Transcript CGC – Lets Get Physical! Canada`s Landforms

CGC – Lets Get
Physical!
Canada’s Landforms
Canada’s Landform Regions
Topography:
• The Earth’s surface features including vegetation, soils, and
features shaped by humans.
Canadian Shield:
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Constitutes more than half of Canada’s geography
Has some of the world’s oldest rocks
Formed by igneous and metamorphic rock
Good for mining (many minerals); Bad for farming (thin soil)
Glaciers removed large amounts of soil/ clay/ rock/ and gravel
from the Shield.
• Today, most of the Shield is covered by a thin layer of soil
(bedrock is visible in many places).
Lowlands:
• The bedrock under the lowlands is formed mainly of
sediments eroded from the Shield.
Interior Plains:
• Were often covered by shallow inland seas
• Thick layers of mineral deposits were left in the dried-out
sea beds
• These layers are now deep within the earth, covered by
newer rocks and glacial deposits
• Not necessarily flat! Many rolling hills/ valleys
• This is Canada’s “Breadbasket” because so much wheat is
grown here.
Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowlands
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Most southerly region in Canada
Flat plains with glacial hills and deep river valleys
The Great Lakes were likely much larger than
today b/c of the enormous volume of water from
melting glaciers. They later shrank as this
‘meltwater’ drained into the ocean.
Good for agriculture (excellent soils/ warm climate)
Most densely populated region in Canada
Hudson Bay – Arctic Lowlands
• Flat, low area covered by forest
• Series of islands located in Canada’s
far north (harsh climate)
• Bad for agriculture (frozen ground)
Highlands:
Appalachian Mountains
• Oldest highland region in Canada
• Layers of sedimentary rock are rich in ‘nonmetallic minerals’ such as coal.
• Millions of years of erosion have reduced what
used to be peaks to rolling mountains/ hills.
Innuitians
• Mostly composed of sedimentary rock
• Younger than Appalachians
• Large areas are covered by ice and
permanent snow
• Mineral resources have hardly been
exploited as it’s cheaper to do so in
the southern (less remote) areas.
Western Cordillera
• Along western coast of Canada, on into the
western border of Alberta
• Caused by a heavier Pacific plate colliding
with a lighter North American plate
• Transportation challenges (mountains =
physical barrier)
• Low population, with the exception of high
density areas in the Lower Mainland and
southern tip of Vancouver Island