Natural Resources Canada

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 The amount of water that needs to be withdrawn for irrigation varies...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 The amount of water that needs to be withdrawn for irrigation varies...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...

The proportion of population « physically active » is based on the energy demands of a series of leisure-time activities that people participated in during the three months previous to the survey. Most scientific evidence is supportive of physical activity as a positive determinant of health....

Many health professionals in Canada consider that obesity has reached or is nearing epidemic proportions in this country. Most scientific evidence is supportive of physical activity as a positive determinant. Greater health benefits can be achieved by increasing the amount; duration, frequency,...

Prevalence is measured as the proportion of daily smokers in each province who were considering quitting. Smoking is a health behaviour that deteriorates health. Smoking is the most important cause of preventable illness, disability and premature death.

Prevalence of smoking is measured as the proportion of all persons 12 years of age and older who smoked daily or occasionally in 1996 to 1997 for each province. Smoking is a health behaviour that deteriorates health. Smoking is the most important cause of preventable illness, disability and...

Areas with a ratio of 100:1 or lower are found mainly in eastern Canada and Manitoba. These are areas where the number of registered nurses per capita is higher than the national rate. At the other end of the scale, regions with relatively few nurses per capita-with ratios greater than...

Neither rural areas nor urban areas predominate with respect to any specific range of the family physician ratios. The Federal and Provincial Advisory Committee on Health Manpower recommended that a ratio of 1307:1 would be a suitable target for family physicians. In contrast to the distribution...

Major cities are associated with comparatively few people per physician; every province has one or more census divisions in which the ratio is less than or equal to 550:1. None of the territories has a ratio this low. At the same time, each province has a significant number of areas with ratios...

Canada’s average population to specialist physician ratio has been 1100:1 for over a decade. Low ratios are generally associated with urban areas. The region with the highest ratio is located in north central Newfoundland, a region with relatively few people but even fewer physician resources,...

The use of the services of a dentist or orthodontist for Canada as a whole was just under 60%. It was far lower than physician utilization in 1997. Use ranges from a low of 46% in Newfoundland and Labrador to highs of 63% in British Columbia and Ontario. The reason for low dental utilization is...