Download Canada

Geography
 Canada
has 10 provinces and 3
territories
• Province = political division
 We
will divide Canada into 5 regions
 These regions are more distinct than the
regions we studied in the U.S.
 Why?
• Canada’s population is small
• Structure of government gives a lot of power to
provinces
 Formed by:
• Newfoundland and Labrador
• Prince Edward Island
• Nova Scotia
• New Brunswick
 Border the Atlantic Ocean
 Part
of the Appalachian Mountains
 Deciduous forests
 Rugged mountaintops
 Thousands of lakes and small ponds
 Thin soil, lots of rocks and boulders
 Called “Maritimes” due
to close ties with
the sea
 Most residents live along the coast
 Smallest region – land and population
 Fishing industry
• Once one of the world’s richest fishing areas, before
overfishing depleted the supply
 Forestry
and farming
• Occurs where soil permits, like Prince Edward Island
 Tourism
 Oil
discovered off shore
 Quebec
and Ontario
 Core of Canada’s population and
economic activity
• Canadian Shield – poor soil, cold climate, rich
mineral deposits
• Hudson Bay Lowlands – flat, sparsely populated,
swampy
• St. Lawrence Lowlands – rich soil, mild climate
 60%
of Canada’s population lives here
 Great
Lakes, lots of waterways
 Rich soil, lots of resources
 Manufacturing and distribution in cities
• Cars, food, clothing, building materials
 Toronto, Ontario
= largest metropolitan
area in Canada
• Banking and financial center of Canada
• Canadian version of Wall St. is here
 Ottawa, Canada’s
national capital
 Mostly
a wilderness of forests, rivers,
lakes, and streams
 Northern part of Quebec is tundra
 Mining and forestry
 Montreal = largest city
 City of Quebec (capital) is oldest city in
Canada
• Founded by Samuel de Champlain, sent by
France to establish a colony
• Tourist attraction
• Center of Canada’s French-Canadian population
 Contains:
• Alberta
• Manitoba
• Saskathewan
 Wheat, flatland, lakes, rivers, “badlands”
with strange rock formations, sand dunes
 Most
of settlement here is due to
railroads
 Provide most of Canada’s grain and cattle
 Tourism – Rocky Mountains
 Oil and natural gas in Alberta provided a
new source of wealth in this region
 Rocky
Mountains and the Coast Mountains
 4/5s of province’s residents live in
Vancouver (capital)
 One of Canada’s wealthiest provinces
thanks to natural resources
• Salmon
• Forests
• Minerals
 Wet, marine climate
• People move here to retire
 Trade with Asia from Vancouver’s harbor
• Grown city rapidly
• Increased population with Asian immigrants
 Consists of:
• Yukon Territory
• Northwest territories
• Nunavut
 Cold, almost no trees, not
many people
 Mostly native peoples, like the Inuit (aka
Eskimos), live here
 Contact with white people has changed
Inuit culture
• Hunters use snowmobiles instead of dog sleds for
seal hunting
• Some children go to school at home taking classes
transmitted by satellite over radio or television
 Minerals
found here:
• Gold, silver, copper, zinc, lead, iron ore, uranium
 Petroleum
and natural gas
 Most of these natural resources are still
buried in the earth
 Harsh climate and rugged terrain make it
difficult to mine and transport materials
1.
2.
3.
What economic activities are important
in the Atlantic provinces?
How have location and resources
influenced economic activities in a) The
Prairie Provinces, and b) British
Columbia?
Choose two of Canada’s regions and
compare their physical features,
economic activities, and population
distribution.