Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie and boreal province in western Canada, the only province without a natural border. It has an area of 651,900 square kilometres, nearly 10 percent of, fresh water, composed of rivers and the province's 100,000 lakes. Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, on the south by the U. S. states of North Dakota. As of late 2018, Saskatchewan's population was estimated at 1,165,903. Residents live in the southern prairie half of the province, while the northern boreal half is forested and sparsely populated. Of the total population half live in the province's largest city Saskatoon, or the provincial capital Regina. Other notable cities include Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Swift Current, North Battleford and the border city Lloydminster. Saskatchewan is a landlocked province with large distances to moderating bodies of waters; as a result, its climate is continental, rendering severe winters throughout the province.
Southern areas have warm or hot summers. Midale and Yellow Grass near the U. S. border are tied for the highest recorded temperatures in Canada with 45 °C observed at both locations on July 5, 1937. In winter, temperatures below −45 °C are possible in the south during extreme cold snaps. Saskatchewan has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups, first explored by Europeans in 1690 and settled in 1774, it became a province in 1905, carved out from the vast North-West Territories, which had until included most of the Canadian Prairies. In the early 20th century the province became known as a stronghold for Canadian social democracy; the province's economy is based on agriculture and energy. Saskatchewan's current lieutenant governor is the current premier is Scott Moe. In 1992, the federal and provincial governments signed a historic land claim agreement with First Nations in Saskatchewan; the First Nations received compensation and were permitted to buy land on the open market for the bands.
Some First Nations have used their settlement to invest in urban areas, including Saskatoon. Its name derived from the Saskatchewan River; the river was known as kisiskāciwani-sīpiy in the Cree language. As Saskatchewan's borders follow the geographic coordinates of longitude and latitude, the province is a quadrilateral, or a shape with four sides. However, the 49th parallel boundary and the 60th northern border appear curved on globes and many maps. Additionally, the eastern boundary of the province is crooked rather than following a line of longitude, as correction lines were devised by surveyors prior to the homestead program. Saskatchewan is part of the Western Provinces and is bounded on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the north-east by Nunavut, on the east by Manitoba, on the south by the U. S. states of North Dakota. Saskatchewan has the distinction of being the only Canadian province for which no borders correspond to physical geographic features. Along with Alberta, Saskatchewan is one of only two land-locked provinces.
The overwhelming majority of Saskatchewan's population is located in the southern third of the province, south of the 53rd parallel. Saskatchewan contains two major natural regions: the Boreal Forest in the north and the Prairies in the south, they are separated by an aspen parkland transition zone near the North Saskatchewan River on the western side of the province, near to south of the Saskatchewan River on the eastern side. Northern Saskatchewan is covered by forest except for the Lake Athabasca Sand Dunes, the largest active sand dunes in the world north of 58°, adjacent to the southern shore of Lake Athabasca. Southern Saskatchewan contains another area with sand dunes known as the "Great Sand Hills" covering over 300 square kilometres; the Cypress Hills, located in the southwestern corner of Saskatchewan and Killdeer Badlands, are areas of the province that were unglaciated during the last glaciation period, the Wisconsin glaciation. The province's highest point, at 1,392 metres, is located in the Cypress Hills less than 2 km from the provincial boundary with Alberta.
The lowest point is the shore of Lake Athabasca, at 213 metres. The province has 14 major drainage basins made up of various rivers and watersheds draining into the Arctic Ocean, Hudson Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Saskatchewan receives more hours of sunshine than any other Canadian province; the province lies far from any significant body of water. This fact, combined with its northerly latitude, gives it a warm summer, corresponding to its humid continental climate in the central and most of the eastern parts of the province, as well as the Cypress Hills. Drought can affect agricultural areas during no precipitation at all; the northern parts of Saskatchewan – from about La Ronge northward – have a subarctic climate with a shorter summer season. Summers can get hot, sometimes above 38 °C during the day, with humidity decreasing from northeast to southwest. Warm southern winds blow from the plains and intermontane regions of
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture and rural communities in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Concordats set out agreed frameworks for co operation, between it and the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, which have devolved responsibilities for these matters in their respective nations. Defra leads for Britain at the EU on agricultural and environment matters and in other international negotiations on sustainable development and climate change, although a new Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 to take over the last responsibility, it was formed in June 2001, under the leadership of Margaret Beckett, when the Ministry of Agriculture and Food was merged with part of the Department of Environment and the Regions and with a small part of the Home Office. The department was created after the perceived failure of MAFF, to deal adequately with an outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease.
