N.W.T. industry minister calls for support to revive mining in the North

The NWT's industry minister has two proposals on her wish list, which she believes can give mining a jump start. She's lobbying the federal government for a 15% tax incentive top-up for exploration across the three territories. And she also wants to see zinc become eligible for a clean technology investment tax credit. The conversations last week with my counterparts remained positive. And just really a role of making sure that people understand why these tax credits are important. and why now, and why they matter not only to the Northwest Territories, but also to all three territories and Canada as a whole. The NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines has been advocating for a federal North of 60 exploration credit for more than a decade. The Chamber's CEO says extra support from the federal government is needed in the North. Unfortunately, because of the smaller tax base in the territories, all three territories, governments, territorial governments aren't in a position to offer additional tax incentives. Cleveland says the attention on major road projects also presents opportunities for mining, and Ottawa should take advantage of that. Niles Nemeth, CBC News, Yellowknife.