Natural resources. In Canada, we have a lot of them. We build towns around them. Mill towns. Mining towns. Fishing towns. Oil and gas towns. You can see them all over British Columbia. Towns like Mackenzie, Tumbler Ridge, Gold River, Tahsis, and Port Alice. In the 1960’s and 70’s, there was even a provincial government policy governing how these instant towns should be created and maintained. 

Millions…no check that…billions of dollars were spent in creating these towns. They were in remote areas…so roads had to be built. Schools, recreation facilities, and even hospitals had to be constructed. Water, gas, and power lines. Sewage facilities. Everything from scratch. Infrastructure that cost a HUGE amount of money.

Rape the land…rape the water…it’s apparently what we’re good at.  Boom and bust. All in pursuit of good paying, working and middle class jobs. Make hay while the sun shines…at least until the resource is depleted or the price collapses.

But nothing describes this boom and bust cycle better than the story of Kitsault. From start to finish, it took only five years.

 

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