Mineral Policy Alternatives

Short, selective history of Canadian mineral policy and analysis of contemporary mineral policy.

Assesses the current and expected performance of the nonfuel mineral industry in Canada, evaluates the effect of existing government policies on that performance, and suggests policy alternatives.

A Stake in the Future is a comprehensive study of the Whitehorse Mining Initiative, which was first conceived by the leaders in the Canadian mining industry. The goal was to revitalize the mining industry, attract new investment and forge an alliance with major stakeholders such as government, environmental groups, First Nations, the mining industry, and labour. The book examines the political, cultural, and policy issues involved in developing a new consenus-based approach to resolving land and resource use disputes with particular focus on a national multi-stakeholder initiative in the mineral sector.

Describes the evaluation of mineral resource diplomacy and its instruments, and looks at the resulting opportunities and constraints facing the Canadian mineral sector.

Minerals are part of virtually every product we use. Common examples include copper used in electrical wiring and titanium used to make airplane frames and paint pigments. The Information Age has ushered in a number of new mineral uses in a number of products including cell phones (e.g., tantalum) and liquid crystal displays (e.g., indium). For some minerals, such as the platinum group metals used to make cataytic converters in cars, there is no substitute. If the supply of any given mineral were to become restricted, consumers and sectors of the U.S. economy could be significantly affected. Risks to minerals supplies can include a sudden increase in demand or the possibility that natural ores can be exhausted or become too difficult to extract. Minerals are more vulnerable to supply restrictions if they come from a limited number of mines, mining companies, or nations. Baseline information on minerals is currently collected at the federal level, but no established methodology has existed to identify potentially critical minerals. This book develops such a methodology and suggests an enhanced federal initiative to collect and analyze the additional data needed to support this type of tool.