Natural Resources Canada

A drainage basin is an area that drains all precipitation received as a runoff or base flow (groundwater sources) into a particular river or set of rivers. Canada’s major drainage regions are the Atlantic Ocean, Hudson Bay, Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Gulf of Mexico. A lake can be defined as...

Glaciers and icefields are huge masses of ice, formed on land by the compaction and re-crystallization of snow, that move very slowly down slopes, or move outward due to their own weight. In Canada, an estimated area of 200 000 square kilometres, or about 2% of the country’s area is covered by...

Groundwater is water found beneath the earth’s surface and located at the water table below. In Canada, there is more water underground than on the surface. Groundwater occurs in the tiny spaces between loose materials on top of bedrock, or in cracks of bedrock. The most important concentrations...

Wetlands are lands permanently or temporarily submerged or permeated by water, and characterized by plants adapted to saturated-soil conditions. Wetlands are the only ecosystem designated for conservation by international convention because they absorb the impact of hydrologic events, filter...

In 1996 Statistics Canada conducted a survey in nature-related activities on the Importance of Nature to Canadians. The map combines the data for these three boat types, classed by major watershed. It shows that the amount of usage across Canada is closely correlated to population, but also that...

In 1996, 9.3% of Canadians made use of a power boat. The map shows the number of trips where a powerboat was used. The range of recreational activities is diverse, ranging from cruising, across to cottages, to fishing and water sports. The large number of powerboats in Canada had lead to many...

Fishing is popular throughout Canada, but in the more remote parts of the country it is a major part of the local economy. Frequency of participation in recreational fishing has a strong relationship to the distribution of population, but the northern areas for which there is data also have a...

Swimming is one of the uses of freshwater. The map shows the amount of participation as mapped by major watershed. Not surprisingly, the highest absolute numbers occur in southern Canada.

Irrigation is the provision of water to crops beyond what is provided by local rainfall. Irrigation is a vital part of agriculture in certain areas of Canada like the southern Prairies and the interior of British Columbia. The amount of water that needs to be withdrawn for irrigation varies...

Irrigation is the provision of water to crops beyond what is provided by local rainfall. Irrigation is a vital part of agriculture in certain areas of Canada like the southern Prairies and the interior of British Columbia. The amount of water that needs to be withdrawn for irrigation varies...

Commercial consumers are businesses, and institutional users such as government agencies, schools, and hospitals. Apartment buildings are also included in this section since these are normally operated by businesses. Next to residential uses, commercial and institutional consumption makes up the...

The map shows total municipal needs by province and territory. Domestic water consumption includes the quantity of water used for household purposes such as washing, food preparation, and bathing. Across Canada, nearly all of the water used by municipal water systems comes from lakes and rivers...

Hydroelectric generation is the predominant form of electric generation in Canada. A major part of the economic history of Canada consisted of the development of sites with large hydroelectric potential such as Niagara and Shawinigan. Hydro developments have had a substantial effect on rivers and...

The industrial sector represents 16% of total freshwater consumption. The amount used reflects population distribution to some degree, but the high values in some watersheds far from the largest cities reflects the occurrence of resource-processing, a heavy user of water. In most cases, these...