I write in response to Professor David
Robinson's column in the Aug. 7 edition.
He natters on ad nauseum about the mining
supply and services business and Michael Porter's cluster
theory.
Porter's cluster theory is very interesting,
but it applies only marginally to Sudbury and the mining supply
and services industry.
One of his excellent papers on cluster theory
uses the example of the wine industry in northern California.
Many businesses that supply the wine industry have clustered
and thrived there. They are, at least in part, connected with
the University of California - Davis Campus. U.C. Davis is
world renowned for its agriculture and viticulture programs.
The wine industry in northern California is there to stay. The
vineyards will not run out or move elsewhere, at least as long
as there is a demand for wine.
On the other hand, the mining supply and
services business can locate almost anywhere. Firms can come
and go almost at will. Attracting such business and keeping
them here is a worthwhile objective and can be best done, in my
opinion, by getting out of their way and by making Sudbury an
attractive city in which to live and raise a family.
To that end we should not be throwing
taxpayers' money at these businesses and consultants and other
parasites. We should be making sure there is a place for kids
to learn to ski and to swim, enough tennis courts, soccer
fields, ice rinks, etc. We should encourage the symphony, the
theatre and the art gallery. We should be working at keeping up
the high quality of our elementary and secondary schools and
trying to get Laurentian University out of the basement of
Maclean's rankings.
Robinson does not seem to realize that in the
1970s this town got itself into very serious economic trouble
by relying almost exclusively on the mining industry. A number
of forward looking and bright citizens understood the need to
diversify and rolled up their sleeves and did it. Robinson
should ask some of us who lived here then what it was like and
what was done about it.
There are a number of opportunities for
economic diversification in Sudbury. We have some of the best
agricultural land in the province. We have post-secondary
education and health-care sectors that are here to stay and
perhaps grow. There seems to be an opportunity for alternative
energy generation. Millions of dollars of forest products in
various stages of processing pass through Sudbury every year.
That might be a "value added" opportunity. We have very good
rail transportation. The completion of the four-laning of
Highway 69 is crucial, but thanks to fellows such as Gerry
Lougheed Jr. and Rick Bartolucci this is happening. The
potential of tourism has hardly been thought of.
And finally, Sudbury is bursting with
brainpower and managerial and technical talent. There are
thousands of retired mining company executives who would jump
at the chance to get back into harness for a day or so each
week to help the community. Maybe it's time for Robinson to
step aside for a while and let folks who know what they're
talking about write some economic development columns. I'm
tired of this one-trick monkey.
William E. McLeod
, Sudbury
Editor's note: Northern Life's welcomes guest columns from
anyone with good ideas.