The majority of respondents to a fall survey said they do not support the proposed Ajax Mine.
Image Credit: Kamloops Voters Society
June 05, 2014 - 12:20 PM
KAMLOOPS — More detailed results from an online survey last fall on the proposed Ajax mine project have been released. The additional details about neighbourhoods, gender and age come just a week after KGHM announced changes to the footprint and operation of the proposed mine.
More than 2,800 people took part in the survey conducted by the Kamloops Voters Society. It included a wide range of topics surrounding the proposed Ajax Mine. A second survey is planned for this fall.
In a release Thursday, society president Brad Harrison says the results demonstrate Kamloops is divided on the subject and divisions can clearly be seen between neighbourhoods, and amongst gender and age groups.
The percentage of male and female respondents was split pretty evenly (56-44), which is similar to the demographics within the city (49-51), and the majority of respondents fell within the 40-69 years old age range. Young adults, the largest demographic in the city at 20 per cent of the population, only attributed for 11 per cent of the responses.
When it comes to areas of the city, Aberdeen residents by far outnumbered any other neighbourhood, though Downtown and Upper Sahali residents accounted for a significant number of responses. While Pineview and Dufferin residents only make up 2.4 per cent of the city population, they account for 5.6 per cent of respondents. Residents north of the Thompson River make up more than 46 per cent of the city population yet only 24.5 per cent of responses came from those neighbourhoods.
In general, the majority of those who responded support mining in the province they also like the idea of a referendum.
Beyond that the details become a bit more split within each of the questions specific to the proposed mine.
Here is a quick breakdown of the gender gap:
- While the majority of both men and women feel the mine will not have a positive impact on housing development in Aberdeen and Pineview, women felt much more strongly about it.
- More men feel the mine would provide a net positive employment impact while more women disagreed with the statement.
- Both men and women strongly agree there will dust or airborne matter that will have an adverse effect on their neighbourhood, though women felt a lot stronger about this statement.
- Majority of men disagree or strongly disagree there will be adverse noise impacts while more than half of women agree or strongly agree.
The responses to the question DO YOU SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROPOSED AJAX MINE? by demographic:
Men: 46.2 per cent yes 47.5 per cent no 6.3 per cent don’t know
Women: 26.0 per cent yes 68.8 per cent no 5.2 per cent don’t know
North Kamloops and area: 48.5 per cent yes 45.3 per cent no 6.1 per cent don’t know
Dallas, Valleyview and area: 48.7 per cent yes 44.8 per cent no 6.5 per cent don’t know
South Kamloops and area: 27.9 per cent yes 66.3 per cent no 5.7 per cent don’t know
Aberdeen and area: 32.6 per cent yes 62.1 per cent no 5.3 per cent don’t know
14-29 year olds: 44.4 per cent yes 51.4 per cent no 4.2 per cent don’t know
30-49 year olds: 35.5 per cent yes 57.5 per cent no 7.0 per cent don’t know
50-59 year olds: 41.2 per cent yes 53.3 per cent no 5.5 per cent don’t know
60 + year olds: 33.7 per cent yes 60.9 per cent no 5.4 per cent don't know
To contact a reporter for this story, email Jennifer Stahn at jstahn@infotelnews.ca or call 250-819-3723. To contact an editor, email mjones@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2014