Forestry Investment Overview - Northern Rockies … investment...Forestry Investment Overview Third...

Forestry Investment OverviewThird Quarter - 2014

Contacts

• Jack Stevenson Director - Community Development and Planning (250) 774-2541 ext 2041 [email protected]

• Jaylene Arnold Economic Development and Tourism Officer (250) 774-2541 ext 2045 [email protected]

• Mike Gilbert Community Development Officer (250) 774-2541 ext 2043 [email protected]

• www.northernrockies.ca

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Forestry Investment Overview

Fort Nelson British Columbia - Forest Industry Background

History Fort Nelson1 (Figure 1) is located at historic Mile 300 on the Alaska Highway and was es-tablished in 1805 as a fur trading post by the Northwest Company. It is the principal settle-

ment in the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM) and home to 75% of the TSAs population of approximately 5,290 residents. The other small communities making up the NRRM include: Prophet River, Toad River and Muncho Lake. The remain-ing area of the region is sparsely populated with a number of smaller settlements that are mainly situated adjacent to the Alaska Highway corridor. Forest ResourcesDescription of the Fort Nelson Timber Supply AreaThe Fort Nelson Timber Supply Area (TSA) is the second largest in British Columbia and is located in the northeastern corner of Brit-ish Columbia Canada (Figure 2) and covers ap-

proximately 9.8 million hectares which borders the Province of Alberta to the east, the Northwest Territories and Yukon Territory to the north, to the west by the Cassiar TSA and the Rocky Mountains, and to the south by the Fort St John and Mackenzie TSA’s.2 The TSA is located entirely in the Boreal forest which consists mainly of old and mature stands of timber. Spruce is the dominant conifer to be found in the region, with pine also pres-ent in limited quantities (Figure 3). Deciduous species in the TSA include aspen, cottonwood and birch (Figure 4). Mixed wood stands (coniferous and deciduous species) are predomi-nant through a significant portion of the timber profile in Fort Nelson (Figure 5). The major-ity of the timber resides along the river valley corridors and across the widespread plateaus.

1 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/dfn/information.htm#town2 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hts/tsa/tsa08/tsr3/08ts06ra.pdf

Figure 1. Fort Nelson British Columbia

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The landscape encompasses a variety of topographies that form a gradient of increasing relief from east to west including some of the highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains to vast plateaus and plains of the Liard. The TSA lies entirely within the Arctic watershed which drains via the Liard River and the other major tributaries including the Fort Nelson, Prophet, Muskwa, Toad, Kechika and Petitot rivers.3

The total productive Crown forest area of the TSA is approximately 5.7 million hectares (or 58% of the total base). The timber harvesting land base (THLB) is the portion of the Crown forest which is considered to be economically and environmentally suitable (defined during the tim-ber supply analysis process) for timber harvesting. The current THLB as defined by the 2006 timber supply analysis is approximately 1.4 million hectares which represents 25 percent of the productive Crown forested land base which is nearly 15 percent of the total area of the TSA.4

One more notable descriptive characteristic of the Fort Nelson TSA is its relatively recent commencement of development in comparison with most TSAs in the province. The lim-ited history of development in the TSA introduces both uncertainties and advantages. The relatively short operational experience in this extensive and geographically isolated TSA pres-ents difficulty in defining economically harvest-able stands, which adds uncertainty to the level of harvest that may reasonably be expected to be achieved. On the other hand, a benefit of the early stage of development is a preponderance in the TSA of extensive areas of older timber that re-main undeveloped across the landscape, afford-ing many alternative options and much flexibility for resource management in the TSA. Decisions on the nature and timing of the best means to uti-lize the advantages among the available options will be subject to and influenced by a number of economic, environmental and social factors.5

3 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/dfn/information.htm 4 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hts/tsa/tsa08/tsr3/08ts06ra.pdf 5 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hts/tsa/tsa08/tsr3/08ts06ra.pdf

Figure 2. Key Map of the Fort Nelson TSA in British Columbia3

Figure 3. Coniferous Forest composed of Spruce and Pine

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Figure 4. Deciduous Forests Composed of Aspen, Cottonwood and Birch

