Canada's mining industry has been instrumental the nation's economy since its beginnings. In 2011, mining accounted for about C$63 billion, or 3.6 percent of Canada's economy. And that was expected increase in 2012.

In his remarks on Monday at the keynote session of the Prospector's and Developer's of Canada Association (PDAC) meeting in Toronto, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, Joe Oliver, noted that nearly 60 percent of the world's publicly listed mining companies are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange or the Toronto Venture Exchange. And, in 2012, the nation attracted about 16 percent of global budgeted spending on exploration. Oliver also said that Canada was the only G7 country to recoup all of the jobs lost during the recent recession and added another 970,000 jobs.

During the next 10 years, Canada's natural resource industries are likely to increase even more, Oliver said. "Few countries are generating natural resource projects on the scale of Canada," he said. "An many as 600 major resource projects, worth more than C$650 billion, will be under way or planned."

For its part, the Canadian government has introduced its "Responsible Resource Development" program, designed to make project reviews more predictable and timely, Oliver said. This program will help reduce duplication, improve environmental protection and enhance aborginal consultation. The plan includes C$13.6 million to stimulate and strengthen aboriginal consultations. And another C$690 million has been earmarked to support training and education for Aboriginal Canadians to help meet the growing labor demand for mining and other industries, he said.