Canada is the second most water-rich of the OECD countries with 85,516 cubic metres of renewable freshwater per capita. However, 60% of this water is unavailable to 85% of the population as it flows north away from the city centres. With this in mind, Canada still ranks fourth. It is also the second highest water user at 1,441 cubic metres per capita. Even with high water usage, only 2% of the renewable freshwater resources are withdrawn from the source annually. Ninety-six percent of the water comes from surface sources such as lakes and rivers and the remaining 4% is taken from groundwater sources. From 1985 to 1995 the amount of water withdrawn from these sources annually dropped 0.4% and in 1996 it was estimated that 20% of the water went to domestic and household use, 69% to industrial and commercial uses, and 12% to irrigation and agriculture.
The breakdown of land and water surface area is shown below. Canada and Ontario have 8.9 and 14.7% respectively of their total area in freshwater, which is made up of lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, wetlands, swamps, and sloughs (CWF [1]). The Lake Simcoe and Nottawasaga Valley Watersheds have 33 (lake and wetlands only) and 23% respectively of their land area under water (EC).
Canada has a large supply of freshwater but is also one of the highest users of water. Even though overall the country has vast amounts, the distribution is uneven and access is limited in some areas. Challenges moving forward for the country, the province, and these watersheds include an increasing demand as the population grows and combating pollution while protecting the freshwater sources.
Unless otherwise noted, data is sourced from CWF [2]
The breakdown of land and water surface area is shown below. Canada and Ontario have 8.9 and 14.7% respectively of their total area in freshwater, which is made up of lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, wetlands, swamps, and sloughs (CWF [1]). The Lake Simcoe and Nottawasaga Valley Watersheds have 33 (lake and wetlands only) and 23% respectively of their land area under water (EC).
Canada has a large supply of freshwater but is also one of the highest users of water. Even though overall the country has vast amounts, the distribution is uneven and access is limited in some areas. Challenges moving forward for the country, the province, and these watersheds include an increasing demand as the population grows and combating pollution while protecting the freshwater sources.
Unless otherwise noted, data is sourced from CWF [2]
[Data adapted from CWF [1] and EC]
References
- Canada West Foundation & Vander Ploeg, C. G. [1] (2011, September). Canada’s Waterscape in Context. In Canadian Water Policy Backgrounders. Retrieved October 6, 2014, from http://cwf.ca/pdf-docs/publications/Water_Backgrounder_2_Sept_2011.pdf
- Canada West Foundation & Vander Ploeg, C. G. [2] (2011, September). Water, Water Use and Water Pricing Around the World. In Canadian Water Policy Backgrounders. Retrieved October 6, 2014, from http://cwf.ca/pdf-docs/publications/Water_Backgrounder_2_Sept_2011.pdf
- Environment Canada. (2014, September 5). Lake Simcoe/South-eastern Georgian Bay Clean-Up Fund (LSGBCUF). In Environment Canada - Water - Lake Simcoe Clean-Up Fund. Retrieved September 15, 2014, from http://www.ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=85C54DAE-1
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