The Canadian Mining Industry

Improved Essays
Mining is a business directly related to the extraction of ore, valuable minerals or other geological resources such as gold, silver, diamond, iron, coal and uranium from mines. Because the process of extraction requires a large amount of capital, mining business is normally done by the government, multinational companies or wealthy business owners. All the resources that need to be extracted are non-renewable as these materials cannot be artificially created nor grown through agricultural process. So, this is the reason why minerals need to be obtained by mining. The mining industry business is all about trading of mined products. Mining companies normally sell their valuable materials until the material price increases; otherwise the companies …show more content…
Safety: Safety issues have aroused public concerns regarding the mining industry. Poor ventilation, poisonous or flammable gases, such as methane gas can badly harm miners health and even lead to some illnesses such as silicosis, pneumonia, lung diseases etc. Due to the advanced technologies, mining processes have become much safer now.
Environment: Mining processes can have a severely negative effect on air, water and land. This negative impact can occur during the process of mining or come out after years of mining. Therefore, most of the countries have established laws and rules to regulate mining operations.
History of the industry
The history of Canadian mining can be divided into five main phases. First, Aboriginal inhabitants used various minerals to produce survival tools. Second, from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s, the country experienced a great boom in the exploitation of all natural resources. Third, from the mid-1900s to the late 1960s, government focuses on mineral resources to developing the mining industry. Fourth, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, there were great public concerns about mining environmental impacts. Fifth, since the 1970s, Canada has been putting considerable efforts in the sustainable development and social well-being of mining
…show more content…
uranium, cobalt, cadmium, nickel, titanium and sulphur. Mining is the largest private sector employer in Canada and the employment rate is expected to increase in the future. Because of the rich natural resources in Canada’s northern regions, the potential economic impacts are expected to be very high in the next decade. According to “The future of mining in Canada’s north” report,”Canada’s overall Northern metal and non-metallic mineral output is expected to grow by 91 per cent from 2011 to 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 7.5 per cent. Put into perspective, the average growth rate for the Canadian economy over that period is forecasted to be 21.5 per cent with a compound annual growth rate of 2.2 per cent.”
As global demand for minerals increases, it leads to high levels of exploration activities and high commodity prices around the world, and therefore Canada’s North is prepared to increase its mining output over the long term. Although the demand in minerals from developing countries is currently low, and the global economic outlook is uncertain, the continued growth demand in minerals from all over the world is expected to rise in the long term. It is also important to mention that some minerals maintain their historically

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