Ontario explorationists struggle with new work permit

A multi-use work permit introduced in Ontario some 12 months ago is causing much consternation within the mineral industry. The permit, created under Bill 137 (an Act to Amend the Public Lands Act), governs all activities on Crown land. The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR), chief proponent of the bill, justifies its use by pointing out that an effective process is needed to license, administer and monitor the increasing number of activities on Crown land. However, the permit is just one in a string of new laws and regulations, either in place or soon to be, that reflect the priority of environmental and land-use concerns and changing attitudes toward natural resource management.

Complying with the regulations governing our day-to-day operations is much more complicated now than it was five years ago. As one prospector recently said, “there are so many changes taking place in regard to regulations, laws and rules. I am starting to wonder if the prospectors in Ontario are gradually being discouraged from carrying out prospecting.” Like many others, this prospector has been working by the rules over the course of his 30-year career. Today these rules, almost second nature to him, are being changed or replaced.

Prior to Bill 137, work such as stripping, trenching and drilling required a permit under the Forest Fires Prevention Act, usually granted within 10 working days. Completion of a 1-page document and a district MNR officer’s signature were the only requirements. The system worked well for mineral exploration, a time sensitive and capital intensive industry.

The new permit is a significant departure from the old. The application form, a multi-page document, must be reviewed by a number of MNR officials before approval. During the permit’s recent trial period, approval was taking 3-6 weeks, and new factors to be considered could delay approval even further. For example, if an application includes the construction of a bridge over a stream deemed sensitive because of spawning fish, approval could be delayed for up to six months while MNR studies the potential impact.

The trial period demonstrated two main challenges facing MNR: the need to approve permits efficiently, and the need for the permit rules to be consistently applied by all 47 Ontario MNR offices.

One of the main goals of Bill 137, through the work permit, is to assess “surface impact” and to control “activities disruptive to the land surface.” For us, the important questions included how “disruptive” will be defined and what specific activities will be affected.

MNR consulted with PDAC prior to drafting a “procedures document” which will eventually govern the administration of the permit. The draft procedures, designed to address the problems outlined above, state: — activities considered non-disruptive and not requiring a work permit include staking, laying out of grid lines, geological mapping, geophysical surveys, magnetometer surveys, electrical conductivity surveys, geochemical surveys and limited placer sampling programs. — activities considered disruptive and requiring a work permit include clearing, mechanical stripping and trenching, diamond drilling, bulk sampling, the movement of heavy equipment to and from a site not served by a road, camp construction (of 30 days or more), road and bridge construction.

In addition, a work permit “shall not be refused for work on lands staked and recorded” (as permitted under the Mining Act); all information shall be treated in the strictest confidence; district managers shall ensure that a work permit application will be processed in as short a time as possible (the goal is two weeks); and a decision to refuse issue or cancel a permit may be appealed.

The PDAC believes that MNR decision-makers have a genuine interest in making the permit work efficiently for the mineral industry. We must continue to work with governments to ensure that new regulations have the dual purpose of minimizing environmental disruption and encouraging responsible exploration and mining development. Anthony Andrews is the managing director of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada.