Elk Valley (British Columbia)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. Specific concerns may be found on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions.(April 2008)

Elk Valley is a valley in southeastern British Columbia that runs via the basin of the Elk River from the southeastern Alberta border near Kananaskis to the Rocky Mountain Trench. Communities in the valley, from uppermost to lowermost, are Elkford, Sparwood, Hosmer, Fernie, Morrissey, and Elko.

Wedged into the heart of the Canadian Rockies, the Elk Valley is approximately 60 kilometres from the Alberta and Montana borders.

The valley played an important part in the coal mining history of British Columbia for over 100 years, and was a hotbed of labour activism, regularly returning socialist independents to the legislature. The elk Valley is the largest producing coal field in the province, producing millions of tons of coal that is shipped to steel mills around the world.

The dedication to returning the land to a state equal or better than it was before the mining began plays a vital role in protecting the Elk and Fording River Valleys for future generations of man and wildlife to use and enjoy^{[citation needed]}.

Today, tourism is becoming more important in the area which sees increasing numbers of weekend snowmobilers, skiers, hikers, anglers, golfers, and other outdoor adventurers.