Figure 5. Mixed Wood Stands of Coniferous and Deciduous species

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Milling History in the Fort Nelson TSA

In early 1970’s Sikanni Forest Products had a rough cut sawmill established just outside of the town of Fort Nelson. Between the late 1970’s and 1990’s Tackama Forest Product opened a sawmill and plywood plant and Fort Nelson Forest Industries opened a sawmill. The 1990’s saw Slocan Forest Products purchase the Tackama Forest Product Mills and Fort Nelson Forest Industries which even-tually became the property of Canfor Corporation with their purchase of Slocan in 2003 (Figure 6).

Figure 6. Canfor Tackama Plywood Mill and Sawmill with OSB Plant in the background which operated until June, 2008.

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The Fort Nelson Forest Industries site was transformed into an OSB plant in 1995. From 1990-95 Fort Nelson also had a chopstick mill which oper-ated using deciduous species. Mar-ket conditions led to the closure of the sawmill in 2005, the OSB plant in June 2008, and the plywood mill in October, 2008. The location of these mills sites was an industrial area lo-cated approximately 8-10 kilometers south of Fort Nelson west of highway 97. Figure 7 illustrates the potential locations for forestry operations in the industrial area outside of Fort Nelson.

Industrial Development Area - Mill Sites South of Fort Nelson (2012 ortho image)

Figure 7. Industrial Development Areas with Potential Mills Sites South of Ft Nelson.

History and Current AAC of the Fort Nelson TSA

In 1989, the AAC for the TSA was set at 972,000 cubic metres, of which 750,000 cubic metres were attributed to harvesting in co-niferous-leading stands and 222,000 cubic metres were attributed to deciduous-leading stands. In 1994, the AAC was determined at 1,500,000 cubic metres, of which 600,000 cubic metres were attrib-utable to coniferous-leading stands (of which it was assumed that at least 80,000 cubic metres would come from lodgepole-pine-leading

stands) and 900,000 cubic metres were attributable to deciduous-leading stands—this latter increase being due to the improved eco-nomic prospects for utilizing aspen. In 2000, the AAC was maintained by determination at 1,500,000 cubic metres, with the same com-ponents attributable to coniferous- and deciduous-leading stands. Effective as of November 10, 2006, the new AAC for the Fort Nelson TSA was set to 1,625,000 cubic metres. This effectively increased

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the AAC for the TSA by approximately 8 percent. The increase includes an adjustment to account for harvested volumes of grade 3 endemic and grade 5 logs, which began to be charged to AACs in British Columbia on April 1, 2006. The partition specifying sep-arate harvest volumes attributable to deciduous-leading and to coniferous-leading stands is discontinued. This AAC excludes all volumes allocated to woodlot licenses. This AAC will remain in ef-

Annual Allowable Cut Apportionment

Total m3 Conventional Volume m3

Deciduous Volume m3

Non-‐AAC Volume m3

Replaceable Forest Licences A17007 Canfor 553,716 553,716 0 0

Total 553,716 553,716 0 0 Non Replaceable Forest Licenses

83,000 83,000 0 0

Total 83,000 83,000 0 0 Pulpwood Agreement PAG 14 Canfor 610,000 610,000 0 800,000

Total 610,000 610,000 0 0 British Columbia Timber Sales 299,668 299,668 0 0 Community Forest Agreement 18,000 18,000 0 0 Forest Service Reserve 60,616 60,616 0 0

Total Annual Commitments 1,625,000 1,625,000 0 0

fect until a new AAC is determined, which must take place within five years of the present determination (N.B. Under current legislation the Minister may, by apportionment, allocate licenses to harvest a total volume of timber in a TSA that exceeds the AAC for the TSA).6

6 http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hts/tsa/tsa08/tsr3/08ts06ra.pdf

Existing Licence Apportionment and Commitments in the Fort Nelson TSA

Licence commitments are the licence\tenure(s) agreement types issued by the government granting the right to harvest Crown tim-ber. These agreements are tied geographically to TSAs and are “volume-based”, which means that volume can be harvested any-where within the TSA to satisfy the requirements of the licence.Some tenure types are “area-based” such as: tree farm li-

censes, woodlot licenses and community forest agreements. Even though these forms of “area-based” agreements may ap-pear to exist within a TSA, they are geographically removed from the spatial boundary of the TSA and their volume commitment is not included as part of the AAC. Table 1 represents the exist-ing licence or tenure type commitments in the Fort Nelson TSA.

