Table 2.3
Water resource characteristics by drainage region

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Water resource characteristics by drainage region: Part 1
  Drainage region Total area 1 Water area 2
Total As a share of total Per capita 2006
  code square kilometres percent square metres
Canada … 9,978,904 1,174,452 11.8 37,151
Pacific Coastal 1 334,452 15,041 4.5 10,464
Fraser - Lower Mainland 2 233,105 9,015 3.9 4,203
Okanagan - Similkameen 3 15,603 650 4.2 2,131
Columbia 4 87,321 2,482 2.8 15,810
Yukon 5 332,906 9,329 2.8 324,984
Peace - Athabasca 6 485,146 16,725 3.4 44,596
Lower Mackenzie 7 1,330,481 176,937 13.3 3,278,250
Arctic Coast - Islands 8 1,764,279 177,906 10.1 9,690,925
Missouri 9 27,097 1,129 4.2 127,297
North Saskatchewan 10 150,151 7,245 4.8 5,116
South Saskatchewan 11 177,623 6,243 3.5 3,195
Assiniboine - Red 12 190,705 9,098 4.8 6,574
Winnipeg 13 107,654 20,599 19.1 243,036
Lower Saskatchewan - Nelson 14 360,883 67,612 18.7 314,102
Churchill 15 313,572 51,858 16.5 585,054
Keewatin - Southern Baffin Island 16 939,568 161,438 17.2 12,173,893
Northern Ontario 17 691,811 55,952 8.1 406,020
Northern Quebec 18 940,194 148,986 15.8 1,413,516
Great Lakes - Ottawa - St. Lawrence 19,20,21 582,945 134,928 23.1 7,188
North Shore - Gaspé 22 369,094 37,363 10.1 73,539
Saint John - St. Croix 23 41,904 1,800 4.3 4,471
Maritime Coastal 24 122,056 6,728 5.5 4,501
Newfoundland and Labrador 25 380,355 55,388 14.6 109,304
Water resource characteristics by drainage region: Part 2
  Drainage region Total area 1 Mean annual streamflow 3
Rate Total Per unit area As a share of total
  code square kilometres cubic metres per second cubic kilometres thousands of cubic metres per square kilometre percent
Canada … 9,978,904 105,135 3,315.50 332 100.0
Pacific Coastal 1 334,452 16,390 516.9 1,545 15.6
Fraser - Lower Mainland 2 233,105 3,972 125.3 537 3.8
Okanagan - Similkameen 3 15,603 74 2.3 150 0.1
Columbia 4 87,321 2,009 63.4 726 1.9
Yukon 5 332,906 2,506 79 237 2.4
Peace - Athabasca 6 485,146 2,903 91.5 189 2.8
Lower Mackenzie 7 1,330,481 7,337 231.4 174 7.0
Arctic Coast - Islands 8 1,764,279 8,744 275.8 156 8.3
Missouri 9 27,097 12 0.4 14 0.0
North Saskatchewan 10 150,151 234 7.4 49 0.2
South Saskatchewan 11 177,623 239 7.5 42 0.2
Assiniboine - Red 12 190,705 50 1.6 8 0.0
Winnipeg 13 107,654 758 23.9 222 0.7
Lower Saskatchewan - Nelson 14 360,883 1,911 60.3 167 1.8
Churchill 15 313,572 701 22.1 70 0.7
Keewatin - Southern Baffin Island 16 939,568 5,383 169.8 181 5.1
Northern Ontario 17 691,811 5,995 189.1 273 5.7
Northern Quebec 18 940,194 16,830 530.8 565 16.0
Great Lakes - Ottawa - St. Lawrence 19,20,21 582,945 7,197 227 389 6.8
North Shore - Gaspé 22 369,094 8,159 257.3 697 7.8
Saint John - St. Croix 23 41,904 779 24.6 586 0.7
Maritime Coastal 24 122,056 3,628 114.4 937 3.5
Newfoundland and Labrador 25 380,355 9,324 294 773 8.9
Water resource characteristics by drainage region: Part 3
  Drainage region Total area 1 Mean annual precipitation 4 Dams
Rate Volume Number Generating capacity 5
  code square kilometres millimetres cubic kilometres units megawatts
Canada … 9,978,904 545 5,451 1,462 67,411
Pacific Coastal 1 334,452 1,354 451 50 1,648
Fraser - Lower Mainland 2 233,105 670 156 24 848
Okanagan - Similkameen 3 15,603 466 7 3 594
Columbia 4 87,321 776 68 56 5,153
Yukon 5 332,906 346 115 10 76
Peace - Athabasca 6 485,146 497 241 17 3,427
Lower Mackenzie 7 1,330,481 365 486 18 83
Arctic Coast - Islands 8 1,764,279 189 333 0 0
Missouri 9 27,097 390 11 2 13
North Saskatchewan 10 150,151 443 67 6 504
South Saskatchewan 11 177,623 419 74 21 310
Assiniboine - Red 12 190,705 450 86 3 168
Winnipeg 13 107,654 683 74 98 905
Lower Saskatchewan - Nelson 14 360,883 508 183 60 4,941
Churchill 15 313,572 480 151 12 119
Keewatin - Southern Baffin Island 16 939,568 330 310 0 0
Northern Ontario 17 691,811 674 466 60 1,116
Northern Quebec 18 940,194 698 656 66 15,238
Great Lakes - Ottawa - St. Lawrence 19,20,21 582,945 957 556 623 12,515
North Shore - Gaspé 22 369,094 994 367 129 10,785
Saint John - St. Croix 23 41,904 1,147 48 54 1,864
Maritime Coastal 24 122,056 1,251 153 60 411
Newfoundland and Labrador 25 380,355 1,030 392 90 6,693
1.
Area includes the Canadian portion of the Great Lakes.
2.
Water area figures are calculated from the Canada-wide 1 km water fraction derived from National Topographic Database maps.
3.
Basins at the US-Canada border exclude inflow from U.S. portion of basin region.
4.
Precipitation has been estimated from an Inverse Distance Weighted interpolation of the 1971 to 2000 normals.
5.
The generating capacity refers to the maximum power capability from hydro plants. The survey coverage for those plants is limited to those utilities and companies that have at least one plant with a total generating capacity of over 500 kilowatts.
Note(s):
These drainage regions and associated flow measures are adapted from Pearse (1985) (see full reference below). Some of these river basin aggregates have more than one outflow.
Source(s):
Environment Canada, Meteorological Service of Canada, 2003, Canadian Climate Normals, 1971 to 2000, http://climate.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html (accessed February 23, 2005). Fernandes, R., G. Pavlic, W. Chen and R. Fraser, 2001,1-km Water Fraction From National Topographic Data Base Maps, Canada, Natural Resources Canada, http://www.geogratis.ca/geogratis/en/collection/metadata.do?id=67 (accessed February 23, 2005). Pearse, P.H., F. Bertrand and J.W. MacLaren, 1985,Currents of Change: Final Report of the Inquiry on Federal Water Policy, Environment Canada, Ottawa. Natural Resources Canada, GeoAccess Division, 2003,1:1 Million Digital Drainage Area Framework, version 4.8b, Ottawa. Statistics Canada, 2006 Census of Population. Statistics Canada, 2001,Electric Power Generating Stations , Catalogue no. 57-206-X.
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