five years ago, some uncertainties still need to be resolved before the reforms achieve their intended outcomes.
For more details on the topics discussed here, and on other aspects of MAC’s work, we encourage you to read the Annual Report in full.
