Everything you wanted to know about
Canada!
Climate
Because of its size, Canada has a great variety of climatic
conditions. Part of the mainland and most of the Arctic Archipelago are within
the earth’s north frigid zone; the remainder of the country lies in the
northern half of the north temperate zone. Climatic conditions range from the
extreme cold of the Arctic regions to the moderate temperatures of more
southerly latitudes. Average summer temperatures range from 8° C (46° F) in
the far north to more than 22° C (72° F) in some parts of the far south.
Average January temperatures range from -35° C (-31° F) in the far north to 3°
C (37° F) in southwestern British Columbia. Similarly, precipitation ranges
from near-desert conditions of less than 300 mm (12 in) per year in the far
north to very wet conditions of more than 2400
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mm
(more than 90 in) in parts of the west coast. Thus we cannot speak of a single
Canadian climate, but rather of several regional climates.
In the Atlantic provinces, the ocean lessens the extremes of
winter cold and summer heat but also causes considerable fog and precipitation.
The Pacific coast, which is influenced by warm ocean currents and moisture-laden
winds, has mild summers and winters, high humidity, and abundant precipitation.
In the Cordillera, the higher western slopes of certain uplifts, particularly
the Selkirks and the Rockies, receive sizable amounts of rain and snow. The
eastern slopes and the central plateau receive little precipitation. In the
eastern Cordillera, the chinook,
a warm, dry westerly wind, makes winters substantially less severe in the Rocky
Mountain foothills and adjoining plains. The Prairie Provinces (Alberta,
Manitoba, and Saskatchewan) are marked by the most extreme ranges of summer heat
and winter cold in Canada. Eastern Canada (Ontario and Québec), which also has
great variations in heat and cold, is the snowiest region in Canada.
Climate has been a factor in the development of Canada because people have settled where temperatures are warmest and agricultural growing seasons longest. Climate also influences vegetation, producing, for example, the rain forest of coastal British Columbia. Southern Ontario and southwestern British Columbia have the mildest climates and greatest population densities in Canada. In contrast, the central and northern regions are sparsely populated. The permafrost region in the north poses great challenges for settlement and development. Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories, northern Québec and Labrador, and the far northern areas of Ontario and Manitoba are all affected by this condition. Houses, roads, runways, and pipelines require special, expensive adaptations. Water and sewage lines are especially troublesome to maintain. Permafrost also makes mining and other forms of development more difficult and environmentally damaging. Disruption of the environment through development can induce thermokarst, the formation of thaw lakes into which buildings can sink.
Plant Life
The flora of the entire northern part of Canada is Arctic and
sub-Arctic (see Tundra).
The tree line—the northern limit beyond which trees cannot
grow—extends roughly from the mouth of the Mackenzie River to Hudson Bay, just
north of Manitoba’s northern border, and continues east from Hudson Bay at
approximately 58° north. The tree line is simultaneously a climatic, soil,
vegetation, and cultural boundary. It divides the zone of Arctic climate and
permafrost, which is the traditional homeland of the Inuit,
from the sub-Arctic zone of intermittent permafrost and stunted forest, which
was the northern limit of the Athapaskan and Algonquian peoples.
South of the tree line, eastern Canada was originally thickly forested, primarily with coniferous trees. The typical vegetation of southern Ontario, southern Québec, and the Maritime provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island) is mixed coniferous and deciduous forest. The only part of Canada dominated by deciduous forest is southernmost Ontario, bordering Lakes Erie and Ontario. Point Pelee on Lake Erie, at roughly the same latitude as the northern border of California, is known for its variety of deciduous trees, including southern species found nowhere else in Canada, such as the Kentucky coffee tree.
The Prairie Provinces are largely treeless as far north as the Saskatchewan River system; prairie grasses, herbage, and bunchgrasses are the chief vegetation. Short grasses dominate the dry belt known as Palliser’s Triangle in the southeast portion of the prairie region; an arc of tall grass extends north and west, and this is in turn surrounded by parkland, or mixed grass and mainly deciduous forest.
North of the Saskatchewan River is a broad belt of conifers known as the boreal forest. This belt includes Newfoundland, the regions south and east of Hudson Bay, and lands extending westward to the Rocky Mountains. Spruce, tamarack, and poplar are the principal species. The dry slopes and valleys of the Rocky Mountains support thin forests, mainly pine, but the forests increase in density and the trees in size westward toward the region of greater rainfall. On the coastal ranges, especially on their western slopes, are dense forests of mighty conifers, principally spruce, hemlock, Douglas and balsam firs, jack and lodgepole pines, and cedar.