Table 1. Current AAC Apportionment in the Fort Nelson TSA.

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Historical Harvesting Activities

Timber volume harvested on a licence is tracked over specific time-periods, and is known as cut control. The Forest Act requires that the volume harvested during each cut control period not exceed the sum of the licence apportionment over the cut con-trol period. Five years is the standard cut control period associated with replaceable and non-replaceable forest licenses, woodlot licenses and community forest agree-ment areas. Recognizing that it may be difficult to harvest a volume that is exactly equal to the five year AAC, government assigns a tolerance level that is not subject to any penalties. Major Licences described under Forest Act section 75.41, must ensure they do not harvest more than 110 percent of the sum of their apportionment in the cut control period.

BCTS is a government program that is responsible for the development and auction of fibre to the forest industry, with a mandate to provide both costs and price bench-marks for timber harvested from public land in B.C.7 The Peace-Liard Business Area of BCTS (Fort Nelson, Fort St John and Dawson Creek TSAs) is responsible to plan, develop and auction timber sale licenses (TSLs) to the highest bidder. Bid prices re-ceived from auctioned timber drive Revenue Branch’s Market Pricing System (MPS) which is used in part to set stumpage rates for Crown timber harvested under other licence types in the regional pricing units. The buyer of the TSL is responsible for pay-ing the bid price and harvesting the timber.

Given the forestry industry has not operated in Fort Nelson for the past 6-7 years, a volume undercut on the existing licenses has accumulated to approximately of 6.3 million cubic meters. This result indicates that current licensee harvest performance has not been meeting license apportionments. Over time, a shortfall of not harvesting the volume apportionment may create a significant undercut volume in the TSA which may be reallocated to other tenures at the discretion of the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations (FLNRO).

7 https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/bcts/

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Logging operations have traditionally been concentrated during the winter month primarily due to that fact that the main access routes required frozen conditions to access the timber (Figure 8). Over the past 3-5 years the increased activity related to the oil and gas industry has resulted in an increase in the all-weather road networks around the Fort Nelson area to access timber year round.

Figure 8. Log Hauling During Winter Conditions

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First Nations There are eight First Nations that are resident in or have traditional territory with the Fort Nelson TSA of which four (The Fort Nelson First Nation, Dene Tsaa Tse K’Nai (Prophet Nation) First Nation, Dena Tha’ First Nations and the Halfway River First Nation) are signatories to Treaty 8 which covers the TSA. The Kaska-Dena First Nations – the Daylu Dena (Lower Post) First Nations, the Dease River First Nation, the Tahltan First Nation and the Fort Liard First Nation all have traditional territo-ries in the Fort Nelson TSA and are part of Treaty 11 in the Northwest Territories.

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DEVELOPMENT IN THE NORTHERN ROCKIES: An Overview of Assets, Opportunities and Initiatives

INTRODUCTION

Fort Nelson and the surrounding region, incorporated as the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality (NRRM) in Febru-ary, 2009, and located in the northeast corner of British Co-lumbia, is home to a young population of approximately 5290. The region has long been involved in the extraction, harvesting and processing of natural resources. Beginning in the latter half of the past decade, and continuing through to the present, the emphasis of economic activity has shifted in the direction of natural gas with a particular emphasis on the development of unconventional shale gas supplies planned to supply the province’s developing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) industry. As a result the Regional Municipal-ity is often host to a significant work-camp population of workers employed in natural gas for construction, drilling and production.

