THE NORTHLANDS(Chapter 17)

Introduction

• Easily the largest North American region • Extends from northern Alaska and Canada

as for south as the northern Great Lakes• Regional criteria– Inhospitable nature of the physical

environment– Sparse population

The Northlands

(page 343)

Climate

• Dominant feature: COLD– Average January temperatures -7° C (27 F)

along the southern Great Lakes to -40°C (-39 F) in parts of Arctic Canada

– Temperatures as low as -60°C (-76°F) possible

• Long winters, short frost-free period– 135 days at southern margins– 14 days along parts of Arctic Ocean– Less than 90 days over most of region– Too short for agriculture

Climate (continued) Continental climate over most of the region

– Maritime moderation only along margins, mainly in east and west

– Brief but warm summers– Great shifts in length of day, angle of sun’s rays• North of Arctic Circle (66° 30’ north latitude)

darkness for at least one 24-hour period in midwinter, one day in mid-summer with 24 hours of daylight• Low angle of sun’s rays

Precipitation

• Highest amounts in far southeast (Labrador): 100 cm (40 inches), mostly from storms

• < 25 cm (10 inches) over most of Northwest Territories

• < 15 cm (6 inches) in Arctic Islands• Effect of– Cold northern latitude– Frozen Arctic Ocean

Permafrost• Subsurface layer of permanently frozen ground• May be a few inches to more than 300 meters

(1000 feet) thick• Discontinuous in warmer areas• In summer, deeper permafrost layer holds

meltwater on surface• Effects–Construction of buildings with piles deep into

permafrost for stability–Constant road repair–Protection of ground from heat of buildings

Extent of Permafrost

(page 344)

Vegetation• Taiga (boreal forest)– Coniferous forest across the entire southern part of the

region – Closely ranked spruces, firs, and pines– Slow-growing and short – Decrease in size and number south to north

• Tree line– Transition zone, with gradually smaller and sparser trees– Boundary between taiga and tundra

• Tundra – Conditions too harsh for trees– Lichens, grasses, mosses, and shrubs

Vegetation (page 30)

Arctic Ice• Size and characteristics– Covers 4.8 million square kilometers (1.8 million square

miles)– 3-6 meters (10-20 feet) thick, but rugged– Salt-free, floats on Arctic Ocean– Expands in winter to enshroud entire Arctic coast of

Canada and northern Alaska– Holds as much water as all freshwater lakes in the world

• Effects– Minimizes moderating effect of Arctic Ocean on climate– Limits ocean transport

• Changes– Slowly melting, apparently in response to global warming– 2007: smallest area on record, coastal areas of islands ice-

free

Native Peoples

• Entire region sparsely populated with Native peoples (First Nations) dominant

• Inuit– Predominate in most of the Arctic– Culture extends from Siberia to Greenland– Most recently arrived of Native Americans (4500

years ago)– Traditionally lived by fishing and hunting– Today have moved in substantial numbers to towns

Canada’s Inuit Population

(page 347)

Indians

• Concentrated mostly in the taiga• Traditional economy based on hunting and fishing• Métis – Intermarriage of Indian women and European men during

fur-trading period– Today outnumber American Indians in taiga

• Fur trade– Indians of taiga and Europeans– Introduced European trade goods– Brought liquor, diseases, Christianity– Effect of upsetting Indian culture

Canada’s Indian Population

(page 348)

Native Peoples and Europeans• Northlands last region to come under Canadian and

U.S. government control• Treatment less destructive and paternalistic than

elsewhere– Canada: Less removal of Indians– Alaska: Contact late enough that attitudes had softened– Canadian Native Claims procedure (1974)– 1975: Quebec accord with local Indians on control of land

around James Bay– 1999: Division of Northwest Territory to create Nunavut

• 31,113 population (2007)• 1.9 million square kilometers (733,000 square miles)• 28 settlements

Early European Settlement

• French– Voyageurs, fur trappers, fur traders– Political control north to headwaters of rivers draining

to Hudson Bay– Trading posts and forts at strategic sites, location of

today’s cities• Hudson’s Bay Company– British fur-trading company– Establishments on margins of Hudson Bay– Granted trade monopoly by British government– Extended from Hudson Bay west to Rocky Mountains