The department had about 9,000 core personnel, as of January 2008. The department's main building is Nobel House on Smith Square, SW1. In October 2008, the climate team at Defra was merged with the energy team from the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, to create the Department of Energy and Climate Change headed by Ed Miliband; the Defra Ministers are as follows: The Permanent Secretary is Clare Moriarty. Shadow ministers portfolios can differ from government departments therefore overlap. Defra is responsible for British Government policy in the following areas Adaptation to global warming Agriculture Air quality Animal health and animal welfare Biodiversity Conservation Chemical substances and pesticides Fisheries Flooding Food Forestry Hunting Inland waterways Land management Marine policy National parks Noise Plant health Rural development Sustainable development Waste management Water managementSome policies apply to England alone due to devolution, while others are not devolved and therefore apply to Britain as a whole.
The department's executive agencies are: Animal and Plant Health Agency Centre for Environment and Aquaculture Science Rural Payments Agency Veterinary Medicines Directorate The department's key delivery partners are: Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board Consumer Council for Water Environment Agency Fera Science Forestry Commission Joint Nature Conservation Committee Marine Management Organisation National Forest Company Natural England Ofwat Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Sea Fish Industry AuthorityA full list of departmental delivery and public bodies may be found on the Defra website. Policies for environment and rural affairs are delivered in the regions by Defra's executive agencies and delivery bodies, in particular Natural England, the Rural Payments Agency, Animal Health and the Marine Management Organisation. Defra provides grant aid to the following flood and coastal erosion risk management operating authorities: Environment Agency Internal drainage boards Local authorities Defra's overarching aim is sustainable development, defined as "development which enables all people throughout the world to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life without compromising the quality of life of future generations."
The Secretary of State wrote in a letter to the Prime Minister that he saw Defra’s mission as enabling a move toward what the World Wide Fund for Nature has called "one planet living". Under this overarching aim, Defra has five strategic priorities: energy. Sustainable consumption and production, including responsibility for the National Waste Strategy. Protecting the countryside and natural resource protection. Sustainable rural communities. A sustainable farming and food sector including animal health and welfare. Badger culling in the United Kingdom Cattle Health Initiative Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Energy policy in the United Kingdom Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom Environmental contract List of atmospheric dispersion models National Bee Unit National Collection of Plant Pathogenic Bacteria New Technologies Demonstrator Programme Nicola Spence Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department UK Dispersion Modelling Bureau United Kingdom budget Waste Implementation Programme Defra's official website Fera - Executive agency of DEFRA National Collection of Plant Pathogenic Bacteria - Fera English Nature's website JNCC's website Defra's wiki for formulating an environmental contract DEFRA YouTube channel
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada. At a land area of 1,144,000 km2 and a 2016 census population of 41,786, it is the second-largest and the most populous of the three territories in Northern Canada, its estimated population as of 2018 is 44,445. Yellowknife became the territorial capital in 1967, following recommendations by the Carrothers Commission; the Northwest Territories, a portion of the old North-Western Territory, entered the Canadian Confederation on July 15, 1870, but the current borders were formed on April 1, 1999, when the territory was subdivided to create Nunavut to the east, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement. While Nunavut is Arctic tundra, the Northwest Territories has a warmer climate and is both boreal forest, tundra, its most northern regions form part of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago; the Northwest Territories is bordered by Canada's two other territories, Nunavut to the east and Yukon to the west, by the provinces of British Columbia and Saskatchewan to the south.
The name is descriptive, adopted by the British government during the colonial era to indicate where it lay in relation to Rupert's Land. It is shortened from North-Western Territory. In Inuktitut, the Northwest Territories are referred to as ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᖅ, "beautiful land."There was some discussion of changing the name of the Northwest Territories after the splitting off of Nunavut to a term from an Aboriginal language. One proposal was "Denendeh", among others. One of the most popular proposals for a new name – one to name the territory "Bob" – began as a prank, but for a while it was at or near the top in the public-opinion polls. In the end, a poll conducted prior to division showed that strong support remained to keep the name "Northwest Territories"; this name arguably became more appropriate following division than it had been when the territories extended far into Canada's north-central and northeastern areas. Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south.