Although Fort Nelson was BC’s Forest Capital in 2006, produc-ing significant volumes of Oriented Strand Board (OSB), plywood, and dimension-al lumber at Canfor owned mills, operations were ceased in 2008 as a result of the dramatic global economic downturn. This has left a large, untapped wood sup-ply, as healthy as it is diverse, with the capacity to support a range of new opera-tions, and posing substantial investment opportunities in this industry. The NRRM’s Forestry Roundtable meets regularly to explore new options in our changing for-est sector, maintaining focus on preparing for the re-establishment of that indus-try in the region. The Regional Municipality is also actively engaged in investigat-ing alternate forest tenure options which would facilitate reinvestment in forestry.

Fort Nelson – Aerial view along the Alaska Highway

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The NRRM is strategically positioned to act as the service centre for re-source-based activity in the region and boasts a number of prominent trans-portation assets. The Alaska Highway, combined with railhead access and regular scheduled and charter air service at the Northern Rockies Region-al Airport (NRRA), makes Fort Nelson an ideal transportation hub. Further-more, the community offers a range of services, land, and amenities to sup-port industry, and to meet the needs of a modern labour force, and population.

Anticipating the demands to be placed on existing infrastructure, the Northern Rockies has proactively moved to address the challenge. Analysis and planning has been the foundation of the development of the NRRM’s strategy. Studies, policies and by-laws, the Official Com-munity Plan (OCP), infrastructure programs and rationales for support from senior government have all been generated with a consistent fo-cus on preparedness for growth and the avoidance of the problems ex-perienced by other resource-based communities which were not ready.

In 2013, the Northern Rockies concluded a cost-sharing Infra-structure Development Contribution Agreement (IDCA) with the Province, a cost sharing agreement which will underpin the re-habilitation and construction of key assets. The Agreement pro-vides for a growth driven provincial contribution of up to $10 million annually, for a potential total of $200 million over its 20-year term. The commitment of British Columbia to share financial and leader-ship responsibility with the NRRM to develop crucial components of the region’s infrastructure attests to the expectation that the Northern Rock-ies will be a cornerstone of economic growth in the near-term and into the future.

Those considering investing in the NRRM will be interested in those assets already established, plans for their enhancement, and initiatives to establish new ones. What follows is a broad overview highlighting some of that information and should convey the degree to which the Northern Rockies is receptive to and preparing for development.

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TRANSPORTATION

Transportation is a key element in the establishment and growth of any industry. In the NRRM, road traffic is crucial for both local and long-distance transportation of supplies, goods and people.

The Alaska Highway

The Alaska Highway (Highway # 97) plays a key role in the region and within the Fort Nelson town-site itself. In addition to providing access to the region from other parts of the province, the Yukon and the NWT, it functions as the primary access route to the region’s shale gas basins and forest resources . It also functions as a key arterial within the road system of the Fort Nelson town site itself.

Current Initiatives• The highway undergoes regular repair, maintenance and upgrading as part of a

long-term plan• Safety upgrades to the highway within the town site have been undertaken and oth-

ers are planned• The NRRM, cooperating with government and industry is initiating a study to de-

termine the need for present and future enhancements to the highway beyond the town site to promote safety, and to accommodate the increased traffic volumes expected as the result of industrial development

Rail Transportation

The Northern Rockies is currently served by regular rail freight service provided by CN Rail. While the railroad infrastructure is not currently used to full capacity, largely as a result of the economic downturn, it has in the past demonstrated the ability to meet the needs of shipment associated with the production OSB, plywood, and dimensional lum-ber mills operating simultaneously.

Current Initiatives• CN Rail has indicated its willingness and capacity to provide service to new industry

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Northern Rockies Regional Airport (NRRA)

The Fort Nelson Airport was built during World War II in support of the war effort. The Government of Canada turned over control of and responsibility for the airport to the Fort Nelson-Liard Regional District, the regional government of the day, in 1999. Since that time it has been a crucial element in the development of the re-gional economy and a significant contributor to the quality of life of residents.

