Labrador City

Labrador City
Town

Seal
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): Lab City
Motto: Kamistaitusset (Naskapi)
(English: "Land of the Hard-Working People")
Labrador City

Location of Labrador City in Labrador

Coordinates: 52°57′N 66°55′W / 52.950°N 66.917°W / 52.950; -66.917
Country  Canada
Province  Newfoundland and Labrador
Census division 10
Settled 1960s
Government
 • Type Labrador City Town Council
 • MHA Graham Letto
 • MP Yvonne Jones
Area
 • Total 38.83 km2 (14.99 sq mi)
Elevation 555 m (1,821 ft)
Population (2011 census)[1]
 • Total 9,228
 • Density 240/km2 (620/sq mi)
Time zone AST (UTC-4)
 • Summer (DST) Atlantic Daylight Saving Time (UTC-3)
Postal code span A2V
Area code(s) 709
Highways Highway 500
Website www.labradorwest.com

Labrador City is a town in western Labrador (part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador), near the Quebec border[2] with a population of 9,354 as of 2013. Neighbouring Labrador City is Wabush, a smaller town with a population of approximately 1,861 as of 2011. Together, the "twin towns" are known as Labrador West.

In the 1960s, Labrador City was founded to accommodate employees of the Iron Ore Company of Canada, and iron ore mining continues to be the primary industry in the town.

The Labrador City town motto is Kamistiatusset, a Naskapi word meaning "land of the hard-working people." The Labrador City town crest is that of a snowy owl holding a scroll atop a black spade on a mound of red earth. The symbol represents iron ore mining. The spade is flanked by two caribou. Both snowy owls and caribou are native to the Labrador City area.

Government

Karen Oldford has served as mayor since Janice Barnes resigned in May 2012.[3] Since a 2013 by-election, the federal riding of Labrador seat has been held by Yvonne Jones, a Liberal Party member.

Economy

Labrador City was built around the rich iron ore deposits of the Labrador Trough by the Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) in the 1960s. The Carol Project is the major iron ore mining operation for the area.[4] In 2008, IOC and their parent company Rio Tinto announced they would spend $800 million to develop additional mines in the region. However, only a few months after announcing the second phase of their expansion, the project was shelved due to the economic recession and low demand for steel. With the world recovering from the economic crisis, it is believed that IOC will go ahead with their expansion in the near future.[5][6][7][8]

The town is serviced by the Wabush Airport, and the airlines flying out of the airport are Air Canada Jazz, Provincial Airlines, Air Inuit and Pascan Aviation. Additionally, the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway provides freight rail transportation to and from Sept-Îles.

The town contains an ice arena, the Labrador City Arena[9] and a ski club, the Menihek Nordic Ski Club.[10]

The main shopping centre in the town, the 22,940-square-metre (246,923 sq ft) Labrador Mall, includes a Wal-Mart; there is also an IGA grocery store.[11] Owned by the Westcliff Group, the mall opened in 1978 and is the largest shopping mall in Labrador; it is also the only enclosed mall.[12][13][14][15]

Demographics

Historical populations
YearPop.±%
198111,538—    
19919,061−21.5%
19968,455−6.7%
20017,744−8.4%
20067,240−6.5%
20117,367+1.8%
Canada 2006 Census Population % of Total Population
Visible minority group
Source:[16] 		South Asian 15 0.2%
Chinese 0 0%
Black 0 0%
Filipino 10 0.1%
Latin American 45 0.6%
Arab 0 0%
Southeast Asian 0 0%
West Asian 0 0%
Korean 0 0%
Japanese 0 0%
Other visible minority 0 0%
Mixed visible minority 10 0.1%
Total visible minority population 80 0.9%
Aboriginal group
Source:[17] 		First Nations 155 2.1%
Métis 190 2.6%
Inuit 92 1.2%
Total Aboriginal population 745 6.2%
White 8,705 92.7%
Total population 9,354 100%

Landmarks

The Basilica of our Lady of Perpetual Help is located here.

Climate

Wabush and Labrador City features a harsh subarctic climate, with heavy year-round precipitation due to the strong Icelandic Low to the east driving cold, moist and unstable air onto the region. Snowfall, as is typical for the province, is very heavy for seven months each year and depths can reach as high as 218 centimetres (85.83 in). Despite its moderate latitude around the same as cities like Amsterdam, its temperature is on average 13 degrees colder.

