Smithers All Candidates Forum – October 15, Della Herman Theatre, Smithers

The Smithers District Chamber of Commerce will host an all-candidates forum at 7:00 pm October 15th at Della Herman Theatre in Smithers. Doors open at 6pm. The event will be moderated by Interior News editor Thom Barker, and will feature the six candidates vying for the Skeena-Bulkley Valley seat in the federal Parliament.

 Over the next four weeks, organizers will be collecting questions from the public, which can be dropped off at the offices of the Chamber and Interior News or emailed to manager@smitherschamber.com.  No questions will be taken from the floor but you can attend an informal meet and greet immediately following the forum in the Round Room where voters can ask questions directly to the candidates.

In alphabetical order the candidates in Skeena-Bulkley Valley are as follows:

• Taylor Bachrach (New Democratic Party);
• Dave Birdi (Liberal Party);
• Jody Craven (People's Party);
• Claire Rattée (Conservative Party);
• Michael Sawyer (Green Party); and
• Rod Taylor (Christian Heritage Party).

AME Policy Forum, Monday October 21, 5:30 pm, SEG Rock Room

The Association for Mineral Exploration (AME) and SEG  are hosting a Regional Policy Forum on Monday, October 21 in Smithers at the SEG Rock Room. It’s an opportunity to let AME know what we in the northwest consider to be the important issues that need to be discussed and brought to the attention of the various governments. Thanks to AME for offering to provide pizza and refreshments.

Please join us:

• Date: Monday October 21
• Time: 5:30
• Place:  SEG Rock Room #101 3424 Fulton Avenue, Smithers BC

Please RSVP to Jonathan Buchanan at jbuchanan@amebc.ca if you are interested in attending and so we know how many chairs to put out and how much pizza to order. If you can't do that, please come anyway.

Province seeks public input on mining reforms, deadline October 25

British Columbians are asked to provide feedback on proposed changes to the Mines Act to improve regulation and oversight of the province’s mining sector.

The ministry proposes the following amendments to the Mines Act:

Formally separate specific authorities and decision-making powers under the Mines Act to ensure authorizations and permitting are separate from enforcement and auditing powers.
Formally establish an independent oversight unit with an auditing function.
Enhance compliance and enforcement provisions.

Public engagement will be open until Oct. 25, 2019.  Information on how to provide feedback is at https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2019EMPR0106-001827

SEG 2020 directory

Smithers Exploration Group’s annual directory is a hot item at AME’s Roundup in January, so you don’t want to be disappointed by missing out on getting your ad ready. We distributed 500 copies at Roundup 2019 and that’s a great way of getting your services noticed.  An ad in the directory is a great bang for your advertising buck but you can also be listed in the directory free of charge.  If your listing contact information has changed – phone or email – or if you are not yet listed,  please send us the new information.

IMPORTANT - We are also looking for high resolution photographs of your 2019 summer field work.

Watch for details on rates and advertising deadlines.  If your listing information has changed and if you have some hi-res photos, please contact Elaine Konschuh at merok@telus.net

Mining Injects Billions Into Local Businesses and Communities Across British Columbia

The Mining Association of BC and the Mining Suppliers Association of BC have released details on a new survey demonstrating that BC mines and smelters spent $2.9 billion on material goods and services in local communities in 2018. It’s a fascinating read at

https://mining.bc.ca/sites/default/files/UBCM%20OPOE%20Report.pdf