Zones that represent areas of homogeneous hydrologic and geomorphological characteristics

The BC Hydrologic Zones represent regions of similar climate and terrain resulting in somewhat homogeneous hydrology characteristics. The zones were defined previously by Obedkoff and others. This dataset has been extended into the neighbouring province, territories, and states for regional flood frequency analysis studies. See Bulletin 2020-1-RFFA British Columbia Extreme Flood Project – Regional Flood Frequency Analysis – Technical development report and manual to complete a regional flood frequency analysis.

Drainage basins of Manitoba.Hydrologic drainage basins found within Manitoba. The Assiniboine River basin is divided to indicate the Shellmouth Reservoir subbasin, to better illustrate local impacts and conditions. Basin names are in English and French. 

Polygon features represent developed ground water aquifers in BC (that have been mapped). Most aquifer boundaries are delineated based on geology, hydrology and topographic information. Some aquifer boundaries stop at the border of BC mapsheet boundaries due to resource or data constraints at the time of mapping.

Hydrogeological Regions provide a framework to introduce the regional hydrogeology of Canada and to connect apparently disparate studies into a broader framework. The hydrological regions are first order areas used to capture and summarize data that will help develop more detailed profiles of each region. Comparison of findings within and between regions will allow scalable extension to sub-regional and watershed scale mapping.Canada has been classified into nine principal hydrogeological regions. Each region is described briefly based on the following five hydrogeological characteristics (Heath, 1984):system components and geometry;water-bearing openings;rock matrix composition;storage and transmission;recharge/ discharge.The hydrogeological classification emphasizes major geological provinces and rock formations. Fundamental water-bearing openings and rock matrix properties help determine the quantity (storage), flux (transmission), and composition of formation waters. These same properties and any overlying sediment cover affect recharge/ discharge rates for regional formations. While regional attributes are general, a simple aquifer mapping scheme can further describe the nature and character of aquifers in each region. For example, general groundwater settings across the country could be described as has been done by USGS principal aquifers [1]. Thus the regional framework can potentially link from national scales to watershed scales by identifying typical aquifer types based on readily available geological maps that use water-bearing character as a common attribute.The nine hydrogeological regions include:CordilleraMountains with thin sediment over fractured sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks of Precambrian to Cenozoic age. Intermontane valleys are underlain by glacial and alluvial deposits of Pleistocene age.Plains (Western Sedimentary Basin)Region-wide basin of sub-horizontal Paleozoic to Cenozoic sedimentary rocks are overlain by thick glacial deposits filling buried valleys. Incised post-glacial valleys provide local relief. Shallow gas, coal, and brines may occur.Canadian ShieldUndulating region of thin glacial sediment overlying complex deformed, fractured PreCambrian igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks. Region contains several terrains: sedimentary basins, structural belts, and glacial-lacustrine basins.Hudson Bay (Moose River) BasinSedimentary basin of Paleozoic to Mesozoic sub horizontal carbonate and clastic sediment covered by surficial deposits, with low relief and poor drainage.Southern OntarioEastern Great Lakes region is underlain by gently-dipping Paleozoic, carbonate, clastic and gypsum-salt strata overlain by glacial sediments up to 200 m thick with tunnel valleys. Karst, bedrock valleys, shallow gas and brines are also important components.St. Lawrence LowlandsLowlands underlain by shallow-dipping Paleozoic sedimentary rocks and thick glacial sediment in glacial-marine basins. Appalachian and Precambrian uplands discharge water to valleys. Shallow gas and saltwater intrusion are possible.AppalachiaUpland to mountainous region with thin surficial sediment on folded Paleozoic sedimentary and igneous rocks. Range of rock types yields a wide range of water compositions. Valleys contain important alluvial aquifers.Maritimes BasinLowlands with flat-lying, Carboniferous clastic , salt, and gypsum rocks contain shallow coal deposits. Surface glacial sediment is thin and discontinuous. Salt water intrusion is possible.PermafrostArctic islands and most areas north of 60o contain frozen ground affects on groundwater flow. Diverse topography and geology define sub-regions of sedimentary basins and crystalline rocks. Glacial sediment is thin, discontinuous; local peat accumulations are significant.

