Greater Sudbury

Greater Sudbury commonly referred to as Sudbury, is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is the largest city in Northern Ontario by population, with a population of 161,531 at the Canada 2016 Census. By land area, it is the largest in Ontario and the seventh largest in Canada. It is administratively a single-tier municipality, and thus not part of any district, county, or regional municipality.

The Sudbury region was sparsely inhabited by the Ojibwe people of the Algonquin group for thousands of years prior to the founding of Sudbury following the discovery of nickel ore in 1883 during the construction of the transcontinental railway. Greater Sudbury was formed in 2001 by merging the cities and towns of the former Regional Municipality of Sudbury with several previously unincorporated townships. Being located inland, the local climate is extremely seasonal with average January lows of around −18 °C (0 °F) and average July highs of 25 °C (77 °F).

The population resides in an urban core and many smaller communities scattered around 300 lakes and among hills of rock blackened by historical smelting activity. Sudbury was once a major lumber center and a world leader in nickel mining. Mining and related industries dominated the economy for much of the 20th century. The two major mining companies which shaped the history of Sudbury were Inco, now Vale Limited, which employed more than 25% of the population by the 1970s, and Falconbridge, now Glencore. Sudbury has since expanded from its resource-based economy to emerge as the major retail, economic, health and educational center for Northeastern Ontario. Sudbury is also home to a large Franco-Ontarian population that influences its arts and culture.

Greater Sudbury has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfb). This region has warm and often hot summers with long, cold and snowy winters. It is situated north of the Great Lakes, making it prone to arctic air masses. Monthly precipitation is equal year round, with snow cover expected six months of the year. Although extreme weather events are rare, one of the worst tornadoes in Canadian history struck the city and its suburbs on August 20, 1970, killing six people, injuring two hundred, and causing more than C$17 million in damages.

After a brief period as a lumber camp, Sudbury’s economy was dominated by the mining industry for much of the 20th century. By the 1970s, Inco employed a quarter of the local workforce. However, in 2006, Inco and Falconbridge were taken over by foreign multinational corporations: Inco was acquired by the Brazilian company Vale, and Falconbridge was purchased by the Swiss company Xstrata which was in turn purchased by Anglo-Swiss Glencore forming Glencore Xstrata. Several other mining companies, including First Nickel and KGHM, also have mining operations in the Sudbury area.

Mining now employs only 6,000 people in the city, although the mining supply and service sector employ a further 10,000. By 2006, 80% of Greater Sudbury's labour force was employed in services with 20% remaining in manufacturing. Over 345 mining supply and service companies are located in Sudbury. This includes a number of public and private firms pursuing research and development in new mining technologies such as Mining Innovation Rehabilitation and Applied Research Corporation (MIRARCO), the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology (NORCAT) and the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI).

While mining has decreased in relative importance, Sudbury’s economy has diversified to establish itself as a major center of finance, business, tourism, healthcare, education, government, science and technology research. Many of these reflect Sudbury’s position as a regional service center for Northeastern Ontario, a market of 550,000 people.