Canada’s extensive coniferous forests constitute the plant life that is most important to its economy. This living resource provides valuable raw products, manufactured products, and thousands of jobs. The coastal and interior forests of British Columbia are particularly valuable, and that province provides 46.6 percent of all wood harvested in Canada. The smaller trees of the boreal forest are used across Canada for pulp and paper. The southeastern mixed zone in the Maritimes also supports a lumber industry. The natural vegetation of Canada also has commercial value as a tourist attraction.
Animal Life
The animals of Canada are similar to those of northern Europe
and Asia. Among the carnivores are several species of the weasel family, such as
the ermine, sable, fisher, wolverine, and mink. Other representative carnivores
are the black bear, brown bear, lynx, wolf, coyote, fox, and skunk. The polar
bear is distributed throughout the Arctic; the puma is found in British
Columbia. Of the rodents, the most characteristic is the beaver. The porcupine,
the muskrat, and many smaller rodents are numerous, as are hares. Gophers are
found in the Interior Plains.
Several varieties of Virginia deer are native to southern Canada; the black-tailed deer occurs in British Columbia and parts of the Interior Plains. This region is also the habitat of the pronghorn antelope. The woodland caribou and the moose are numerous and widely distributed, but the Barren Ground caribou is found only in the far north, which is also the habitat of the musk ox. Elk and bison (often called buffalo) are found in various western areas. Bighorn sheep and Rocky Mountain goats are numerous in the British Columbia mountains. Birds are abundant and diverse, and fish are numerous in all the inland waters and along all the coasts. Reptiles and insects are scarce except in the far south.
Many animal species are threatened with extinction as urban, agricultural, and industrial uses envelop and pollute natural environments. Some species have already been lost, such as the passenger pigeon, the sea mink, and the Dawson caribou. Among the endangered animals are the beluga (white whale) and the spotted owl. Furthermore, some animals are threatened by illegal hunting; for example, an illegal market in bear parts used in some Asian medicines has had a severe impact on black and grizzly bear populations. In contrast, some of Canada’s animals have adapted very well to new environments and have become so numerous as to be considered pests in some areas. Others have been brought back from the brink of extinction by conservation efforts.
Except for fish, native animals are no longer of much economic importance in Canada. Although beaver, bison, sea otter, and whale were once hunted to virtual extinction, they are now largely ignored. Canada still has a fur industry, but the demand for furs has lessened substantially. Hunting for sport, however, generates a certain amount of income across Canada. Also, a growing number of people participate in other recreations related to wildlife, such as bird-watching, whale watching, and nature photography; all of these generate jobs and income.
Natural Resources
Canada is richly endowed with valuable natural resources that
are commercially indispensable to the economy. Most are specific to one region
or another; for this reason separate resource-based economies have tended to
develop across Canada. The country has enormous areas of fertile, low-lying land
in the Prairie Provinces and bordering the Great Lakes and Saint Lawrence River.
Profitable agricultural economies have developed in both of these regions.
Canadian forests cover 45 percent of the country’s land area and abound in
commercially valuable stands of timber, especially in British Columbia, Québec,
northern Ontario, the northern Prairie provinces, and the Maritimes.
Canada’s extensive mineral resources provide valuable exports and also supply domestic industries. Five of the country’s six major regions contribute to these resources. The Québec portion of the Appalachian region has the world’s largest reserves of asbestos, along with deposits of copper and zinc. The Canadian Shield is a rich source of metals such as nickel, copper, gold, uranium, silver, aluminum, and zinc. Minerals from the Shield helped fuel the manufacturing development of southern Ontario and Québec. The Interior Plains region is rich in reserves of crude petroleum and natural gas; these are concentrated in the Prairie provinces, particularly in Alberta. These fuel deposits are responsible for the dynamic energy-producing economy of these provinces. The Interior Plains region also has deposits of nonfuels, such as potash, gypsum, and salt. The western Cordillera provides copper, lead, zinc, molybdenum, and asbestos, and the Arctic Archipelago provides zinc and lead. Increasingly important to the mining industry, the Arctic Archipelago features the world’s northernmost base metal mine, the Polaris mine, on Little Cornwallis Island.
The river and lake systems of the country combine with topography to make hydroelectric energy one of the permanent natural assets of Canada. Here British Columbia and the Shield provinces are particularly well endowed. As with other natural resources, much of the energy is exported.
The wildlife of the country is extensive and varied and attracts tourists from around the world, but it is the fish stocks that have the greatest economic value. The cod stocks off the eastern coast provided export revenue and livelihoods for Atlantic Canadians for centuries. Although this fishery was shut down in 1993 because cod stocks were depleted, there have been some signs of recovery and the fishery was partially reopened in 1997. Other edible fish and shellfish are present in Atlantic coastal waters but do not have the commercial value of cod. In the Pacific region, the various salmon species are the most important fish resource, although many other varieties of fish and shellfish are also economically significant. Finally, freshwater fish in Canada’s numerous lakes and rivers are a source of food and revenue for many local communities.
