A town built by the forest
Joan Atkinson has lived the story of Mackenzie from the inside. She arrived in 1997 with her family, all of whom work in forestry. That connection runs deep.
She has served on council since 2007 and held multiple terms as mayor. Her community reflects that commitment.
Mackenzie sits two hours north of Prince George. It is home to about 3,800 people. The town exists because of forestry.
“Our community is in existence because of the forest sector,” Atkinson said.
She points to its origins under the Instant Town Act in 1966. Mackenzie was built to support access to vast timber north of the Williston Reservoir.
“It’s a beautiful little town in northern British Columbia, surrounded by forests… a great place to live, great place to work, great place to play.”
That connection still defines daily life. But the scale has changed.
When mills close, everything shifts
The most visible change is jobs. The deeper impact is fiscal.
Atkinson recalls the early years of her mayoralty. “My first 18 months… we lost 425 manufacturing jobs.”
A major sawmill closure triggered the shutdown of the pulp mill. The ripple effects were immediate.
“The biggest impact in Mackenzie has been our loss of industrial tax.”
Heavy industry once carried a large share of municipal revenue. That base has eroded.
“We’ve lost about $2 million in industrial tax base… we’ve had to pass that burden on to our residential homeowners.”
For a town with a modest budget, the shift is stark. Services tighten. Residents feel it directly.
Atkinson stresses that forestry activity still exists. Logging continues. A large mill remains. But the structure has changed. More logs now leave town for processing elsewhere. The economic value leaves with them.
Forestry misunderstood
Atkinson is clear about what many urban residents miss.
“I think people don’t realize that… the working people, the foresters, the mill workers, they respect the forest.”
She pushes back against the idea that forestry conflicts with sustainability.
“It’s a sustainable resource… if it’s properly managed, it can last forever.”
For her, stewardship is lived responsibility. Families depend on the forest. That shapes how it is treated.
She also points to a broader reality. Wood remains essential.
“What do you make homes out of? Wood.”
In a housing-constrained province, that matters. Forestry supports both supply and climate goals.
Atkinson adds a wider lens. “Trees are the lungs of the world… we have to manage our forests. That’s what’s keeping us all breathing.”
Rebuilding the local link
If there is one policy shift she would revisit, it is the loss of local attachment.
She argues that removing requirements to process logs locally weakened communities like Mackenzie.
Today, her focus is on practical solutions.
“I really think there has to be a bigger focus on expanding community forests.”
Mackenzie’s own community forest offers a model. It supports wildfire protection and generates revenue.
Those dividends help offset lost industrial taxes. They also strengthen local stewardship.
For Atkinson, the principle is simple. Resource communities must share directly in the value they support.
She also sees diversification as part of the path forward. Mining and recreation now complement forestry.
Still, the foundation remains.
Forestry built Mackenzie. Atkinson believes it can continue to sustain it—if policy reconnects the industry to the communities at its core.
Ian Biana writes for the Resource Works Accelerate team and can be reached at [email protected].
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