February 23, 2005 for immediate release


The University of Northern British Columbiatoday released Understanding the Effects of Offshore Oil and Gas on QueenCharlotte Basin Communities, the fifth in a series of publicationsabout BC offshore oil and gas.

Report author Norman Dale takes a unique approach to socioeconomicanalysis by looking at what is understood about potential impacts of offshoreoil and gas development on the human communities of the Queen Charlotte Basin. Based on fieldwork, interviews, and a thorough literature review, a list of twenty-onequestions was developed that captures the dominant concerns and expectations ofthe people of the basin. These questions include concerns about localemployment prospects, possible environmental impacts, and implications forlocal cultures.

“This report provides an excellent overview of what matters mostto the people closest to the prospective offshore oil and gas development,”said Dr. Max Blouw, UNBC’s Vice-President of Research.  “By combining local knowledge andunderstandings with a comprehensive review of the literature on the subject, itprovides a clear picture of the diverse – often contradictory – concerns surroundingoil and gas and how they might be addressed.”

This research report is the fifth in the NCIRP series, UNBCCommunity-Collaborative Studies on British Columbia Offshore Oil and Gas.NCIRP is a program of UNBC’s Northern Land Use Institute. Funding was providedby the BC Ministry of Energy and Mines.

Copies of Understanding the Effects of Offshore Oil and Gas onQueen Charlotte Basin Communities, as well as other NCIRP publications, canbe downloaded from www.unbc.ca/nlui/ncirp or ordered at cost from Debbie Krebs:fax (250) 960-5746 email krebsd@unbc.ca