It meets Manitoba at a quadripoint to the extreme southeast, though surveys have not been completed. It has a land area of 1,183,085 km2. Geographical features include Great Bear Lake, the largest lake within Canada, Great Slave Lake, the deepest body of water in North America at 614 m, as well as the Mackenzie River and the canyons of the Nahanni National Park Reserve, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Territorial islands in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago include Banks Island, Borden Island, Prince Patrick Island, parts of Victoria Island and Melville Island, its highest point is Mount Nirvana near the border with Yukon at an elevation of 2,773 m. The Northwest Territories extends for more than 1,300,000 km2 and has a large climate variant from south to north; the southern part of the territory has a subarctic climate, while the islands and northern coast have a polar climate. Summers in the north are short and cool, with daytime highs of 14-17 Celsius, lows of 1-5 Celsius. Winters are long and harsh, daytime highs in the mid −20 °C and lows around −40 °C.
Extremes are common with summer highs in the south reaching 36 °C and lows reaching into the negatives. In winter in the south, it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach −40 °C, but they can reach the low teens during the day. In the north, temperatures can reach highs of 30 °C, lows can reach into the low negatives. In winter in the north it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach −50 °C but they can reach the single digits during the day. Thunderstorms are not rare in the south. In the north they are rare, but do occur. Tornadoes are rare but have happened with the most notable one happening just outside Yellowknife that destroyed a communications tower; the Territory has a dry climate due to the mountains in the west. About half of the territory is above the tree line. There are not many trees in the north islands; the present-day territory came under government authority in July 1870, after the Hudson's Bay Company transferred Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory to the British Crown, which subsequently transferred them to Canada, giving it the name the North-west Territories.
This immense region comprised all of today's Canada except that, encompassed within the early signers of Canadian Confederation, that is, British Columbia, early forms of present-day Ontario and Quebec, the Maritimes, the Labrador coast, the Arctic Islands, except the southern half of Baffin Island. The first residential school opened in 1867 in Fort Resolution, followed by several others in regions across the territory, thus contributing to the Northwest Territories reaching the highest percentage of students in residential schools of any area in Canada. After the 1870 transfer, some of the North-west Territories was whittled away; the province of Manitoba was created on July 15, 1870, at first a small square area around Winnipeg
Mato Grosso do Sul
Mato Grosso do Sul is one of the Midwestern states of Brazil. Its total area of 357,125 square kilometers, or 137,891 square miles, is the same size as Germany. Neighboring Brazilian states are Mato Grosso, Goiás, Minas Gerais, São Paulo and Paraná, it borders the countries of Paraguay, to the southwest, Bolivia, to the west. The economy of the state is based on agriculture and cattle-raising. Crossed in the south by the Tropic of Capricorn, Mato Grosso do Sul has a warm, sometimes hot, humid climate, is crossed by numerous tributaries of the Paraná River; the state is known for its natural environment, is a destination for domestic and international tourism. The Pantanal lowlands cover 12 municipalities and presents a variety of flora and fauna, with forests, natural sand banks, open pasture and bushes; the city Bonito, in the mountain of Bodoquena, has prehistoric caves, natural rivers, swimming pools and the Blue Lake cave. The name Mato Grosso do Sul is Portuguese for "Thick Bushes of the South".
It is not uncommon for people to mistakenly refer to Mato Grosso do Sul as "Mato Grosso". Other names that were proposed, at the time of the split and afterwards, include "Pantanal" and "Maracaju". Mato Grosso do Sul has humid tropical climates; the average annual rainfall is 1471.1 mm. January is the warmest month, with minimum of 24 °C and more rain; the "cerrado" landscape is characterized by extensive savanna formations crossed by gallery forests and stream valleys. Cerrado includes various types of vegetation. Humid fields and "buriti" palm paths are found. Alpine pastures occur at mesophytic forests on more fertile soils; the "cerrado" trees have characteristic twisted trunks covered by a thick bark, leaves which are broad and rigid. Many herbaceous plants have extensive roots to store water and nutrients; the plant's thick bark and roots serve as adaptations for the periodic fires which sweep the cerrado landscape. The adaptations protect the plants from destruction and make them capable of sprouting again after the fire.
The state is located in western Brazil, in a region occupied by the inland marshes of the Pantanal. The highest elevation is the 1,065 m high Morro Grande; the first peoples or indigenous peoples of Mato Grosso do Sul occupying the Nhande Ru Marangatu tropical rainforested area, are the Guarani-Kaiowá, first contacted by non-indigenous peoples in the 1800s. In October 11, 1977, the state was created by dividing the state of Mato Grosso, its status as a state went into full effect two years on January 1, 1979. The new state incorporated the former territory of Ponta Porã and the northern part of the former territory of Iguaçu. According to the IBGE of 2008, there were 2,372,000 people residing in the state; the population density was 6.4 hab./km². Urbanization: 84.7%. In the Cerrado areas in the south and east, there is a predominance of Southern Brazilian farmers of Spanish, Portuguese and Slavic descent. According to an autosomal DNA study from 2008, the ancestral composition of Mato Grosso do Sul is 73,60% European, 13,90% African and 12,40% Native American.
