The idea of mining near Montreal has city dwellers affected badly for the most part because they like to associate the Laurentians near the city as a place for summer cottages and an easy escape from urban stress. Indeed the landscape of Quebec has changed since the days this writer has been to camp and gone to visit relatives in St. Agathe. The you could get a coke for a dime and there was no clue as what mineral wealth might lure prospecting so close to the city. The location to be is at St Adele which is an hour an a half ride away, too close for comfort knowing that the boreal forests are going to go absent yet again and the brook you used to fish is going to harbor waste contaminants from an iron ore mill upstream.

Here is the possible scenario. A Vancouver based mining company has done areal surveys of the area and probably land ones as well and come to the conclusion that their might be mineral wealth worth exploring for, 60 million tons of iron ore and titanium is the estimate. If this prediction is true it will mean greater employment for the province and perhaps an easing of the tax burden for the average citizen.The naturalist or urban dweller who wants to get awy from city smog is going to find that this area will lose its appeal if mining goes on. Iron ore mining has a history of causing large swaths of land to be opened up and explored, the natural terrain, woods flora and fauna all disappear under the shovel for the sake of the exploration. The advantage pits the mining industry against the tourist one and on the case of St. Adele even the mayor wants citizens to sign a petition against any exploration whatsoever.

Cynics about tax cuts disagree that there will be any easing of taxing as the province has already found riches through its hydro power plants exporting energy to the US. and our electrical bills have gone up anyway, not decreased. This author prefers to have the green spaces close enough to the city that he can eventually drive to as before and invest in the local culture around town. The mining at towns way up north, Rouyen-Noranda and the like can continue and mining should be encouraged further away from large urban settings if there is a need for added mineral wealth.