Census Metropolitan Area and Census Agglomeration Influenced Zones (MIZ): A Description of the Methodology - ARCHIVED

This working paper provides an overview of census metropolitan and census agglomeration influenced zones, or MIZ, their background and the methodology used to define them. The MIZ classification is an approach to better differentiate areas of Canada outside of census metropolitan areas (CMA) and census agglomerations (CA). Census subdivisions that lie outside these areas are classified into one of four zones of influence ranging from "strong" to "no" influence according to the degree of influence that CMA/CAs have on them. The MIZ classification fills a gap in Statistics Canada's geographic framework and promotes data integration since we expect it will be possible to obtain survey data as well as census data based on the same geographic structure. Studies done with a preliminary version of MIZ showed the potential of MIZ to reveal the diversity of non-metropolitan Canada. Based on feedback received on that initial research, this working paper reports on more recent work that has been done to refine the number and data breakpoints for MIZ categories and to examine the additional variables of distances between census subdivisions (CSDs), physical adjacency and a north-south allocation.

This is the second in a series of three related Geography working papers (catalogue no. 92F0138MPE) that describe a new statistical area classification that includes census metropolitan areas/census agglomerations, MIZ and the North concept. The first working paper (no. 2000-1, 92F0138MPE00001) briefly describes MIZ and provides tables of selected socio-economic characteristics from the 1991 Census tabulated by the MIZ categories. The third working paper (no. 2000-3, 92F0138MPE00003) describes the North concept and the methodology used to define a continuous line across Canada that separates the north from the south to further differentiate the MIZ classification.