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As one of Timmins’ largest employers, Porcupine Gold Mines (PGM) - Goldcorp Canada Ltd. has forged a uniquely strong bond with Timmins. From the mine manager on down, the vast majority of PGM’s employees and business partners are long-time residents who have deep roots in the community. “Goldcorp the company has only been around for a few years, but our operations have been here for over a hundred years,” said Domenic Rizzuto, Goldcorp PGM’s Manager of Human Resources and Corporate Social Responsibility. “The community and the mine have really grown up together.” Five generations of Timmins residents have been employed in these globally recognized projects. Currently, Goldcorp PGM employs 760 full-time employees and 400 contractors across their four operating sites. “Most of us were born and raised here, and we have families here,” said Patricia Buttineau, Communications Coordinator. “The company may go by different names, but it’s the same people behind the names.” “Goldcorp is part of Timmins, and Timmins is part of Goldcorp,” agreed Rizzuto. This personal connection to the community is also reflected in the company’s dedication to a wide variety of local charitable efforts, supporting 130 different organizations every year. Most recently, they became an event sponsor for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Relay For Life as well as a key supporter for the Good Samaritan Inn’s purchase of a new shelter. As a significant community employer, Goldcorp PGM also feels the pains of Timmins’ housing shortage, and is looking to the city’s future by contributing financially to a housing study under the umbrella of the Timmins 2020 strategic plan. “Our employees are coaches and referees and volunteers - they’re part of the community and they’re engaged in the community,” said Buttineau. That desire to make Timmins a better place is part of why Goldcorp PGM has undertaken the Hollinger reclamation project. Its goal is to clear the historic Hollinger mine site of dangerous subsidences by creating an open pit mine on the property that will operate for eight to 10 years before the area is then converted into a park. The project is currently in the permitting phase, and work is expected to begin in the coming months. Goldcorp PGM’s dedication to environmental excellence has repeatedly earned them accolades. Most recently, they were honoured at the Timmins Chamber’s 2013 Nova Business Excellence Awards for their work on the Hollinger tailings management area along Highway 655. The company has also been recognized on the national stage, having won the Tom Peters Memorial Mine Reclamation Award in 2011 for their work at the Coniaurum mine site, located just northeast of Pearl Lake. Steep banks and heavy downpours caused mine tailings on the 58-hectare property to run off into Porcupine River for nearly 50 years, until PGM reshaped and revegetated the land to the tune of $9 million. The company also established honeybee hives on the site to promote pollination and re-attract wildlife to the area. Goldcorp PGM also partnered with local First Nations on the Coniaurum project, constructing a tipi site and teaching lodge to give aboriginal youth the opportunity to learn about their culture. “We’ve also partnered with some of the Elders in the area to try to pair traditional ecological knowledge with scientific knowledge in order to improve reclamation practices in the mining industry” in keeping with Goldcorp PGM’s commitment to respect the land, said Buttineau. This same approach will continue as Goldcorp PGM moves forward with its Timmins-area projects. These include not only the Hollinger project, but also the sinking of an underground shaft at the Hoyle Pond mine site, as well as additional work at the Dome underground site and Pamour open pit. For more information on the Hollinger Project, you can visit the Hollinger Project Information Centre at 637 Algonquin Blvd E. (behind the Bulk Barn), open Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from noon to 4 p.m. and Wednesdays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. You can also contact Heather Duhn, Community Liaison Coordinator at (705) 235-6571. Click here to see the full-sized picture.