Text may be used as quotes attributed to Mr Jeremy Dawkins, Chairman WAPC
All agencies and businesses in the Pilbara have agreed to use the same set of population projections for planning purposes.
The population and employment figures prepared by the Pilbara Industry's Community Council (PICC) will be used by the WAPC and others for forward planning in the region.
Population forecasts have been a contentious issue in the Pilbara, due to complex population issues such as fly-in fly-out and temporary construction workforces.
The PICC population figures reflect the special circumstances in the Pilbara, with its large proportion of fly-in fly-out workers, and the need for large construction workforces for the region's massive infrastructure projects.
The figures have been rigorously discussed and assessed by the PICC population working group in conjunction with the State Demographer (Department for Planning and Infrastructure).
PICC figures do not replace the projections in WA Tomorrow which will continue to be used for forecasting future resident populations. The PICC figures build on WA Tomorrow by providing projections at town site level, and including estimates of future construction workforces and fly-in fly-out populations.
PICC is an industry initiative established by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy and partners BHP Billiton, Chevron, Rio Tinto, Fortescue Metals Group, North West Shelf Venture and Woodside with a commitment to work in collaboration with the Australian, Western Australian and local governments and Pilbara communities.
A summary of the PICC population and employment figures is available from www.cmewa.com.au. Access to the full report is available by contacting the Chamber of Minerals and Energy.
ends
Media contact: Natasha Farrell (08) 9264 7518/0408 955 604