Haig-Brown Symposium on
Sustaining Wild Salmon:
Moving from Words to Action
Campbell River, August 2008
Urbanization of the Strait of
Georgia
Strait of Georgia:
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220 km Inland Sea
Extends north from US in
the south to Campbell River
& Discovery Islands
“part of a huge estuary …
where hundreds of rivers
flow into the sea.”
(www.georgiastrait.org)
Campbell River, August 2008
Urbanization of the Strait of
Georgia
Development Statistics
Cowichan Valley Regional District
6.8% Population growth since 2001

Regional District of Nanaimo
9.1% Population growth since 2001

Comox Strathcona Regional
District
5.7% Population growth since 2001

Capital Regional District
6.0 %Population growth since 2001

Campbell River, August 2008
Urbanization of the Strait of
Georgia
Development Statistics
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
Looking at 12,500 new houses in
Regional Districts by 2020
700 to 800 new houses in rural
areas every year for 15 years
Housing as the driver of change
Development as the consumer of
the landscape
The challenge:
Can we preserve salmon
habitat while providing for
housing and development?
Campbell River, August 2008