In 2009, Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako received a $14,000 grant from Northern Development through the Marketing Initiatives program towards this $50,000 project. This has been a funding partnership of Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako, Northern Development, and Invest Canada-Community Initiatives
2012-The Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako (RDBN) has developed a comprehensive multi-year Economic Development Strategy focusing on supporting regional economic growth and diversification. A key recommendation from this strategy was government support for development of the mining sector within the region in order to spur diversification in primarily forestry-dependent communities, while also supporting major mining developments in the region.
Under this strategy, the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako launched a new RDBN Mining Industry Web Portal in 2009 that enables local businesses and investors access a wealth of information specifically focused on the mining sector. The mining web portal provides information for residents and suppliers as well as mining and exploration companies. The portal features events, media releases, employment and education opportunities, current exploration and mining projects taking place in the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako.
To learn more, please visit the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako’s Mining Industry Web Portal:Â http://mining.rdbn.bc.ca/
By creating the mining portal, the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako is increasing the level of support and services available within the region for the mining sector. By better connecting local suppliers with mine developers, exploration companies, and multi-national engineering firms, the regional district is helping to ensure that local businesses are better positioned to bid on major projects within the region.
This effort is focused on keeping the massive economic spin-offs that mine developments create local while also ensuring that residents with qualified skills and experience have an opportunity to attain employment within their communities.
This project also benefits the mine developers, engineering firms, and exploration companies as they now have much better access to information on local suppliers, community services, and the workforce within the region.
This project was funded in part by Northern Development’s Pine Beetle Recovery Account as the web portal is a critical piece of infrastructure that will help support diversification from predominantly forestry-based economies within each of the regional district’s communities.
Since launching the mining web portal, it has had over 5,000 hits per month with the highest volume of viewers visiting the media releases page, events page, and employment opportunities page.