In 2012, the airport (now known as the Northern Rockies Regional Airport) ranked in the top 3 of all Tier 2 airports in Canada for itinerant (i.e. airport to airport) aircraft movements. It also saw more than 110,000 passenger transits. The NRRA hosts regular scheduled service to major centres in BC and Alberta. Regular and casual charter service employing Boeing 737 and other aircraft comprise between 50% and 70% of the airports traffic. Locally based fixed wing and rotary charter services are also well established.

The NRRA is also home to the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource for-est fire protection operations for Northern BC, and is in discussion with the NRRM regarding the establishment of a new, permanent base.

Recent improvements to the terminal building, the operations building, and to a secondary runway, and the acquisition of Crown land surrounding the airport’s core have been completed and mark the beginning of a number of significant enhance-ments to the NRRA, all to be guided by a comprehensive 10-year capital plan.

Current Initiatives• Major apron upgrades to accommodate increased traffic volume and larger

aircraft will be completed in 2014• Parking facilities are in the process of being expanded and upgraded.• An expansion of the terminal building is in the advanced stages of planning

and engineering• The subdivision of NRRA lands to support further orderly development is

underway

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• The NRRM has initiated contact with the Federal Government to establish screening and security capacity at NRRA

• Upgrading of water and waste infrastructure at the airport is in development

• Significant funding arrangements with senior government to support necessary improvement projects are in various stages of negation with some concluded and others nearly so

LOCAL ROADWAY DEVELOPMENT

Roads in the NRRM are currently generally adequate to meet the Municipality’s needs, a key element in the growth strategy for the NRRM relates to preparation for an in-crease in levels of local road traffic. This will result in the completion and extension of roads intended primarily for industrial traffic, and improvements to general arterial and residential roads. The availability of new residential and light industrial land will drive the demand for new construction and improvements to arterial roads within the core service area.

Apart from work required in Fort Nelson proper, the incorporation agreement that brought the NRRM into being includes a provision for the Regional Municipality to as-sume responsibility for rural roads and non-numbered highways within its boundaries in 2014. A survey of the conditions of these roads indicates that an average of $2 mil-lion will need to be committed yearly, on a continuing basis, to perform the upgrading necessary to bring them to an acceptable standard.

Current Initiatives• Ongoing maintenance and upgrading of roads in the core service area• Assumption of responsibility for non-numbered rural roads from the Province• Improvements to the Alaska Highway through the core service area in cooperation

with the Province• Extension of Cordova Way providing industrial traffic with additional direct access

from the Alaska Highway to the newly developed South Industrial Park

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Regional Resource Access Roads Recent development involving oil and gas development, and previous activity in the forest sector have spawned the development of a network of key resource roads in the region. Among these is the Sierra Yoyo Desan (SYD) Road and Highway #77, pro-viding vehicles and equipment important all-weather access. The maintenance and continued upgrading of such roads by the Province to support industry is a priority for the NRRM in that while they allow the forestry and oil and gas industries a link to resources, they also make it possible for Fort Nelson to grow into the service centre it aspires to be.

Current Initiatives• The ongoing maintenance and upgrading of the SYD Road by the Province• Discussions with BC regarding the replacement of the key Fort Nelson River

Bridge on Highway #77• Discussions with the province over the construction of the “Centre Access Road”

providing an alternative route to the SYD Road and opening new territory

LAND FOR DEVELOPMENT

Commercial and Light Industrial Land

Growth in the number and size of locally-based businesses supporting industry in the NRRM will be a function of a general increase in economic activity, and will parallel the demand for residential housing. In anticipation of the need to accommodate expan-sion in the light industrial and commercial sectors the Northern Rockies engaged in a joint venture in 2010 to bring Phase 1 of the South Industrial Park on-stream.

The site currently comprises roughly 250 acres of land zoned as Light Industrial, High-way Commercial, Service Commercial and Truckstop Commercial, a good proportion is still available for purchase. It offers easy access from the Alaska Highway with traf-fic flow supported by roadworks recently completed by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI). Projections indicate that within the next 10 to 20 years ad-ditional similar land will be required.

