Ring of Fire map

MPP GIlles Bisson is saying Premier Kathleen Wynne’s progress report on the Ring of Fire is laughable.

She says there’s been some headway since last year but Bisson says nothing’s changed in three years.

Wynne acknowledged she said a year ago she won’t consider her government to have been successful unless progress has been made in the Ring of Fire, but she says some progress has already been made.

She says while there are nothing has been built yet, and agreements with First Nations haven’t been finalized, work is a lot further along than it was one year ago.

Bisson  Noront is still twiddling their thumbs waiting on permits and there’s no signs of any deal with First Nations.

“They’re going to be the first mine built in the Ring Of Fire, they’ve been waiting for two years for the government to make up their mind on how to proceed with permitting, never mind starting it.  Imaging paying millions of dollars to get a hold of the site then having to tell your shareholders, who dish out the cash, you’re still waiting on the government,”

Bisson referenced Detour Lake and DeBeers when it came to getting a deal done with First Nations.

“We were able to get those deals done rather easily because there was a willingness on the company and government’s part to mvoe thing forward and get the deals done.”

H
owever, Minister of northern development and mines Michael Gravelle, says building up the Ring of Fire isn’t just about a transportation corridor to a mine site, it’s about opening up access to communities in the north.

He says Noront Resources is making the Ring of Fire a priority after it signed a US$20-million deal to buy claims that were owned indirectly by Cliffs Natural Resources Inc., which said in late 2013 that it had suspended investment plans for the Ring of Fire area.