Environmental Issues
The Canadian environment is being altered by many human activities. The growth of industries and urban areas has caused air quality to decline, raising concerns among many people about the effects of fossil fuel use, acid rain, and global warming. Urban growth has reduced agricultural lands and has become a major issue near large urban centers, especially in the Windsor-Montréal corridor of Ontario and Québec and in the Fraser River valley adjoining Vancouver. Waste management in urban areas is also a growing environmental problem, and many communities are having problems siting waste facilities and reducing the volume of waste generated.
Outside cities, agriculture, forestry, fishery, hydroelectric development, and mining have increasingly met with controversy over their effects on environmental quality and loss of wilderness areas. In agriculture, global competition has intensified, leading to lower prices for many agricultural products. Farmers have tried to stay competitive by adopting practices, such as the use of chemical fertilizers, that degrade the natural resource base. In other resource industries, notably forestry and fishing, concern has been expressed that historical and current rates of extraction threaten the viability of the resources. Thus government resource management policies are under more scrutiny than ever before.
Since the 1970s the federal and provincial governments have required an environmental impact assessment for new projects, such as mines, pulp and paper mills, and irrigation projects. At first these reviews were not very demanding and were not universally applied, but they became more stringent over time. Finally, in January 1995, federal law made such reviews universal. This legislation mandates that all projects on federal land, using federal funds, or run by federal agencies must bemust be reviewed to determine their impact on the environment. Most provinces now have legislation requiring environmental assessments of projects within their jurisdiction.
Forest Management
The federal government owns about 95 million hectares (about 235
million acres) of forest, but most of this land is in Yukon Territory or
Northwest Territories and is unsuitable for commercial timber production. The
provinces own 296 million hectares (731 million acres) or 87 percent of the
forests south of latitude 60° north (the northern border of British Columbia,
Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba). The remaining 13 percent is reserved for
national parks or held privately. The provinces are responsible for managing
their public lands and the timber on those lands.
Increasingly, policy makers are recognizing the intangible benefits of forests. These include recreational pursuits such as park visitation, bird-watching, nature photography, hunting, hiking, and canoeing. Forests are also recognized as important reserves of scientific information and habitats for wildlife, as well as important to water and soil conservation, air quality improvement, and maintenance of biological diversity (including both genetic diversity and ecosystem diversity). In recognition of these benefits, commercial logging is not permitted on about 4 percent of the productive forest land; this land is set aside in parks and other reserves. Several provinces have made commitments to set aside more forested lands in parks and reserves.
Reforestation efforts in Canada have increased nearly 2.5 times since the 1970s. The area planted and seeded went up from 211,000 hectares (521,000 acres) in 1980 to 505,000 hectares (1,248,000 acres) in 1991. In 1991 Québec and British Columbia planted 209 million and 230 million trees respectively, while Ontario planted nearly 150 million.
Wildlife Management
Wildlife is an important component of the Canadian heritage.
More than 90 percent of Canadians participate in wildlife-related activities,
such as nature photography, wildlife watching, bird feeding, hunting, fishing,
and subsistence use. In addition, many visitors come to Canada to view wildlife,
especially birds and large mammals. Canada still has important wildlife
populations, including a large proportion of the world’s stock of mountain
sheep, wolves, and grizzly bears, but many animal populations have shrunk or
even disappeared. These losses are due in part to overhunting in the days before
hunting restrictions, and in part to habitat loss, which continues to this day.
Agriculture, forestry, and urbanization change the landscape, reducing some
important habitats and creating new ones.
Wildlife is a natural resource and therefore falls under provincial jurisdiction. However, the Canada Wildlife Act of 1973 enables the federal government to work with the provinces on wildlife conservation and research. It gives the federal government special responsibilities to protect and manage marine species and certain migratory birds, and to conserve wildlife and habitat of national or international importance. Endangered species and those that migrate across provincial or national boundaries are covered by the act, as are wetlands that provide waterfowl habitat. The federal Canadian Wildlife Service works with provincial wildlife agencies to establish annual revisions of hunting seasons and catch limits, undertake ecological research, coordinate national efforts to protect wildlife and habitat, and manage wildlife areas and bird sanctuaries.
In addition, some indigenous peoples have a special interest in wildlife, largely because it is important to their way of life. Contemporary treaties, covering most of the Yukon and Northwest Territories, have provided indigenous peoples with a direct say in wildlife management in Canada’s north.