According to a 2013 DNA study, the ancestral composition of Mato Grosso do Sul is: 58.8% European, 25.9% African and 15.3% Amerindian ancestries, respectively. The service sector is the largest component of GDP at 46.1%, followed by the industrial sector at 22.7%. Agriculture represents 31.2%, of GDP. Mato Grosso do Sul exports: soybean 34.9%, pork and chicken 20.9%, beef 13.7%, ores 8%, leather 7.4%, timber 5.1%. Share of the Brazilian economy: 1%. Vehicles: 835,259, but English and Spanish are part of the official high school curriculum. Brazil a country of all, in the Center-West Region does not have structure to have large tourist port much less is well positioned. There are more than 44 universities in whole state of Mato Grosso do Sul. Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul Universidade Estadual de Mato Grosso do Sul Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados Universidade Católica Dom Bosco Universidade para o Desenvolvimento do Estado e da Região do Pantanal It's a film festival held annually in the months of January and February and has been arranged since 2004.
It focuses on the independent cinema presenting foreign films as well. It presents regional films and short films; as of 2011 the festival is suspended. "Festival de Inverno de Bonito" (Boni
Forest
A forest is a large area dominated by trees. Hundreds of more precise definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing and ecological function. According to the used Food and Agriculture Organization definition, forests covered 4 billion hectares or 30 percent of the world's land area in 2006. Forests are the dominant terrestrial ecosystem of Earth, are distributed around the globe. Forests account for 75% of the gross primary production of the Earth's biosphere, contain 80% of the Earth's plant biomass. Net primary production is estimated at 21.9 gigatonnes carbon per year for tropical forests, 8.1 for temperate forests, 2.6 for boreal forests. Forests at different latitudes and elevations form distinctly different ecozones: boreal forests near the poles, tropical forests near the equator and temperate forests at mid-latitudes. Higher elevation areas tend to support forests similar to those at higher latitudes, amount of precipitation affects forest composition.
Human society and forests influence each other in both negative ways. Forests serve as tourist attractions. Forests can affect people's health. Human activities, including harvesting forest resources, can negatively affect forest ecosystems. Although forest is a term of common parlance, there is no universally recognised precise definition, with more than 800 definitions of forest used around the world. Although a forest is defined by the presence of trees, under many definitions an area lacking trees may still be considered a forest if it grew trees in the past, will grow trees in the future, or was designated as a forest regardless of vegetation type. There are three broad categories of forest definitions in use: administrative, land use, land cover. Administrative definitions are based upon the legal designations of land, bear little relationship to the vegetation growing on the land: land, designated as a forest is defined as a forest if no trees are growing on it. Land use definitions are based upon the primary purpose.
For example, a forest may be defined as any land, used for production of timber. Under such a land use definition, cleared roads or infrastructure within an area used for forestry, or areas within the region that have been cleared by harvesting, disease or fire are still considered forests if they contain no trees. Land cover definitions define forests based upon the type and density of vegetation growing on the land; such definitions define a forest as an area growing trees above some threshold. These thresholds are the number of trees per area, the area of ground under the tree canopy or the section of land, occupied by the cross-section of tree trunks. Under such land cover definitions, an area of land can only be known as forest if it is growing trees. Areas that fail to meet the land cover definition may be still included under while immature trees are establishing if they are expected to meet the definition at maturity. Under land use definitions, there is considerable variation on where the cutoff points are between a forest and savanna.
Under some definitions, forests require high levels of tree canopy cover, from 60% to 100%, excluding savannas and woodlands in which trees have a lower canopy cover. Other definitions consider savannas to be a type of forest, include all areas with tree canopies over 10%; some areas covered in trees are defined as agricultural areas, e.g. Norway spruce plantations in Austrian forest law when the trees are being grown as Christmas trees and below a certain height; the word forest comes from Middle English, from Old French forest "forest, vast expanse covered by trees". A borrowing of the Medieval Latin word foresta "open wood", foresta was first used by Carolingian scribes in the Capitularies of Charlemagne to refer to the king's royal hunting grounds; the term was not endemic to Romance languages. The exact origin of Medieval Latin foresta is obscure; some authorities claim the word derives from the Late Latin phrase forestam silvam, meaning "the outer wood". Frankish *forhist is attested by Old High German forst "forest", Middle Low German vorst "forest", Old English fyrhþ "forest, game preserve, hunting ground", Old Norse fýri "coniferous forest", all of which derive from Proto-Germanic *furhísa-, *furhíþija- "a fir-wood, coniferous forest", from Proto-Indo-European *perkwu- "a coniferous or mountain forest, wooded height".
