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The planned non-permanent community: an approach to development of new towns based on mining activity

University of British Columbia

It is the purpose of this thesis to investigate the approach of planning for non-permanent mining communities, where, because of the volatile nature of the basic mining activity, and because of the difficulties in achieving diversification of the economic base, permanent settlement is not possible. A preliminary discussion of the mining industry reveals the fundamental considerations in planning for mining communities. The mining community is examined as to its characteristics, problems and legislation to provide a basis for the formulation of principles and policies for new town development. The case for planning for non-permanence in mining settlement is presented in a discussion of the value of planning, the previous planning approaches, and case studies of relocated communities. The techniques for planning and establishing non-permanent mining communities are drawn from a study of the mobile home community and the demountable house community where mobility has been a major consideration in community design. The concept of the non-permanent single-enterprise mining community is outlined to show the integral components of physical mobility and flexibility. Conclusions are drawn that a limited degree of physical mobility in settlement can be achieved, and this is through the technique of prefabrication in the construction of the buildings in the community. Utilities and services must remain permanent with present-day techniques. The principles and policies of: pre-planning and continuous planning and control, land leasehold, private home ownership under civic administration, transitional development government, and provincial finance of the new town with annual payments by the mining company to cover both the initial development cost and the municipal operating expenses, are suggested to achieve the non-permanent community. The thesis concludes with a summary of the material and proposals presented in the study, and with a discussion of the limitations and value of the proposed approach of planning for non-permanent single-enterprise mining communities.

Text

2012-02-14

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/40692

Planning

University of British Columbia

Graduate