The parallel question given the recent importance of high oil prices, is whether Alberta's boom is coming to an end. More precisely, will Alberta experience a collapse equivalent to the early years of the 1980s? Will 2006 be the year the boom peaked?

An interesting comparison of broad economic indicators can be made across the two six-year boom periods 1974-1980 and 1999-2005. During the first boom, Alberta's population grew by nearly 455,000 people -- a 26 per cent increase while during the second boom, the increase was only 314,000 or about 11 per cent. The total size of the Alberta economy in inflation adjusted dollars grew by 57 per cent during the first boom and an almost equivalent 56 per cent during the second boom.

Per capita income growth has been higher during the current boom. This suggests that the present boom is more characterized by intensive as opposed to extensive growth. That is, the economy has grown much faster than population during the present boom, but this was not the case during the previous boom where the more rapid population growth moderated the per capita increases in income.