Nova Scotians show support for critical minerals mining

As Canada faces rising economic pressures with the trade threats from the Trump administration, a new poll shows broad support among Nova Scotians for expanding the province’s mining and quarrying sector to help shore up national resilience.

The poll, commissioned by the Mining Association of Nova Scotia and conducted by Thinkwell Research, found that 75% of respondents believe mining can play a key role in establishing Canadian economic independence. Support is also climbing across other areas of the industry, including for critical minerals and gold production.

“Nova Scotians know we need to create jobs, become more self-reliant and build a stronger province,” association Executive Director Sean Kirby said in a release. “The mining and quarrying industry is part of the solution. However, the Government of Nova Scotia needs to cut red tape, while maintaining environmental standards, to help our industry grow.”

According to the survey of 400 adults conducted in late April, 76% of Nova Scotians support mining critical minerals in the province — up 11 percentage points from spring 2024 — and 75% support gold mining (up from 71%). The majority also view the sector as an engine for rural economic development and a source of well-paying jobs, with 70% agreeing that the industry provides strong incomes, up from 64% last year.

Balanced approach

The poll comes as the province recently took steps to end its decades-long ban on uranium mining and exploration. Geological maps collated in a Northern Miner infographic outline the provinces uranium potential as well as in Quebec and British Columbia, which have also restricted exploration. 

Instead of outright opposition or blind acceptance, the government of Nova Scotia should take a balanced approach and implement stringent regulations to ensure safe uranium mining, a mining engineer masters student said in a recent piece for The Northern Miner. The potential for environmental degradation raises legitimate concerns, particularly in a province that values its natural beauty and relies on industries like tourism and agriculture, he said. 

Despite the rising public support for mining, the association argues the province’s permitting system is outdated and inefficient. In Nova Scotia, the responsibility for mine permitting is split across multiple departments, most of which regulate a wide range of industries and often lack specialized mining expertise.

“Not having a single department in charge creates uncertainty and confusion for project proponents,” Kirby said. “It often does the same for government officials, who frequently work at cross purposes and offer contradictory interpretations of permitting rules.”

The association is pushing for a restructuring of the permitting process by consolidating oversight within a strengthened Geoscience and Mines Branch. The group argues this would align Nova Scotia with other provinces that have more streamlined, mining-focused regulatory systems.

Single department 

In the poll, 72% of Nova Scotians support the idea of setting a target to issue mining permits within one to two years, and 74% back consolidating permitting under a single department.

There is global momentum around faster permitting timelines — particularly as the energy transition boosts demand for critical minerals, the association says. The International Energy Agency has urged countries to slash permitting times for new mines to just one year, down from an average of 17 years from discovery to production. While maintaining environmental standards is non-negotiable, Kirby said Nova Scotia’s current system is hampering investment and job creation.

“We’re not asking for weaker environmental protections,” he said. “We need clear, science-based, consistently-applied rules that protect the environment while allowing us to create jobs.”

The mining and quarrying sector currently employs more than 3,000 people in Nova Scotia, mostly in rural communities, with average total compensation of $102,000 per year.

Nova Scotia was once a hotbed of uranium exploration in the late 1970s, with tens of millions of dollars invested by major energy companies such as Shell and Esso. However, due to public health concerns, the province imposed a moratorium on uranium mining activities in 1981. In 2009, the NDP government enacted a full legislative ban on uranium development.