Penelope Comette, the Pembina Institute's program director of the clean energy economy, at the Grouse Mountain turbine. The Pembina Institute created a B.C. Clean Energy Jobs map in 2015 that showed there were 14,100 jobs from clean energy in B.C., which includes wind and solar power, run-of-river and large hydro, biomass and biogas. Postmedia News Files

B.C.s forestry, energy and mining industries are the economic foundation of our province, yesterday, today and tomorrow. They are essential to job creation in every B.C. community.

Families have been working in the resource economy for generations and they will continue to for generations to come, taking pride in the work they do.

Its rewarding, high-technology work that builds strong families and communities. As many as two out of every three dollars in B.C. are generated in the resource regions but spent throughout the provinces economy. And this may come as a surprise, but more than half of new natural resource jobs are located in the Lower Mainland.

These jobs pay the highest of any industry and are more likely to be full time. This is surely linked to the fact that jobs in resource-producing regions have up to six times the GDP impact than the average British Columbia job.

In addition to jobs, our natural resources help to pay local taxes for communities that need them, and fund critical services we rely on like health care and education.

B.C. companies work hard to meet federal and provincial environmental standards, knowing that it pays to innovate and exceed standards and be a world leader. And when we make mistakes everyone does we choose to learn and improve.

B.C. has a proud history of environmentalism that provides the foundation for responsible resource development. B.C.s resource economy helps drive the development of world-leading environmental best practices and investments in clean-tech innovations.

When we export our cleaner B.C. resources, such as LNG, we can help other countries reduce their unhealthy practices that damage the global environment.

Developing British Columbias natural resources can be a risky business. It has taken many years to develop a safety culture and there is still much work to do. It requires many partnerships among B.C.s workers, unions, communities, regulators and companies to keep us safe and to work to make us safer.

And when there are mistakes, we need to continue to learn and improve. These are values that have always been recognized by elected leaders no matter their particular perspectives.

B.C.s natural resources have shaped where we live in the province with towns that were built around a mill, port, smelter or river.

B.C.s resource economy creates jobs and skills training opportunities in rural areas through specific resource projects. Building new mines and keeping up with market demand for petroleum products has required a vast amount of investment. Only housing is bigger.

During the past two decades, $108 billion was spent on resource equipment and installations (not including utilities). Along the way, thousands of new businesses were incorporated, resulting in further spinoff employment.

British Columbia has an important role in Canada as the gateway for resource exports to growing parts of the world. B.C. also has important cultural links to Asia and South Asia that we can capitalize on for everyones benefit.

Having the ability to export our resource products to foreign markets means that we can always get the best prices for Canadian goods.

Other parts of the economy may struggle in competitive global markets. Resources are why British Columbia can consistently punch above its weight class. The continuing diversification of resource-based product lines shields us from the boom-and-bust effect at a time when minerals, lumber and the ingredients for fuel and plastics are in greater demand than they have ever been in the history of humanity. Resources are the future, not just our past.

There are many challenges to doing all this successfully. As we celebrate B.C. Day on Aug. 7, it is impossible to imagine our success as a province without the daily contributions made by resources and resource people.

Stewart Muir is executive director of the Resource Works Society.

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Opinion: How resources continue to make BC a beacon of responsible prosperity - Vancouver Sun