The physical environment of the Nanaimo area, inland
forms, climate, soils and vegetation, is similar to that of
the eastern coastal plain region of Vancouver Island. Two
resources have/influenced the occupance particularly: coal
deposits and location. The distributing economy made possible
by location is still developing, but the economy as sociated
with coal-mining has lost its former dominance. The effects
which coal-mining, and adaptation to its decline, have had
upon the economic life, the cultural landscape and the
population can be studied as a phase in a continuing process
of interaction between man and his environment.
Physical factors have placed limitations upon the development
of local activities. Location, which both fostered and
hindered the progress of coal-mining, is becoming an increasingly important asset. Geological conditions proved disadvantageous
to the prosperity of mining and limited the span
of its productivity. Topography, soil and drainage restricted
the scope of agriculture. The volume of local timber reserves
confines their exploitation to small-scale operations, but the
large reserves in surrounding areas form the basis of the
whole regional economy.
Fishing makes its greatest economic contribution in directly.
Coal-mining expanded slowly from 1852 until the 1880's.
The thirty years following 1890 marked the period of greatest
employment and productivity, but it was interrupted by recessions
due to the competition of other fuels and to labour
difficulties. Decline since 1923 has been rapid and steady.
The coal resources are now exploited on a continuously declining scale. Other economic activities have been further influenced by
their changing relationships to coal-mining. Because of its
early start, agriculture has nearly reached the limits of its
areal expansion, part-time farming, by which land is used less
intensively, has also been encouraged by the mining industry
The depletion of timber reserves is directly attributable
to the demands of the coal-mining economy. Certain manufacturing
industries developed to serve the mining community, have
disappeared, but others have expanded slightly Only those
dependent upon resources located outside the area are likely
to develop significantly. The tertiary industries of the coalmining
period formed the nucleus of the present distributing
economy. Favoured by location, they have become the mainstay
of the area and have possibilities of further expansion.
The features of the cultural landscape which originated
during the coal-mining period are still discernible, but are
being obscured by those associated with the distributing
economy. The present complex pattern of agricultural and
forest land utilization has been determined by the distribution
of soil classes and the relationships of these industries to
coal-mining. Zones of increasingly intensive utilization,
centred on Nanaimo, may be developing. Settlements, formerly
located near the outcropping seams, are becoming involved in
a general tendency toward radial development. Three types of
street patterns have been developed in the city and its vicinity. Elsewhere, the compact street patterns of the mining
period are becoming more linear. Distinctive miners' homes
remain in certain localities.
The growth of population, formerly related to coal-mining,
has not yet significantly increased, but population distribution is changing. Movements in accordance with mining developments
have ceased, and the distribution is becoming noticeably
dense near Nanaimo. Mining has been replaced as the dominant
occupation by the tertiary industries. The nationalities in
the area still represent those attracted by the mining industry.
Attitudes engendered during the mining period still
persist and may have varying effects on future progress.
The present economic structure is based upon a primary resource,
lumber, which must compete in the world market. Although
the productive capacity of the area could be improved,
the greatest contribution toward future development would be
the maintenance of the regional timber resources. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UBC/oai:circle.library.ubc.ca:2429/41497 |
| Date | January 1950 |
| Creators | Matheson, Marion Henderson |
| Publisher | University of British Columbia |
| Source Sets | University of British Columbia |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use. |
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