Climate data for Wabush (Wabush Airport, normals from 1981−2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high humidex 7.7 5.9 14.6 16.9 35.0 37.1 39.0 35.3 32.2 22.6 13.8 6.5 39.0
Record high °C (°F) 8.0
(46.4)		 6.2
(43.2)		 14.7
(58.5)		 16.8
(62.2)		 28.4
(83.1)		 33.3
(91.9)		 32.6
(90.7)		 30.6
(87.1)		 27.8
(82)		 21.1
(70)		 12.2
(54)		 5.6
(42.1)		 33.3
(91.9)
Average high °C (°F) −16.7
(1.9)		 −14.2
(6.4)		 −6.7
(19.9)		 1.5
(34.7)		 9.6
(49.3)		 16.1
(61)		 19.1
(66.4)		 17.6
(63.7)		 11.8
(53.2)		 3.8
(38.8)		 −4.2
(24.4)		 −12.6
(9.3)		 2.1
(35.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) −22.2
(−8)		 −20.6
(−5.1)		 −13.3
(8.1)		 −4.3
(24.3)		 4.0
(39.2)		 10.3
(50.5)		 13.8
(56.8)		 12.5
(54.5)		 7.6
(45.7)		 0.5
(32.9)		 −8.2
(17.2)		 −17.5
(0.5)		 −3.1
(26.4)
Average low °C (°F) −27.8
(−18)		 −27.0
(−16.6)		 −19.8
(−3.6)		 −10.0
(14)		 −1.7
(28.9)		 4.4
(39.9)		 8.3
(46.9)		 7.4
(45.3)		 3.3
(37.9)		 −2.9
(26.8)		 −12.0
(10.4)		 −22.5
(−8.5)		 −8.4
(16.9)
Record low °C (°F) −45.7
(−50.3)		 −47.8
(−54)		 −46.7
(−52.1)		 −37.2
(−35)		 −21.7
(−7.1)		 −11.1
(12)		 −6.7
(19.9)		 −0.6
(30.9)		 −7.0
(19.4)		 −21.7
(−7.1)		 −33.1
(−27.6)		 −46.1
(−51)		 −47.8
(−54)
Record low wind chill −62.8 −57.1 −52.6 −41.8 −32.6 −9.6 0.0 −6.2 −13.9 −25.6 −43.9 −59.5 −62.8
Average precipitation mm (inches) 49.2
(1.937)		 40.3
(1.587)		 54.1
(2.13)		 48.8
(1.921)		 53.5
(2.106)		 82.7
(3.256)		 113.9
(4.484)		 103.5
(4.075)		 96.5
(3.799)		 75.7
(2.98)		 70.9
(2.791)		 50.4
(1.984)		 839.5
(33.051)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 0.6
(0.024)		 1.6
(0.063)		 2.6
(0.102)		 12.1
(0.476)		 40.4
(1.591)		 80.6
(3.173)		 113.9
(4.484)		 103.4
(4.071)		 92.3
(3.634)		 42.0
(1.654)		 10.9
(0.429)		 2.5
(0.098)		 502.9
(19.799)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 63.8
(25.12)		 50.9
(20.04)		 65.9
(25.94)		 44.3
(17.44)		 14.4
(5.67)		 2.1
(0.83)		 0.0
(0)		 0.1
(0.04)		 4.4
(1.73)		 39.0
(15.35)		 77.5
(30.51)		 66.2
(26.06)		 428.7
(168.78)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) 17.3 14.6 16.0 14.2 15.2 17.1 19.0 20.0 20.5 20.1 20.4 19.3 213.7
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm) 0.44 0.78 1.4 3.8 11.9 16.4 19.0 20.0 19.7 10.5 3.9 1.0 109.0
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm) 17.7 15.0 16.4 12.3 6.0 1.2 0.04 0.07 2.5 13.9 19.7 19.7 124.6
Mean monthly sunshine hours 98.0 132.2 151.3 180.1 210.6 212.5 218.0 202.7 116.6 75.4 56.9 67.3 1,721.4
Percent possible sunshine 38.6 47.6 41.2 43.1 43.0 42.1 43.0 44.4 30.6 22.9 21.7 28.3 37.2
Source: Environment Canada[18]

See also

Notable residents

Notable former residents of Labrador City include:

References

  1. ↑ Population and dwelling counts
  2. ↑ Labrador West. "Labrador City". Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  3. ↑ "New mayor for Labrador City". The Aurora. 5 June 2012.
  4. ↑ Labrador West
  5. ↑ Iron Ore Company announces $500M expansion
  6. ↑ Iron Ore Co. announces $300M expansion for Labrador
  7. ↑ Iron Ore Co. shelves Labrador expansion
  8. ↑ IOC press release - NL 2010 Budget
  9. ↑ http://www.labradorwest.com
  10. ↑ http://www.meniheknordicski.ca
  11. ↑ Page 2 | List of companies in Labrador City, Newfoundland Canada
  12. ↑ History of Labrador City, LabradorWest.com, Retrieved February 7, 2011
  13. ↑
  14. ↑ Labrador Mall, Westcliff.ca, Retrieved February 7, 2011
  15. ↑ (22 November 2010). Concerns turn to action, The Aurora
  16. ↑ City&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=01&B1=All&Custom=, Community Profiles from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada - Census Subdivision
  17. ↑ , Aboriginal Peoples - Data table
  18. ↑ "Wabush Lake Airport". Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010. Environment Canada. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  19. ↑ http://articles.latimes.com/1997/nov/19/entertainment/ca-55221
  20. ↑ http://www.nnsl.com/frames/newspapers/2013-02/feb6_13mar.html

Coordinates: 52°57′N 66°55′W / 52.950°N 66.917°W / 52.950; -66.917 (Labrador City)

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