Canadian Population Distribution

(page 350)

• Largest area of uncut forest in North America• Upper Great Lakes

– Logged during the late 1800s and early 1900s– So devastated it was called the "Cutover Region”– Not reforested, slow growth in cold climate

• Canada– World’s leading exporter of forest products– Lumber, pulp and paper operations from Quebec to

Manitoba.– Spruce forests south of Hudson Bay prime source for most

paper mills– Mills on plentiful water power sites on southern edge of

Canadian Shield– Most capital from outside Canada, especially U.S.– U.S. major market

Logging

Mining: Canada

• Wide range of metals, other minerals• Leading producer– Nickel– Zinc– Asbestos

• Major producer– Potash– Copper– Lead– Iron ore

Elizabeth J. Leppman

• Mesabi Range (Minnesota) and northern Wisconsin, Michigan

• Situational advantage with accessibility network of the Great Lakes

• Most important source in late 19th century for iron and steel industry of Great Lakes

• Locks at Sault-Ste Marie world’s busiest as a result of ore traffic

• Taconite– Replacing high-quality ores now exhausted– C. 30% iron– Beneficiation: Ground into powder, much rock

removed, before shipment

Mining: United States

Environmental Problems of Mining

• Location of smelting– Cost of shipping ore with low metal content– Main manufacturing activity in Northlands

• Environmental disruption– Mining by open-pit methods– Old mines restored only recently– Slag (waste material) created by processing– Harmful gaseous and liquid waste

Expansion of Mining

• Early 1900s– Northward from Great Lakes– First products

• Gold• Silver

– Later attention• Copper• Nickel• Lead• Zinc

• Sudbury– First mining town– Largest urban center in Northlands (157,857 population,

2006)

New Mining Districts

• Clay Belt (Timmins to Val d’Or): Copper• Chibougamau (farther northeast): Lead, copper,

zinc• Labrador Trough (Labrador-Quebec border)– High-grade iron ore– Development as quality of Lake Superior ores declined– Schefferville

• Railroad in 1954• Today, mines closed, town abandoned

– Wabush and Carol Lake, Newfoundland– Gagnon-Fermont, Quebec

Smaller Mining Concentrations

• Western Ontario, north of Lake Superior (iron)

• Flin Flon, Manitoba-Saskatchewan border (copper and zinc)

• Thompson, Manitoba (nickel)• Yellowknife on Great Slave Lake (gold)

Petroleum

• Alberta– Major proven resources– Athabasca tar sands

• Best prospects for additional discoveries– Mackenzie River delta– Alaska’s North Slope across northern Arctic Islands

• Alaska’s North Slope– Fear of inadequate supplies in U.S.– Development a dramatic technological feat– Problem of transportation: pipelines

AlaskaPipeline

(page 339)

Hydroelectricity

• Potential– Southern edge of Canadian Shield (hard rock)– Streams falling into lowlands of Ontario, Quebec

• Churchill Falls project, Labrador• Margin of James Bay, Quebec• Cheap, abundant electricity basis of aluminum

smelting industry• Surplus energy sold to New York, Ontario,

northern New England (to replace polluting coal-fired plants)

Transportation

• Pervasive isolation, sparse population• Mackenzie River only river transportation• Railroads– Labrador north from Sept Isles (iron ore)– Prairie Provinces to Churchill (wheat)– Great Slave Lake (mining development)– James Bay, Quebec– Southern margins

• Roads– Mackenzie Highway– Alaska Highway

• Light airplanes with bush pilots

• Rising incomes in North America—demand for more recreation

• Southern margins (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan; Laurentians; Ontario)– Easily accessible– Heavy tourist use

• Central and northern portions—much less used

• Fragile environment

Tourism

Settlement Pattern• Agriculture (supporter of rural population) impossible in most

places, except• Lake St. John–Saguenay Lowland, Quebec• Clay Belt, Quebec-Ontario border• Peace River District, British Columbia–Alberta border

• Most places dominated by single major economic activity– Mining– Transportation, shipping

• Far north– Few permanent settlements– Most Europeans employees of government or resource exploitation– Predominantly male populations– Inuit villages

Settlement Zones of Northern Canada

(page 357)