PlaceDossier / BC places / Bulkley-Nechako
BC region · regional district
Bulkley-Nechako Regional District
Burns Lake, Fort St. James, Fraser Lake, Granisle, Houston, Smithers, Telkwa and Vanderhoof and 7 electoral areas, 78,088 km² in all. 34,628 people lived in them in 2021, down 1.1% from 2016, not counting First Nations reserves, which the census counts on their own. 4.7% of the land is in the farmland reserve, and 17% has burned in a mapped wildfire since 1996.
Its places
Each place's page has its land, hazards, wells, climate, tax and census facts. Listed by name, not ranked.
| Place | People, 2021 | Land | In the farmland reserve | Burned since 1996 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burns Lake village | 1,659 | 8 km² | none | 0.1% |
| Fort St. James district municipality | 1,386 | 25 km² | 1.2% | none |
| Fraser Lake village | 965 | 5 km² | 8.3% | none |
| Granisle village | 337 | 81 km² | none | none |
| Houston district municipality | 3,052 | 74 km² | 49% | none |
| Smithers town | 5,378 | 15 km² | 25% | under 0.1% |
| Telkwa village | 1,474 | 7 km² | 20% | under 0.1% |
| Vanderhoof district municipality | 4,346 | 57 km² | 60% | none |
| Electoral Area A | 5,587 | 3,718 km² | 19% | under 0.1% |
| Electoral Area B | 1,706 | 3,833 km² | 2.2% | 7.9% |
| Electoral Area C | 1,266 | 27,193 km² | 1.4% | 9.5% |
| Electoral Area D | 1,607 | 4,716 km² | 7.6% | 38% |
| Electoral Area E | 1,512 | 17,735 km² | 3.2% | 39% |
| Electoral Area F | 3,517 | 5,576 km² | 22% | 18% |
| Electoral Area G | 836 | 15,045 km² | 1.8% | 2.3% |
Land and shares measured by us from the provincial maps (farmland reserve, BC Wildfire Service perimeters) over Statistics Canada's 2021 census subdivisions; people from the 2021 census.
Zoning
We have no open zoning map of the Bulkley-Nechako Regional District's electoral areas, so reports there don't name the zone; each area's page says what we know and whom to ask. Each of its 8 municipalities zones its own land; its page says what we show there.
Building permits
Where the Bulkley-Nechako Regional District's building inspection covers its electoral areas (Building Bylaw No. 1634, 2012, in the service area of Bylaw No. 606, 1989): there a building permit is needed and the work is inspected.
| Electoral area | Covered by building inspection |
|---|---|
| Electoral Area A | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area B | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area C | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area D | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area E | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area F | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
| Electoral Area G | Part of the area Inside the building inspection area on the RDBN's map |
Our reading of the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako's own page, checked 2026-10-07. Inside a municipality, the town or city runs its own building permits; the BC Building Code applies everywhere. Do you need a building permit on rural land?
Wildfire
Since 1990, 96 wildfires of 1,000 ha or more burned in the Bulkley-Nechako Regional District's places, in 15 seasons. The largest here:
- 2014Chelaslie River wildfire133,101 ha in all132,276 ha here
- 2023Big Creek wildfire176,539 ha in all108,657 ha here
- 2018Unnamed by the BC Wildfire Service (fire R11498)92,412 ha in all92,707 ha here
- 2018Unnamed by the BC Wildfire Service (fire R21721)88,118 ha in all88,118 ha here
- 2018Unnamed by the BC Wildfire Service (fire R12315)87,036 ha in all86,726 ha here
- 2024Unnamed by the BC Wildfire Service (fire R11239)55,287 ha in all55,287 ha here
Each place's page lists every large and smaller mapped fire in it. Every BC season and large fire since 1990.
Major projects
The Environmental Assessment Office's register places 5 major projects in assessment or approved in the Bulkley-Nechako Regional District's places.
- Baptiste NickelIn assessment; in Electoral Area C.
- Berg CopperIn assessment; in Electoral Area G.
- TenasIn assessment; in Electoral Area A.
- Huckleberry Copper and Gold MineApproved; in Electoral Area E.
- Mt. Milligan Copper-GoldApproved; in Electoral Area C.
The register places each project at one point; a mine, pipeline or line can reach well past it. Every major project in BC by place.
Check one lot: is it in the ALR? · is it on a floodplain map? · has it burned? · how deep are the wells? · is there room for a septic field? · short-term rentals? · property tax?
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