Basic and Non-Basic Industries
Basic Industries
• Industries that sell their products outside the
community, bringing “new” money into the community
Non-Basic Industries
• Industries that sell their products within the
community, not bringing “new” money into the
community
Decide if the description is an example of either a basic or non-basic
industry:
Job Description
Coal miner in northeastern British Columbia
Basic/Non-Basic
Basic
Hairdresser at a shopping mall
Non- basic
Art teacher
Non- basic
Actor at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival
Teller at the local bank
Vice-president of Scotiabank
Professor at Queen’s University
Basic
Non- basic
Basic
Receptionist at a dentist’s office
Basic
Non- basic
Air Canada pilot
Basic
School-bus driver
Non- basic
Multiplier Effect
“total effect on the economy caused by an expansion or contraction
in one part of it”
Basic industries drive the multiplier effect
Think of a ski resort
•The money you pay to ski and stay goes to pay employee salaries
• employees use this money to spend on things in the town
• While at the resort, you may also spend money at a grocery store,
dinner, Tim Hortons, new equipment, etc
Therefore,
your money spent has multiplied, because others have used it to buy goods
and services within the community
Christaller’s Central Place
Theory
 1933 Walter Christaller, a German geographer,
formulated a model for explaining why:
Large cities/towns are located far apart,
while small towns/villlages are located close
together.
 reasoned that “any good or service offered by a central place needs a minimum
number of people surrounding it (hinterland) to stay in business”
Threshold population
High-order goods /services require large threshold pop, because expensive and bought
infrequently (ex. car dealer, hospitals)
Low-order goods /services  small threshold pop, because inexpensive or bought often
(ex. grocery store, post office)
villages
High order goods/services  provided only in cities (A)
Middle-order goods/services  provided in cities (A) and towns (B)
Low-order goods/services  provided in cities (A), towns (B) and villages (C)
Urbanization vs. Urban Growth
Urbanization: process of changing from rural to
urban (% living in cities)
Urban Growth: The rate (# of people) at which a
city grows
Your Turn. . .
Complete the chart below by indicating where you would find the services listed:
Service
Brain surgery
Daycare for a child
Major league baseball
Daily newspaper
Dental checkup
Internet connection
Symphony concert
Elementary school
Recreational centre
Small
town
Small city
Large
City
Homework. . .
You will look at one SMART GROWTH principle
(instructions on hand out), summarize it and report back
to class