In the North American and European context, rural and small town restructuring
concerns changes in the organization of primary sector industries, facilitated by a
wide range of supplemental changes in transportation networks, global markets,
commodity prices, regulatory controls, property rights, and competing land uses
(Porter 2004; Markey et al. 2006). In some cases, rural industries close or relocate to
low-cost production locations. Even where traditional industries remain in rural and
small town areas, their need to remain competitive pushes increased substitution of
capital for labor with the result of job losses over time.