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By the time I get to PG
Date published : November 4, 2009 - Mackenzie, British Columbia
James wants to stay in Mackenzie with Nicole and the kids, but tough times conspire to drive him away from home.
A mill town in crisis
A small town located in the Northern Rocky Mountain Trench, in British Columbia’s scenic interior, MacKenzie was established in 1966. Named after the explorer Alexander Mackenzie, who camped nearby while on his way to the Pacific in 1793, MacKenzie was a pre-planned “instant town” and owes its existence to the forestry industry.
But the recent collapse of the US housing market, coupled with the decline in newspaper circulation and a high Canadian dollar, has taken a heavy toll on the local economy. As of October 2009, three out of five mills that once employed local residents are not in operation.
Some facts & figures
• In 2001 the town’s population was 5,206.
• By 2006 the population had dropped to 4,539, a decrease of 12.8%.
• During the same period, the overall population of British Columbia increased by 5.3%, from 3,907,738 to 4,113,487.
• Between October 2007 and October 2009, about 1600 local jobs were lost.
• The USA is the main market by far for Canadian forestry products, and in 2009, housing starts in the USA had dropped 75% from their 2006 peak, driving the demand and price for lumber to historic lows.
Do you work in forestry – or live in an area dependent on the industry? Send us a comment on this photo-essay – or a photograph of your own that illustrates the impact of the crisis in
your community.
Sources:
The Canadian Encyclopaedia; The Mackenzie Times; Statistics Canada; Prince George Citizen, Oct 5, 2009; Forestry Products Association of Canada
A small town located in the Northern Rocky Mountain Trench, in British Columbia’s scenic interior, MacKenzie was established in 1966. Named after the explorer Alexander Mackenzie, who camped nearby while on his way to the Pacific in 1793, MacKenzie was a pre-planned “instant town” and owes its existence to the forestry industry.
But the recent collapse of the US housing market, coupled with the decline in newspaper circulation and a high Canadian dollar, has taken a heavy toll on the local economy. As of October 2009, three out of five mills that once employed local residents are not in operation.
Some facts & figures
• In 2001 the town’s population was 5,206.
• By 2006 the population had dropped to 4,539, a decrease of 12.8%.
• During the same period, the overall population of British Columbia increased by 5.3%, from 3,907,738 to 4,113,487.
• Between October 2007 and October 2009, about 1600 local jobs were lost.
• The USA is the main market by far for Canadian forestry products, and in 2009, housing starts in the USA had dropped 75% from their 2006 peak, driving the demand and price for lumber to historic lows.
Do you work in forestry – or live in an area dependent on the industry? Send us a comment on this photo-essay – or a photograph of your own that illustrates the impact of the crisis in
your community.
Sources:
The Canadian Encyclopaedia; The Mackenzie Times; Statistics Canada; Prince George Citizen, Oct 5, 2009; Forestry Products Association of Canada
Reporting and photographs
Brian Howell
Editor
Miguel Raymond
Director-coordinator
Hélène Choquette
© 2009 NFB – All rights reserved
Brian Howell
Editor
Miguel Raymond
Director-coordinator
Hélène Choquette
© 2009 NFB – All rights reserved
Theme
- On average every month:
- Number of meals James eats with his family: 10
- Number of meals he eats alone: 25
- Number of hours spent on the phone with family: 15
- Median commuting distance for a Canadian worker (in 2006): 7,6 km
- Median commuting distance for an Ontario worker: 8,7 km
