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CGC – Lets Get Physical! Canada’s Landforms Canada’s Landform Regions Topography: • The Earth’s surface features including vegetation, soils, and features shaped by humans. Canadian Shield: • • • • • Constitutes more than half of Canada’s geography Has some of the world’s oldest rocks Formed by igneous and metamorphic rock Good for mining (many minerals); Bad for farming (thin soil) Glaciers removed large amounts of soil/ clay/ rock/ and gravel from the Shield. • Today, most of the Shield is covered by a thin layer of soil (bedrock is visible in many places). Lowlands: • The bedrock under the lowlands is formed mainly of sediments eroded from the Shield. Interior Plains: • Were often covered by shallow inland seas • Thick layers of mineral deposits were left in the dried-out sea beds • These layers are now deep within the earth, covered by newer rocks and glacial deposits • Not necessarily flat! Many rolling hills/ valleys • This is Canada’s “Breadbasket” because so much wheat is grown here. Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowlands • • • • • Most southerly region in Canada Flat plains with glacial hills and deep river valleys The Great Lakes were likely much larger than today b/c of the enormous volume of water from melting glaciers. They later shrank as this ‘meltwater’ drained into the ocean. Good for agriculture (excellent soils/ warm climate) Most densely populated region in Canada Hudson Bay – Arctic Lowlands • Flat, low area covered by forest • Series of islands located in Canada’s far north (harsh climate) • Bad for agriculture (frozen ground) Highlands: Appalachian Mountains • Oldest highland region in Canada • Layers of sedimentary rock are rich in ‘nonmetallic minerals’ such as coal. • Millions of years of erosion have reduced what used to be peaks to rolling mountains/ hills. Innuitians • Mostly composed of sedimentary rock • Younger than Appalachians • Large areas are covered by ice and permanent snow • Mineral resources have hardly been exploited as it’s cheaper to do so in the southern (less remote) areas. Western Cordillera • Along western coast of Canada, on into the western border of Alberta • Caused by a heavier Pacific plate colliding with a lighter North American plate • Transportation challenges (mountains = physical barrier) • Low population, with the exception of high density areas in the Lower Mainland and southern tip of Vancouver Island