Mining in Northern British Columbia

The history of the settlement of the province is tied to patterns of exploration and mine development. In Northern British Columbia the Cariboo goldfields pro-vided the impetus for settlement of the region and the beginning for mining to extend into the western and northern regions in a series of minor gold rushes. The northern half of the province has a geological diverse mineral base that supports a wide variety of mining, and a gradual improvement of exploration and mining methods due to scientific knowledge and technology provided opportunities for lode gold and base metal mines to be developed. The success of mining is based on world ore prices and competitive markets that impact the economic viability of developing a mine. Mining faces increasing pressures in the northern half of the province due to other resource values, such as tourism or protected areas, that claim and compete for a similar land base