Western Canada - Chapter 8 - GEOG 1120

Historical, geographical, and economic vocabulary terms related to the study of Western Canada.

Western Canada

A region consisting of the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.

Boom-and-bust economy

An economic pattern where employment, investment, and government revenue fluctuate due to heavy dependence on commodities with volatile world prices, such as oil and agricultural products.

Continental climate

A climate characterized by large seasonal temperature differences, cold winters, warm or hot summers, and generally limited precipitation.

Palliser's Triangle

A specific part of the Prairie region that is especially prone to drought.

Water deficit

A condition occurring when precipitation is low while evapotranspiration is high, causing moisture to be lost faster than it is replaced.

Chernozemic soil

A type of fertile soil that developed under grasslands and is well suited to agriculture.

Western Sedimentary Basin

A physiographic region underlying much of the Interior Plains containing resources such as oil, natural gas, coal, and potash.

Cordillera

A mountainous physiographic region that supports forests, minerals, tourism, and river headwaters.

Canadian Shield

A rocky and forested physiographic region with thin soils, making it important for mining but less suitable for farming.

Uranium

A naturally occurring radioactive metal north of Lake Athabasca, Saskatchewan, used as fuel in nuclear power plants.

Tailings ponds

Waste-storage areas created during oil-sands extraction that can contain toxic fluids and harm wildlife.

Algae blooms

Rapid growths of algae in Lake Winnipeg caused by agricultural runoff containing nitrogen and phosphorus.

Horizontal drilling

A method where a well is drilled downward and then horizontally through a shale layer to reach a larger section of the formation.

Hydraulic fracturing

A technique also known as fracking where high-pressure fluid is pumped into rock to create cracks, allowing oil or natural gas to flow into a well.

Net-zero emissions

A climate target to balance the amount of greenhouse gas produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere, with Canada's goal set for the year $2050$.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS)

A technology that captures carbon dioxide emissions and stores them deep underground instead of releasing them into the atmosphere.

Tidewater access

Access to overseas markets via the ocean; limited access for Western Canadian oil reduces export options and profits.

Rupert's Land

A vast territory formerly controlled by the Hudson's Bay Company for the fur trade before its transfer to Canada moved the region toward settlement.

Red River Resistance

A movement led by Louis Riel and the Metis that resulted in the creation of Manitoba through the Manitoba Act of $1870$.

Northwest Resistance of 1885

A conflict triggered by unresolved Metis land claims, First Nations hunger, disappearing buffalo, and unfulfilled treaty promises.

Louis Riel

The leader of the Metis during the Red River and Northwest Resistances who was executed for treason in $1885$.

Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR)

The transcontinental railway that connected the West to the rest of Canada, moving settlers and resources and fulfilling a promise to British Columbia.

Pacific Scandal

A political scandal involving campaign money from Sir Hugh Allan that caused John A. Macdonald's government to resign in $1873$.

Dominion Lands Act

Legislation that encouraged settlement by offering a $160$-acre homestead for a small registration fee, provided the settler cultivated the land.

Clifford Sifton

The official responsible for increasing immigration by recruiting farmers from Central and Eastern Europe, Britain, and the United States.

Pulse crops

Legume crops such as lentils, peas, and chickpeas that are suited to dry conditions and improve soil fertility by adding nitrogen.

Potash

A group of potassium-rich minerals mainly used in fertilizer to support crop growth and disease resistance, primarily produced in Saskatchewan.

Calgary-Edmonton Corridor

A heavily populated and economically active zone in Alberta that contains major transportation, businesses, and government services.

Equalization payments

Federal transfers intended to help provinces provide comparable public services, which some Western Canadians criticize during regional downturns.

Rain-shadow effect

The phenomenon where the Cordillera blocks Pacific moisture, causing air to descend warmer and drier onto the Prairies.

Fertile Belt

An area in the Prairies characterized by better moisture and fertile soils, making it strong for crop farming.

Dry Belt

A portion of the Prairies that receives less precipitation and faces frequent drought conditions.

Peace River Country

A region with fertile soils and long summer daylight but a shorter growing season and greater risk of frost.