Noble history throughout century of mining.

Member companies of the Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA) have a tradition of good governance built and fostered through more than a century of mining. High standards are upheld by employees and managers at all levels of the industry and it is this history of diligent attention to safety, economic prosperity, sound corporate conduct and the environment that the industry celebrates with this year's theme of 'One Hundred Years of Mining.'

SMA Executive Director Phil Reeves has a keen sense of this history and of the dedication it has taken to establish mining's prestige at home and around the world. He credits the foresight and ambition of industry founders for staking mining to its current reputation.

"One of the main messages we carry with us as an association is that we are a highly respected member of the global mining community," Reeves says. "We've earned that reputation by building a substantial legacy in mining."

"We have quite a rich history that goes back to the first days of coal mining near Bienfait and to the turn of the 20th century when there were dredges on the North Saskatchewan River east of Prince Albert recovering gold."

Each mining sector has an interesting story to tell beginning with early discoveries and carrying on into exploration, development, production and onto the world stage. Coal, gold and metallic minerals have been around since the beginning, while potash and uranium have histories of only a few decades. The diamond sector is in the earliest stage of what may be a lucrative run.

"With metallic minerals the discovery of massive copper and zinc deposits in the Flin Flon area in 1915 got things started," Reeves says, noting the industry has seen ups and downs and is just now seeing its markets rebound after an extended soft period in the mid-1990s. "We had flurry of activity in the gold sector in the mid-1980s that resulted in some smaller operations, plus the Seabee Mine has continually added to its reserve base to achieve fine results over the past decade. In both of those sectors you need sustained strong metal prices to prosper."

The growth of the world economy, particularly in China, has seen a huge demand for raw materials. The new 777 shaft and modernization of the smelter at Flin Flon establishes an infrastructure that will attract exploration and brings confidence the region will continue to have a long future as a mineral producer.

"Potash," Reeves describes, "is a resource that was first identified in Saskatchewan in cuttings from an oil well in the Radville area in the 1940s however there was some activity in the Weyburn area in 1917 that was reported in the paper as potash exploration. It took a few shaky, failed attempts and some technological advances before mine development really took off in the 1960s." Now, potash is a cornerstone of the industry with sales of more than $2.2 billion last year.

Uranium exploration began in earnest in the 1950s and production took off in the late 1960s as a number of nuclear power plants came online around the world. Oil companies were heavily involved as early players until the uranium industry came into its own.

"It wasn't until Key Lake in 1975 that geologists came up with a model to show how uranium formed in these deposits," explains Reeves. "From there, exploration technologies became more refined and they were able to focus on identified targets instead of shooting blind."

Reeves imparts another interesting piece of history in that there were scattered tales of diamonds being found in northern Saskatchewan as far back as the 1960s. Come ahead to 1988 and the revelation of kimberlite at Sturgeon Lake--which led to the current exploration boom in the Fort a la Corne area--and you realize the rich history of mining in Saskatchewan is a work in progress.

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"It would be a significant bump to the economy if a new development were to go ahead in the Fort a la Corne diamond play," Reeves says. "It has the potential to be the same size as the uranium industry and we've seen how significant that industry has been in our history."

Diamond companies are following the lead of industry forerunners by engaging local people in consultation and collaborating with impacted communities. They are also joining the SMA and embracing the industry's philosophies and standards.

Reeves says the SMA, for their part, is working to simplify regulations and ensure an attractive investment climate.

"Mining is a cyclical business and right now there's a window of opportunity to be a serious contender in the development of mining projects. Our interest is in seeing those projects developed in Saskatchewan and that's where having the proper investment climate is so critical."

With the doubling of lands under disposition Reeves is confident the exploration tally will hit the $100-million mark over the next year, split roughly in half between diamond and uranium exploration. He feels there is plenty of untapped potential in mining.

"Investors in the resource sectors weathered the tech bubble over the last few years until everyone realized the value in that was mostly paper," Reeves comments. "Now that we've seen escalating metal prices and a strengthening of commodity prices in general, the market outlook for products mined in Saskatchewan is very positive."