City invited to submit proposals for funding from the Mining Community Reserve Fund – Thompson Citizen
Council’s vague July 17 resolution to seek money from the province’s Mining Community Reserve Fund (MCRF) has generated a vague letter in response.
Growth, Enterprise and Trade acting deputy minister Dave Dyson said in an Aug. 23 response to a letter from Mayor Dennis Fenske that money from the fund can be used for proactive economic development purposes as long as the fund has a base balance of $10 million and that projects that receive funding must be approved by an order-in-council.
“Given the challenges faced by Manitoba’s mining sector due to prolonged periods of low commodity prices and global market pressures, the impact on mining tax revenues in the province has been severe, adding to pressures on the MCRF,” said Dyson’s letter. “Although recent amendments to the Mining Tax Act have provided for a maximum allocation of up to 6% to support the sustainability of the Manitoba Mining industry such as public geo science, aboriginal consultations, mining industry training, environmental monitoring, research and/or remediation, including our department’s mineral exploration incentive programs, dues to decreased mining revenues, the MCRF has been challenged to meet these commitments.”