The Drainage Areas dataset is largely based on the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) drainage area boundaries at the sub-sub-basin level. The data model supports the derivation, from the Fundamental Drainage Areas dataset (sub-sub-basin level), of the WSC and Atlas of Canada drainage area hierarchies and the data is available in all three schemes. Drainage area definitions for both WSC and Atlas of Canada boundaries were reviewed resulting in some modifications. Larger scale reference data sources were used for further manual boundary adjustments. This dataset has been integrated with other National Scale Frameworks hydrology datasets and is considered a component of the Hydrology Theme (see Supplemental Information for more details about the Atlas of Canada National Frameworks data at the 1:1,000,000 scale).The Atlas Frameworks are a set of integrated base map layers which form part of a larger National-Scale Frameworks data collection. These data have been compiled at a scale of 1:1 000 000 with the primary goal being to indicate correct relative positioning with other framework layers rather than absolute positional accuracy.Distributed from [GeoYukon](https://yukon.ca/geoyukon) by the [Government of Yukon](https://yukon.ca/maps) . Discover more digital map data and interactive maps from Yukon's digital map data collection.For more information: [geomatics.help@yukon.ca](mailto:geomatics.help@yukon.ca)

This polygon layer shows the spatial distribution of forecasted accumulated precipitation across watershed sub‑basins using data derived from the Regional Ensemble Prediction System (REPS). In other words, it aggregates precipitation amounts—computed from processed REPS forecast output (converted from GRIB2 files into raster [TIF] format)—over defined watershed boundaries to provide a detailed view of expected rainfall over a typical 72‑hour forecast period. This information supports regional hydrological forecasting, flood risk analysis, and water resource management.REPS forecast data are first processed to extract the accumulated precipitation field (APCP) and converted into high‑resolution raster images. These “REPS APCP rasters” represent the spatial distribution of forecast precipitation (in millimeters) over the region. Next, using pre‑defined watershed or sub‑basin boundaries, zonal statistics are applied to compute the average precipitation for each sub‑basin. The final layer displays these averaged values as polygon features, highlighting variations in forecasted rainfall across different drainage areas. This approach helps users pinpoint regions that may receive higher or lower rainfall, thereby enhancing hydrological assessments and emergency planning.

Canada’s landmass is very diversified and comprises 7 distinctive areas called physiographic regions, each of which has its own unique topography and geology. Physiographic regions are large areas that share similar relief and landforms shaped by common geomorphic processes and geological history. Physiographic regions are often used to describe Canada’s geography to show regional differences in climate, vegetation, population and the economy.This dataset collection contains three interrelated datasets mapping the location of Canada’s 7 different physiographic regions, their 21 subregions and many divisions (landforms).

Watershed boundary delineated for Canada-BC hydrometric stations. Currently, watersheds were delineated using 1:50,000 scale boundaries in 1996, and many watersheds encompass entire drainages, instead of just the upstream watersheds. Note - Not yet available, but we are in the process of generating BC hydrometric station upstream watersheds using updated base data, using the following method: Within BC, watershed boundaries are based on the 1:20,000-scale Freshwater Atlas fundamental watersheds, and trimmed using the BC TRIM DEM used to approximate the height-of-land at the station locations. Outside of BC, but within Canada, watershed boundaries were approximated using Canada CDED DEM data for delineation (no "stream burning" was used) and some manual editing of boundaries was done to approximately match hydrology data after the fact. Within U.S.A., the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset was used (at the best scale available for each drainage) to delineate the watershed boundary, with the watershed trimmed using the USGS National Elevation Dataset to approximate the height-of-land when necessary.

This product provides runoff data with each contour line corresponding to an average amount of annual runoff (in millimeters). Runoff data were derived from discharge values from hydrometric stations with natural flows. Not all years are included for every region of the country due to data quality and availability issues. Data cover the period 1971 to 2013 for the south and 1971 to 2004 for the north. These files were produced by Statistics Canada, Environment, Energy and Transportation Statistics Division, 2017, based on data from Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2015, Water Survey of Canada, Archived Hydrometric Data (HYDAT), www.ec.gc.ca/rhc- wsc/default.asp?lang=En&n=4EED50F1-1 (accessed December 3, 2015); Spence, C. and A. Burke, 2008, “Estimates of Canadian Arctic Archipelago runoff from observed hydrometric data,” Journal of Hydrology, Vol. 362, pp. 247–259. For more information about methods, results and limitations see Appendix D in Statistics Canada, 2017, “Freshwater in Canada,” Human Activity and the Environment,Catalogue no. 16-201-X.The purpose of the dataset is to present runoff values as derived from Statistics Canada's Water Yield Model on a national scale map of 1:32,000,000.This product is intended to be used for reference or mapping purposes. The product ends at the shoreline of Canada as defined by the drainage region boundaries supplied for drainage regions of Canada. It does not include the Arctic Islands.