Water quality and ecosystem health data used to conduct a cumulative effects assessment of Canadian Great Lakes nearshore waters in support of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement are included in this dataset. The data was collected by various government and non-government agencies and organizations and integrated into this dataset to allow the assessment to be conducted. By conducting a regular, systematic assessment of cumulative effects in the nearshore waters of the Great Lakes Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) is able to identify areas of high quality and areas under stress. Knowledge of ecological thresholds, other Great Lakes assessments, stressor information, indicators and local and traditional ecological knowledge will be used to aid in: 1) the identification and mapping of high quality nearshore areas and areas that are or may become subject to high stress and; 2) the determination of factors and cumulative effects that are causing stress or threats. Cumulative effects impacting the nearshore and future threats to areas of high ecological value will be better understood and the knowledge shared will assist in priority setting for science and management at a meaningful and practical spatial scale within each Great Lake and connecting channel.

This historic dataset delineates valley segments based on a number of different natural features. The data applies to valley segments on the Ontario side of the Great Lakes. Aquatic Landscape Inventory System (ALIS) has also been incorporated into the [Aquatic Ecosystem Classification: Great Lakes Basin and Wetlands Data Class](/dataset/aquatic-ecosystems-in-the-great-lakes-basin) and the Great Lakes Conservation Blueprint for Aquatic Biodiversity datasets. We are no longer updating this data. It is best suited for historical research and analysis.

INW - Inland water resources (inlandWaters)Inland water features, drainage systems, and their characteristics. For example, resources describing rivers and glaciers, salt lakes, water use plans, dams, currents, floods, water quality, and hydrographic charts

This product provides the boundaries for the 25 drainage regions in Canada and the five ocean drainage areas. These drainage regions cover all of the area within the coastal boundaries of Canada.These files were produced by Statistics Canada, Environment, Energy and Transportation Statistics Division, 2009, special tabulation of data from 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.

The dataset has been used for the Great Lakes Conservation Blueprint Project for Aquatic Biodiversity. It can be used for: * research and aquatic species inventories * environmental impact and monitoring * watershed based resource planning and management * fisheries and other aquatic analysis Official GEO title: Aquatic Ecosystems Classification: Great Lakes Basin - Coast, Streams, Lakes and Wetlands

This product provides the variability index for selected drainage regions in Canada. Variability is measured using a coefficient of variation (CV) to compare all months over a 42-year time period and is a measure of the dispersion or variation in the monthly yield values from 1971 to 2013 (and 1971 to 2012 for drainage region 1). It is defined as the ratio of the standard deviation to the mean or the standard deviation divided by the mean, with higher CVs indicating more variability in monthly water yields. The monthly variability was not calculated for drainage regions 5, 7, 8, 16, 17, 18, or the Labrador portion of 25.

The National Hydro Network (NHN) focuses on providing a quality geometric description and a set of basic attributes describing Canada's inland surface waters. It provides geospatial digital data compliant with the NHN Standard such as lakes, reservoirs, watercourses (rivers and streams), canals, islands, drainage linear network, toponyms or geographical names, constructions and obstacles related to surface waters, etc. The best available federal and provincial data are used for its production, which is done jointly by the federal and interested provincial and territorial partners. The NHN is created from existing data at the 1:50 000 scale or better. The NHN data have a great potential for analysis, cartographic representation and display and will serve as base data in many applications. The NHN Work Unit Limits were created based on Water Survey of Canada Sub-Sub-Drainage Area.

The Regional Deterministic Wave Prediction System (RDWPS) produces wave forecasts out to 48 hours in the future using the third generation spectral wave forecast model WaveWatch III® (WW3). The model is forced by the 10 meters winds from the High Resolution Deterministic Prediction System (HRDPS). Over the Great Lakes, an ice forecast from the Water Cycle Prediction System of the Great Lakes (WCPS) is used by the model to attenuate or suppress wave growth in areas covered by 25% to 75% and more than 75% ice, respectively. Over the ocean, an ice forecast from the Regional Ice Ocean Prediction System (RIOPS) is used: in the Northeast Pacific, waves propagate freely for ice concentrations below 50%, above this threshold there is no propagation; in the Northwest Atlantic the same logic is used as in the Great Lakes. Forecast elements include significant wave height, peak period, partitioned parameters and others. This system includes several domains: Lake Superior, Lake Huron-Michigan, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Atlantic North-West and Pacific North-East.

The Regional Deterministic Wave Prediction System (RDWPS) produces wave forecasts out to 48 hours in the future using the third generation spectral wave forecast model WaveWatch III® (WW3). The model is forced by the 10 meters winds from the High Resolution Deterministic Prediction System (HRDPS). Over the Great Lakes, an ice forecast from the Water Cycle Prediction System of the Great Lakes (WCPS) is used by the model to attenuate or suppress wave growth in areas covered by 25% to 75% and more than 75% ice, respectively. Over the ocean, an ice forecast from the Regional Ice Ocean Prediction System (RIOPS) is used: in the Northeast Pacific, waves propagate freely for ice concentrations below 50%, above this threshold there is no propagation; in the Northwest Atlantic the same logic is used as in the Great Lakes. Forecast elements include significant wave height, peak period, partitioned parameters and others. This system includes several domains: Lake Superior, Lake Huron-Michigan, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Atlantic North-West and Pacific North-East.

This dataset contains the Great Lakes Shoreline Ecosystem (GLSE) inventory, which is a geospatial digital inventory of: * ecosite polygon mapping * field survey calibration points * associated ground level ecological data It replaces Great Lakes Shoreline Ecosystem mapping products versions 1.0 and 2.0. It is an update to those products and includes the data and information contained in them but now includes data and information for the entire Canadian side of the Great Lakes shoreline including connecting channels, from the land to water or wetland interface to two kilometers inland. Mapping and ground sampling adheres to the Great Lakes Shoreline Ecosystem classification system, (Lee et. al., in prep.) which is a detailed ecological classification and surveying method.