Uses of the word "forest" in English to denote any uninhabited area of non-enclosure are now considered archaic. The word was introduced by the Norman rulers of England as a legal term denoting an uncultivated area set aside for hunting by feudal nobility; these hunting forests were not neces
Nunavut
Nunavut is the newest and most northerly territory of Canada. It was separated from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the boundaries had been drawn in 1993; the creation of Nunavut resulted in the first major change to Canada's political map since the incorporation of the province of Newfoundland in 1949. Nunavut comprises a major portion of Northern Canada, most of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, its vast territory makes it the fifth-largest country subdivision in the world, as well as North America's second-largest. The capital Iqaluit, on Baffin Island in the east, was chosen by the 1995 capital plebiscite. Other major communities include the regional centres of Cambridge Bay. Nunavut includes Ellesmere Island to the far north, as well as the eastern and southern portions of Victoria Island in the west, all islands in Hudson and Ungava Bays, including Akimiski Island far to the southeast of the rest of the territory.
It is Canada's only geo-political region, not connected to the rest of North America by highway. Nunavut is the second-least populous of Canada's provinces and territories. One of the world's most remote, sparsely settled regions, it has a population of 35,944 Inuit, spread over a land area of just over 1,750,000 km2, or smaller than Mexico. Nunavut is home to the world's northernmost permanently inhabited place, Alert. Eureka, a weather station on Ellesmere Island, has the lowest average annual temperature of any Canadian weather station. Nunavut means "our land" in the native language Inuktitut. Nunavut covers 160,935 km2 of water in Northern Canada; the territory includes part of the mainland, most of the Arctic Archipelago, all of the islands in Hudson Bay, James Bay, Ungava Bay, including the Belcher Islands, all of which belonged to the Northwest Territories from which Nunavut was separated. This makes it the fifth-largest subnational entity in the world. If Nunavut were a country, it would rank 15th in area.
Nunavut has long land borders with the Northwest Territories on the mainland and a few Arctic islands, with Manitoba to the south of the Nunavut mainland. Through its small satellite territories in the southeast, it has short land borders with Newfoundland and Labrador on Killiniq Island, with Ontario in two locations in James Bay – the larger located west of Akimiski Island, the smaller around the Albany River near Fafard Island – and with Quebec in many locations, such as near Eastmain and near Inukjuak, it shares maritime borders with Greenland and the provinces of Quebec and Manitoba. Nunavut's highest point is Barbeau Peak on Ellesmere Island; the population density is one of the lowest in the world. By comparison, Greenland has the same area and nearly twice the population. Nunavut experiences a polar climate in most regions, owing to its high latitude and lower continental summertime influence than areas to the west. In more southerly continental areas cold subarctic climates can be found, due to July being milder than the required 10 °C.
The region now known as Nunavut has supported a continuous indigenous population for 4,000 years. Most historians identify the coast of Baffin Island with the Helluland described in Norse sagas, so it is possible that the inhabitants of the region had occasional contact with Norse sailors. In September 2008, researchers reported on the evaluation of existing and newly excavated archaeological remains, including yarn spun from a hare, tally sticks, a carved wooden face mask that depicts Caucasian features, possible architectural material; the materials were collected in five seasons of excavation at Cape Tanfield. Scholars determined that these provide evidence of European traders and settlers on Baffin Island, not than 1000 CE, they seem to indicate prolonged contact up to 1450. The origin of the Old World contact is unclear. So... you have to consider the possibility that as remote as it may seem, these finds may represent evidence of contact with Europeans prior to the Vikings' arrival in Greenland."
