a regional geography of canada
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Canada: A Regional GeographySTUDY CANADA Summer Institute 2016
David Rossiter, WWU
A Northern Silver Mine, 1930 – F. Carmichael
“If some countries have too much history, we have too much geography.”
– PM Mackenzie King, 1936
Garibaldi Provincial Park, BC. Photo: D. Rossiter, 2012
Oh, to brag…
• Second largest country• Canada’s total area: 9,984,670 sq.km
– 9,093,507 sq.km land– 891,163 sq.km freshwater.
• Coastline: 243,042 km– Longest in world
• Resource rich• Sparse yet diverse population
Source: Statistics Canada
BCALTA
SASK MTBA
ONT QUE
NBNS
PEI
NFLD and LAB
YK NWT NVT
Pop Quiz
Victoria
Edmonton
ReginaWinnipeg
Toronto
Quebec
Fredericton
Halifax
Charlottetown
St. John’s
Whitehorse
Yellowknife
Iqaluit
Vancouver
Calgary
Saskatoon
Ottawa Montreal
St. John
The Physical Base
• Geology• Topography• Soils• Vegetation• Climate
Fundamental to understanding Canada’s human geography and historical development
The Late Wisconsin Ice Age
• Maximum extent 18,000 years ago• Started to recede 15,000 years ago• Last remnants in Rockies 7,000 years ago
Glacial till and erratic – NS
Drumlin – Alberta Glacial valley - Alberta
Appalachian Uplands
• N. Appalachian Mountains
• Rounded uplands; narrow river valleys
• Rocky, shallow soils• Mixed forest• Cool, maritime climate
– short summer, wet winter
NFLD Coast
Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowlands
• Sedimentary rock and glacial deposits
• Flat, rolling topography
• Good soil• Moderate climate,
good growing season– humid and hot
summer / cold winterOak Ridges Moraine – S. Ontario
Canadian Shield• Geol. core of N.A.• Precambrian rocks
– > 3 billion yrs old• Widespread glaciation
– shallow soils, exposed granite
• Mixed and Boreal forest• Northern continental
climate– hot, short summer / cold,
long winter North Shore, Quebec
Interior Plains• Sedimentary rock• Shaped by glacial and
hydrological processes– river valleys
• Drain east to Hudson Bay• Decent soils in south• Oil and gas deposits• Continental climate
– moderate precip.– hot summer / cold winter
Wheat fields outside Winnipeg, MB
South Saskatchewan River
Cordillera• Formed 40-80 million years
ago– colliding NA and Pac. plates
• Glaciers in high alpine• Fertile river valleys and
deltas• Mostly coniferous forest• Micro-climates
– warmer, wetter on coast– colder, drier in interior
Alberta Rockies
The Barrier – Coast Mountains
Hudson Bay Lowlands• Youngest phyiso. reg. in
Canada• Muskeg
– w/ low ridges of sand and gravel
• Poorly drained– low elev., level surface
• Northern climate– maritime influence– short summer / long winter
Muskeg
James Bay delta
Arctic Lands• ~25% of Canada’s territory• Coastal lowlands & plateaux and mtns. (Innutian)• Mainly sedimentary rock w/ permafrost• Glaciers still active• Areas of polar desert
Baffin Island - Nunavut
Where are all the people?
Short answers: • Great Lks-St. Law. Lowlands: ~25% of pop.
– Windsor-Quebec City (“Laurentian” Canada)• Big Cities: ~1/3 of pop.
– Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver• In cities, near the USA
– ~80% of Canadians live in cities (100,000+)– ~80% of Canadians live within 100km of USA
Population density, 2006Map source: Atlas of Canada
Total population, 2011 - 33,476,690Source: Statistics Canada
Legend
Density by Census Div. (persons /
sq.km)
< 0.10.1-0.91.0-3.5
3.6-19.920.0-49.9
50.0-150.0> 150.0
Major Cities and Productive Agricultural Lands
Where are all the people?
Longer answer:
• All over– “Heartland” (cities) draws on resources of
“hinterland”– north dominated by resource towns and regional
service centres
Resource Reliant Communities, 2001 Map source: Atlas of Canada Legend
30-100% of income from:
AgricultureEnergyFisheryForestryMining
Financial Specialization, 1996 Map source: Atlas of Canada
Legend
Degree of specialization
Low
to
High
Lawren Harris, 1922 – Houses, St. Patrick’s St.
Wilderness or Urban Nation?
References
• Many maps and images were obtained at:– www.canadainfolink.ca/geog.htm– http://atlas.nrcan.gc/site/english/index.html
• Other resources:– A good atlas of Canada– Historical Atlas of Canada, vols. 1-3, University of
Toronto Press– Heartland and Hinterland, McCann and Gunn– Regional Geography of Canada, Bone
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