Photo By Chris Gale - Northern Photography

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Current Initiatives• Preparations are in place to activate Phase 2 of the South Industrial Park project

and to further extend Cordova Way to connect to the Alaska Highway to the west, completing a dangerous goods route for commercial and industrial vehicles, as development dictates.

Residential Land and Housing Development

Although Fort Nelson currently has a supply of available housing options, projections in-dicate that population growth in the NRRM will reach levels requiring the development of a significant number of residential housing units. There is currently insufficient residential land to meet this demand, with some of the land identified for expansion being held by the Crown.

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Current Initiatives• Land acquisition from the Crown, planning, and public consultation are well

advanced for the development of the Mountainview 2 residential subdivision with capacity for 150 housing units

• Negotiations are ongoing between the Municipality and the Province for addi-tional parcels to support residential development

PUBLIC UTILITIES INFRASTRUCTURE

Water/Sewer/Solid Waste Disposal

Water, sewer and solid waste disposal systems support current levels of use in Fort Nelson. Residential, commercial and industrial growth will require the upgrading and expansion of a number of elements in NRRM’s water, sewer, and solid waste systems in the near term however. Some of this work is necessary in order to address develop-ing deficiencies in components of the existing infrastructure as it ages, others to meet the increasing expectations of users and regulators.

Among the critical items to be attended to is that of water supply, in that it services the residents, businesses, and much of industry located both in the core service area, and to the north and south of the core. Beyond this, the sewage system and solid waste landfill site require attention in order to meet new regulatory standards. By combining mandated work with work to increase capacity, significant cost effectiveness can be achieved, and the NRRM will be still better positioned for development.

Current Initiatives• Major upgrades to the water planned to begin in 2015• Major work to upgrade sewage treatment to begin in 2015• Construction of a new landfill cell is complete with a comprehensive solid waste

management plan to be adopted in 2014 • Plans in place for the servicing of planned residential, commercial, and industrial

development

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PUBLIC SERVICES

Health Services

The Fort Nelson General Hospital is a 25-bed facility which equipped to provide general care, basic laboratory and radiology services, short-term intensive care, maternity services and emergency surgery. The availability of this range of services is limited however, by the availability of qualified physicians. Consequently, maternity patients and those requiring surgery are generally served out of the community at this point. In order to address this problem the NRRM has devoted significant resources to physician re-cruitment and retention. As a result, the local medical clinic is staffed with between 4 and 5 general practitioners with a range of sub-specialties.

The community also provides access to a variety of mental health and addiction coun-seling services through the hospital and other venues. Residents also have access to dental and vision care through private clinics.

Current Initiatives• Ongoing efforts at doctor recruitment and retention in cooperation with the regional

health authority to expand the range of care options for residents• Public discussion is underway for regarding a full-service medical clinic to be con-

structed as a Public-Private Partnership, and to conolidate a range of health care services into a single location and facilitate collaborative primary health care

Education and Training

School District #81 delivers Kindergarten through Grade 12 education through a sec-ondary school, a middle school, and two primary schools in Fort Nelson proper, and a K-12 one-room school in Toad River. Aside from the standard core offerings at Fort Nelson Secondary School, students also have the option of participating in advanced

Proposed Community Health Care Centre under discussion

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Information Technology and Robotics courses, and “Project Heavy Duty”: an introduc-tion to heavy equipment operation.

The local campus of Northern Lights College currently offers a full range of industry oriented safety training and ticketing and has, in the past, provided instruction in Power Engineering and Welding, by special arrangement with industry. The College also of-fers local training in Heavy Equipment Operation.

Government Services

The Northern Rockies prides itself on the level and quality of the full range of services it provides to residents, business and industry. The Municipality’s organizational struc-ture, attitude, and staffing levels support quick turnaround times on all matters support-ing development. Those requiring assistance or information can expect timely action and clear responses from NRRM staff.

The office of BC’s Ministry of Forests Lands and Natural Resource Operations (MFL-NRO) for the Fort Nelson Forest District, and the regional office of BC Timber Sales are both located in Fort Nelson and available to potential investors in the industry. The Province also provides access to general services through its Service BC office in Fort Nelson.