The written historical accounts of Nunavut begin in 1576, with an account by English explorer Martin Frobisher. While leading an expedition to find the Northwest Passage, Frobisher thought he had discovered gold ore around the body of water now known as Frobisher Bay on the coast of Baffin Island; the ore turned out to be worthless, but Frobisher made the first recorded European contact with the Inuit. Other explorers in search of the elusive Northwest Passage followed in the 17th century, including Henry Hudson, William Baffin and Robert Bylot. Cornwallis and Ellesmere Islands featured in the history of the Cold War in the 1950s. Concerned about the area's strategic geopolitical position, the federal government relocated Inuit from Nunavik to Resolute and Grise Fiord. In the unfamiliar and hostile conditions, they were forced to stay. Forty years the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples issued a report titled The High Arctic Relocation: A Report on the 1953–
Alberta
Alberta is a western province of Canada. With an estimated population of 4,067,175 as of 2016 census, it is Canada's fourth most populous province and the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces, its area is about 660,000 square kilometres. Alberta and its neighbour Saskatchewan were districts of the Northwest Territories until they were established as provinces on September 1, 1905; the premier has been Rachel Notley since May 2015. Alberta is bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, the U. S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to border only a single U. S. state and one of only two landlocked provinces. It has a predominantly humid continental climate, with stark contrasts over a year. Alberta's capital, Edmonton, is near the geographic centre of the province and is the primary supply and service hub for Canada's crude oil, the Athabasca oil sands and other northern resource industries.
About 290 km south of the capital is the largest city in Alberta. Calgary and Edmonton centre Alberta's two census metropolitan areas, both of which have populations exceeding one million, while the province has 16 census agglomerations. Tourist destinations in the province include Banff, Drumheller, Sylvan Lake and Lake Louise. Alberta is named after the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. Princess Louise was the wife of Marquess of Lorne, Governor General of Canada. Lake Louise and Mount Alberta were named in her honour. Alberta, with an area of 661,848 km2, is the fourth-largest province after Quebec and British Columbia. To the south, the province borders on the 49th parallel north, separating it from the U. S. state of Montana, while to the north the 60th parallel north divides it from the Northwest Territories. To the east, the 110th meridian west separates it from the province of Saskatchewan, while on the west its boundary with British Columbia follows the 120th meridian west south from the Northwest Territories at 60°N until it reaches the Continental Divide at the Rocky Mountains, from that point follows the line of peaks marking the Continental Divide in a southeasterly direction until it reaches the Montana border at 49°N.
The province extends 660 km east to west at its maximum width. Its highest point is 3,747 m at the summit of Mount Columbia in the Rocky Mountains along the southwest border while its lowest point is 152 m on the Slave River in Wood Buffalo National Park in the northeast. With the exception of the semi-arid steppe of the south-eastern section, the province has adequate water resources. There are numerous lakes used for swimming, fishing and a range of water sports. There are three large lakes, Lake Claire in Wood Buffalo National Park, Lesser Slave Lake, Lake Athabasca which lies in both Alberta and Saskatchewan; the longest river in the province is the Athabasca River which travels 1,538 km from the Columbia Icefield in the Rocky Mountains to Lake Athabasca. The largest river is the Peace River with an average flow of 2161 m3/s; the Peace River originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows through northern Alberta and into the Slave River, a tributary of the Mackenzie River.
Alberta's capital city, Edmonton, is located at about the geographic centre of the province. It is the most northerly major city in Canada, serves as a gateway and hub for resource development in northern Canada; the region, with its proximity to Canada's largest oil fields, has most of western Canada's oil refinery capacity. Calgary is about 280 km south of Edmonton and 240 km north of Montana, surrounded by extensive ranching country. 75% of the province's population lives in the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor. The land grant policy to the railroads served as a means to populate the province in its early years. Most of the northern half of the province is boreal forest, while the Rocky Mountains along the southwestern boundary are forested; the southern quarter of the province is prairie, ranging from shortgrass prairie in the southeastern corner to mixed grass prairie in an arc to the west and north of it. The central aspen parkland region extending in a broad arc between the prairies and the forests, from Calgary, north to Edmonton, east to Lloydminster, contains the most fertile soil in the province and most of the population.
Much of the unforested part of Alberta is given over either to grain or to dairy farming, with mixed farming more common in the north and centre, while ranching and irrigated agriculture predominate in the south. The Alberta badlands are located in southeastern Alberta, where the Red Deer River crosses the flat prairie and farmland, features deep canyons and striking landforms. Dinosaur Provincial Park, near Brooks, showcases the badlands terrain, desert flora, remnants from Alberta's past when dinosaurs roamed the lush landscape. Alberta has a humid continental climate with cold winters; the province is open to cold arctic weather systems from the north, which produce cold conditions in winter. As the fronts between the air masses shift north and south across Alberta, the temperature can change rapidly. Arctic
