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  • 21 Aug, 2019

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Belledune, New Brunswick
Belledune is a port village in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. It has a population of 1,325, and straddles the boundary between Restigouche County and Gloucester County, New Brunswick.

The community of Belledune was created through the amalgamation of Jacquet River, Armstrong Brook, and Belledune in 1994. The community dubbed itself a "Supervillage" after this amalgamation. Belledune's population meets the requirements as a "Town" under the Municipalities Act of the Province of New Brunswick, but it has not requested a change in municipal status and therefore remains as a village.

Belledune is one of the few municipalities not significantly affected by the province's 2023 local governance reforms.

History

See also: History of New Brunswick and List of historic places in Gloucester County, New Brunswick

The village, "Big Dune", was first settled by François Joseph Guittard around 1815, with a land grant approval in 1825 for two lots of land of 200 acres each.

Guittard was born in Fauxbourg, St. Antoine, France, around 1774, and after fighting in Napoleon's army, he defected to the British Army. He and his wife Marie LeFilatre emigrated to Canada, and after a brief settling in Rivière-Ouelle, Quebec, they resettled in New Brunswick, where the promise of a land grant became a possibility. Guittard had also worked as a navigator, having helped map the New Brunswick coastline with the British military.

Settlers from the Miramichi Valley moved towards Belledune after the 1825 Great Miramichi Fire.

List of Mayors of Belledune
Mayor Term   Party References
Delphis Hickey 1969 – May 10, 1977 Independent
J. Arnold Talbot May 10, 1977 – May 14, 1980 Independent
John McDonnell May 14, 1980 – May 1986 Independent
Joseph H. Hodgins May 1986 – May 8, 1989 Independent
Andy Flanagan May 8, 1989 – May 14, 2001 Independent
Joseph R. Noël May 14, 2001 – May 10, 2004 Independent
Nick Duivenvoorden May 10, 2004 – May 14, 2012 Independent
Ron Bourque May 14, 2012 – May 9, 2016 Independent
Joseph R. Noël May 9, 2016 – May 10, 2021 Independent
Paul A. Arseneault May 10, 2021 – present Independent

Economy

Belledune underwent unprecedented development during the 1960s when under the premiership of Louis Robichaud a major regional port was built to service various industries on the north shore of New Brunswick.

The first major industrial projects at the port included in 1966 a lead and zinc smelter, formerly Brunswick Mining and Smelting Corporation, but now owned by Glencore with a nominal production of 120,000 tonnes per year. built in support of the lead and zinc mines opened south of Bathurst during the 1950s in the Bathurst Mining Camp. A $30 million venture at the time, the smelter has managed to extract silver from its imported silver lead concentrates, and in 2011 produced 400mt of pure silver valued at 448M$; the company proposes to increase its silver production to 700mt. The current permit to operate is file number I-7107.

NB Power opened the Belledune Generating Station, a coal-fired thermal generating station, at the port in 1993.

The announcement of the closure of the Glencore smelter was issued in late 2019. At that time, the company workforce was on strike. The site decommissioning will continue to 2028.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Belledune had a population of 1,325 living in 688 of its 782 total private dwellings, a change of -6.5% from its 2016 population of 1,417. With a land area of 189.18 km (73.04 sq mi), it had a population density of 7.0/km (18.1/sq mi) in 2021.

Canada census – Belledune community profile
20212011
Population1,325 (-6.5% from 2016)1,548 (-9.5% from 2006)
Land area189.18 km (73.04 sq mi)189.33 km (73.10 sq mi)
Population density7/km (18/sq mi)8.2/km (21/sq mi)
Median age59.2 (M: 58.4, F: 59.6)53.2 (M: 53.1, F: 53.2)
Private dwellings782 (total)  688 (occupied)851 (total) 
Median household income$48,400$40,129
References: 2021 2011 earlier
Historical Census Data - Belledune, New Brunswick
YearPop.±%
1991 2,087—    
1996 2,060−1.3%
2001 1,923−6.7%
YearPop.±%
2006 1,711−11.0%
2011 1,548−9.5%
2016 1,417−8.5%
YearPop.±%
2021 1,325−6.5%
Source:

Language

Canada Census Mother Tongue - Belledune, New Brunswick
Census Total
English
French
English & French
Other
Year Responses Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop %
2011
1,550
 1,285 Decrease 13.2% 82.90% 235 Increase 14.6% 15.16% 25 Increase 25.0% 1.61% 5 Increase n/a% 0.32%
2006
1,705
 1,480 Decrease 13.4% 86.80% 205 Decrease 6.8% 12.02% 20 Increase 100.0% 1.17% 0 Steady 0.0% 0.00%
2001
1,940
 1,710 Decrease 3.9% 88.14% 220 Decrease 15.4% 11.34% 10 Decrease 71.4% 0.52% 0 Steady 0.0% 0.00%
1996
2,075
 1,780 n/a 85.78% 260 n/a 12.53% 35 n/a 1.69% 0 n/a 0.00%

Notable people

Main article: List of people from Gloucester County, New Brunswick

See also

References

  1. ^ "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), New Brunswick". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  2. ^ gnb.ca: "Provincial Archives of New Brunswick - RS108-Guittard,-F | Land Petitions: Original Series"
  3. ^ "Résultats des élections municipales". L'Evangeline (in French). June 10, 1969. p. 2. Archived from the original on June 25, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "Résultats des élections municipales et scolaires dans les régions francophones". L'Evangeline (in French). June 11, 1974. p. 3. Archived from the original on July 23, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  5. ^ "Résultats des élections municipales". L'Evangeline (in French). May 10, 1977. p. 16. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  6. ^ Canadian Labour Law Reporter: Transfer binder. CCH Canadian Limited. 1988.
  7. ^ "Report of the Municipal Electoral Officer" (PDF). Elections NB (in English and French). May 8, 1989. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  8. ^ "Report of the Municipal Electoral Officer" (PDF). Elections NB (in English and French). May 14, 2001. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  9. ^ Canadian Almanac & Directory: Including a Complete Directory of Municipal, Provincial, and Federal Governments. Copp, Clark. 2010. p. 947. ISBN 978-1-59237-589-9.
  10. ^ "Quadrennial Municipal Elections and Other Local Electoral Events" (PDF). Elections NB (in English and French). May 14, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  11. ^ "Quadrennial Municipal Elections and Other Local Electoral Events" (PDF). Elections NB (in English and French). May 9, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  12. ^ "May 10, 2021 Local Elections" (PDF). Elections NB (in English and French). May 10, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  13. ^ cbc.ca: "Brunswick Smelter, union reach agreement", 15 Aug 2014
  14. ^ gnb.ca: "Xstrata Canada Corporation - Brunswick Smelter - Class 1 Air Quality Approval" Archived May 18, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ ic.gc.ca: " Brunswick Smelter a Glencore Company "
  16. ^ gnb.ca: "FACILITY MODIFICATION - SILVER REFINERY OPTIMIZATION PROJECT" (Department of Environment Impact Management Branch) August 2011
  17. ^ gnb.ca: "Approval to Operate I-7107 - XSTRATA CANADA CORPORATION for the operation of the Belledune Lead Smelter and Bulk Handling Facility" Archived May 18, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Poitras, Jacques (August 20, 2018). "Countdown to obsolescence: A look inside the Belledune coal-fired plant". CBC News. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  19. ^ "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  20. ^ "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
  21. ^ "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
  22. ^ "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.
  23. ^ Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census

47°54′N 65°49′W / 47.900°N 65.817°W / 47.900; -65.817

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