The RCMP provides both general policing and highway patrol from bases in Fort Nel-son. As part of the NRRM’s achievement of Regional Municipality status, responsibility to support the costs associated with general policing, and the Municipality has incor-porated reflected the expectation that the detachment will house Fire Protection and Ambulance operations as well.Communication Services

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While the availability and quality of communication services vary outside of Fort Nel-son, access to high speed Internet access, land-line phone and cellular phone ser-vices are all provided in the immediate vicinity.

Bell Canada and Telus are the dominant cellular service in the region, with both ag-gressively expanding coverage into areas of resource industry activity. Cable televi-sion and Internet connectivity available from Northwestel, a Bell subsidiary.The local post office provides mail and others services while representatives of sev-eral courier operators serve the community and the region.

Financial, Retail and Hospitality Services and Amenities

The North Peace Credit Union, Scotiabank, and CIBC all provide financial services at their locations in Fort Nelson. All are familiar with the needs and expectations of busi-ness and industry through their experience over time.

Both Overwaitea/Save-On Foods and IGA provide grocery shopping options, and both providers are equipped to handle bulk and camp orders, and take pains to attract and retain such business.

A range of hotel accommodations are available in Fort Nelson with arrangements for short and long-term engagement. The community also supports a number quality restaurants offering options from fast food to full course meals. The NRRM sponsored Phoenix Theatre offers entertainment in the form of first-run films and a schedule of live performances.

Recreation

In keeping with the objective of making the quality of life of residents a key component of development in the Northern Rockies, recreational projects feature prominently in infrastructure plans.

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The April 2007 collapse of the NRRM arena roof, and the ensuing closure of the Recreation Centre initiated a process that led to the construction of the present rec-reation complex. While the facility as it exists has been very well received, original plans called for it to incorporate a pool, exercise area and other amenities. Comple-tion of these other facets of the plan in 2015, will provide comprehensive, year-round recreational opportunities for residents and families, and symbolize a commitment to the long-term development of the community. Currently the Recreation Centre hosts hockey and curling activities for residents of all ages, large conferences and commu-nity events, and exercise and other classes.

The NRRM’s Community Trail has also proven to be a popular recreation asset. Phase 1 (4.7 km) of the planned 3-phase development is well used year-round. The develop-ment of Phase 2 and Phase 3 are planned to follow and continue through the next 15 to 20 years.

It is also expected that increased usage levels spawned by population growth will cre-ate a demand for improved and expanded facilities at Art Fraser Park, which is home to a water park, softball diamonds, and tennis, basketball, and volleyball courts. The development of new residential housing and neighbourhoods at the levels projected will also require the creation of at least 4 new neighbourhood parks to serve residents.

Poplar Hills Golf and Country Club, boasts a 9-hole grass green golf course which is very well used through the summer. Aside from casual golf, the Club is the site of a number of tournaments and a popular venue for community fund raising events.

CONCLUSION

The Northern Rockies Regional Municipality is enthusiastic over the development of the resources found in such abundance in the region. It has planned and taken con-crete steps to ready itself for just such development. The NRRM offers services and amenities intended to attract and keep industry and those who will come to help build successful enterprises of benefit to residents, the Province and the country. We invite you to talk to us about how we can help make your plan to invest in the Northern Rock-ies a reality.

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Appendix

Development-Related Population Projections to 2035

Population Projection Related to the Development of Shale Gas and Forest Industries in the NRRM (2013 to 2035) Source: Northern Rockies Community Development and Infrastructure Investment Planning Report, January, 2013 modified to reflect population growth to forest industry related population growth.

Based on Development of the Forestry Industry plus Shale Gas

Low Medium High 2015 6,931 6,931 6,931

2016 to 2020 9,170 10,134 10,189 2021 to 2025 9,947 11,553 12,269 2026 to 2030 10,350 11,574 12,261 2031 to 2035 10,519 11,669 12,263

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