Hammers, nails, wind turbines, wood waste, LEED lighting…the sights and sounds of economic recovery across B.C.

B.C. construction projects have tripled, the value has quadrupled. Is it another positive sign? You tell us.

Have a look through the most recent quarterly issue of B.C.’s Major Projects Inventory. The latest numbers are, as they say, “record breaking.”

• Here’s a pretty impressive stat: Over 930 new construction projects are planned or underway across B.C. ,valued at an estimated $198.3 billion — the highest amount ever recorded!
• In the past four years alone, every region in B.C. has recorded increases in total project numbers.
• For instance: a 114 per cent increase in Nechako; 95 per cent in the Cariboo; 80 per cent in the Northeast.

Clean technology projects at home

There are 47 clean technology projects planned or underway across B.C., valued at an estimated$17.2 billion.

Here are just a few examples of clean, modern and green construction projects set to benefit communities throughout B.C.

• Wind: a 300-megawatt wind farm, the $600-million Dokie Wind Farm near Chetwynd expects 300 new construction jobs and 30 permanent operations positions.
• Bioenergy : the $55-million Celgar bioenergy project is now underway in Castlegar.
• Green building:  learn how the $20-million Bateman Centre at Royal Roads University in Victoria is regarded as a catalyst for global sustainability and a centre for dialogue and discovery .

What do know about clean technology? To discover opportunities in the clean technology sector, visit InvestBC.

Mining in British Columbia has been around for over 100 years and provides excellent jobs and economic benefits for many B.C. families and communities.

Learn about mining in your province.

Click on the image below to see the full infographic on B.C.’s mining industry.

When you’re out buying something in your neighbourhood or shopping for something in the nearest town, do you ever think how you’re contributing to people’s livelihoods?

Of course you do. Your neighbourhood, community, region all benefit when you make a purchase in B.C.

Perhaps that’s why British Columbians are confident about doing a little shopping!

August 2010

• The Petroleum Services Association of Canada predicts that B.C. will see natural gas and petroleum exploration and production activity improve by 22 per cent this year, compared to 2009.
• The natural gas and petroleum industry is very important to B.C.’s economy, employing more than 22,000 British Columbians. The sector generated about $1.3 billion in government revenues in 2009/10 and $7.9 billion in industry capital investment in 2008.
• In June 2010, natural gas and petroleum rights sales resulted in more than $404 million in bonus bids. This was the fifth largest sale of its kind in B.C.’s history. The total year-to-date sales are over $662 million in revenue, which help pays for health care, education and other social services.

Exports, May 2010

• Year-to-date, the value of B.C.’s total international exports is up 7.9% from last year, signalling strong growth coming out of the recent recession. Growth was particularly strong in the Pacific Rim and South East Asia, highlighting the success of recent trade missions to the region.
• B.C. exports to Asian markets are up substantially compared to 2009: up 35.6% to China, 12.1% to South Korea, and 493.1% to India.
• B.C.’s lumber exports to China in 2009 were more than seven times greater than they were in 2003, when we first opened an office in Shanghai – strong proof that our marketing efforts are paying off.

Source: http://www.bcstats.gov.bc.ca/pubs/exp/expdata.pdf

“We are starting to see some very strong signs that 2010 will bring significant revenue back to B.C. and help us bring down the deficit even further,” says Bill Bennett, B.C.’s Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Minister. “Our June natural gas and petroleum rights sale of $404M speaks to the strong interest in our world-class resources and is a major reason to be excited.” The sale is the fifth largest in B.C.’s history.  There is overwhelming optimism in the sector. Don’t take our word for it. See what Brian Lavergne, CEO of Calgary’s Storm Exploration Inc., says in a recent Globe and Mail article. Why are rights sales important? Industry activity means jobs for B.C. families and communities. Dollars from B.C.’s natural resources sector fund social programs, roads, bridges, buildings and other vital community projects.

Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Bill Bennett

Learn more about how B.C. supports environmentally sound and socially responsible development.

Watch for Opportunity BC trade fairs in your community. They connect people, business and industry in the province’s flourishing natural gas and petroleum sector. Watch a video from this year’s event in Fort St. John.

Click on the image above to see the full infographic on B.C.’s economic recovery.

Together we are creating a modern, stronger British Columbia poised to lead in economic recovery.

The forecast is looking sunny. The weather is starting to co-operate. Welcome back BC.

Don’t read statistical reports that often?  Read this one. It might surprise you.

According to Stats Canada, British Columbia is once again leading all provinces in population growth and three-quarters of this increase is due to net international migration.

Meaning? No question. Our 2010 Winter Olympics were a huge success. The world is done watching us. They are now moving here.

Question – Are you aware B.C. is one of the top three immigrant destinations in all of Canada?

They like us! They really really like us! No surprise. British Columbians are gracious and kind people. We welcome all newcomers. The jobs are here.

Finally, did you know that for the third consecutive quarter your province ranks first in net interprovincial migration?

Translation – Canadians are choosing to move to British Columbia. Stats Canada reports more folks are moving from Alberta to British Columbia than any other province in the country.

So why are we so popular?  Why is everyone moving here?

Maybe it’s our competitive edge, the jobs, people, our beautiful province or healthy lifestyles?

Whatever the reason, it appears our province is establishing itself as the place to live and work across Canada and across the globe.

If you think the situation in B.C. is all gloom and doom, think again.

We’re turning the corner, and we’re in the lead…

Video view of schematics for this huge construction project.

Over the next 28 months, B.C. excavators will dig a huge hole at TRIUMF, Canada’s national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics.

B.C. haulers will remove 17,000 tonnes of dirt from the Vancouver site.

B.C. cement trucks will deliver up to 1,000 loads of concrete – enough to build a metre-wide sidewalk from downtown Vancouver almost to Mission.

B.C. concrete crews will erect the forms, place the rebar, and do the tricky pouring required to build walls up to 1.8 metres thick to house a linear accelerator (built in B.C., naturally) that will keep Canada at the forefront of isotope research for the next 15 years.

B.C. wood will be used wherever possible, as per the Province’s Wood First legislation.

At various stages of construction, B.C. surveyors, architects, engineers, electricians, plumbers, carpenters and other highly skilled workers will swarm over the site for ARIEL, which stands for Advanced Rare IsotopE Laboratory. Being built with $30.7 million from the B.C. government, ARIEL will be used to make isotopes for medicine and research.

At the end of the day, the construction alone will create 90 person-years of employment for British Columbians.

That runs the gamut of a couple of days for the surveyors to the full 28 months for project managers, says Gary Ridout, who helped TRIUMF design ARIEL and has led the construction of accelerator-based research labs around the world.

Ridout, with Stantec Consulting based in Vancouver, worked on his first science lab 20 years ago at TRIUMF. That job led to high-profile, multi-year assignments that involved moving to places like North Carolina and Hawaii. But he always returned to B.C. Ridout loves his unique, challenging science projects. “There’s a certain mystery to it, and the scientists are always very excited,” he says. “For us, it’s a constant learning experience. I’ll never be a physicist, but I’m always learning things about the science.” When he’s not managing massive building projects, Ridout volunteers in his community. He’s involved with his children’s sport teams, and he took time during the 2010 Winter Olympics to help co-ordinate traffic at Vancouver International Airport.

He’s also taken part in Canstruction – an international design-build competition for engineers, architects and construction companies, who create sculptures out of canned food.  (Think the stars of Wall-E, Jaws and Bee Movie.) Each year, after the Vancouver exhibition ends, the tins go to the food bank, and prizes to the team that gets the most votes.

“I hope to find time to do it again soon,” Ridout says.