Letters to the Editor Director defends Latin American session

As a director of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada and a member of its convention committee, I must challenge your recent editorial “Focus on Canada’s potential” (T.N.M., March 19/90). You miss the point completely. You claim our session on “New Realities in Latin America: Opportunities and Challenges” is in conflict with our mandate. This is simply not so. Our aim was to acquaint our convention delegates with the competition they face. We operate in a global economy, and it is critical, in order that we remain competitive, that we are well informed. The point is, while our federal government’s policies are becoming increasingly restrictive in the exploration and development of our natural resources, other nations are moving in the opposite direction to encourage their natural resource industries.

Your editorial writers could provide a better service to your readers if they would develop a better understanding of the industry about which they write. Another case in point is an earlier editorial (T.N.M., Nov. 27/89) entitled “Time to bury the flow-through myth”), which stated that “money was simply thrown at a project in ill-conceived exploration programs simply to spend the money in time to qualify for investors’ tax returns” and that “the industry doesn’t need special treatment to prosper.” Clearly, your publication appears to be following policies not fully in harmony with industry exploration and development objectives. Catherine Hume, F.C.S.I. Toronto, Ont.