Physiographic Regions of the Physiographic Regions of the NorthNorth

By: Joon, Atcha, and Drew

There are 5 Physiographic Regions in the Canadian North.

•Innuitians•Arctic Lowlands•Canadian Shield•Pacific Cordillera•Interior Plains

The Physiographic Regions of the North

The Innuitians Older than the Western

Cordillera’s Mountains. Younger than the

Shield’s Mountains. Formed by folding Mainly made of

sedimentary rock (there is some igneous and metamorphic rock)

The Innuitians (continued) Mountain tops are

not as jagged as the Rockies, but sharper than the shield.

Features caused by erosion.

Due to climate there is limited activity and human uses.

Arctic Lowlands Made up of the

islands in the far north

Mainly sedimentary rock.

Ground remains frozen all year

Poor for farming Gently rolling

landscape

Arctic Lowlands (continued) Sedimentary rock

contains lignite (coal). Also contains oil and

natural gas deposits. Used for mining. Bedrock underneath

soils are formed from sediments from the Shield.

• Mainly Sedimentary rocks• Digging for oil/ mining• Glaciations (rolling hills)• Wet climate soils• Infertile soils from leaching (in

the North)• Minerals washed away by

precipitation• Boreal and Taiga forests• Coniferous and some deciduous

trees• Spruce, pines, cedar, hemlock

Interior Plains

• Rocky mountains• Youngest mountain range• Tall and rugged• Sedimentary rock• Rock was folded and faulted

upwards• Lakes (lorains)were formed by

melted glaciers• Complex soils in mountain ranges• Many different varieties of soil

types• Cordilleran Vegetation• Coniferous forests• Meadows, flowers shrubs• High altitudes - rocks, snow, ice -

no vegetation• Copper, silver mines

Western Cordillera

Canadian ShieldCanadian ShieldRock Type:Rock Type:

IgneousIgneous MetamorphicMetamorphic

Formed by:Formed by: Molting/ VolcanismMolting/ Volcanism

Topography + Soils:Topography + Soils: Valuable minerals (e g. lead, Valuable minerals (e g. lead,

gold)gold) Human uses:Human uses: Recreation (Canoeing)Recreation (Canoeing) HydroelectricityHydroelectricity MiningMining

Canadian Shield (continued)Characteristics:

The oldest rock in Canada

Formed lots of lakes and has disordered lands

Infertile to farm Covered by a thin layer

of soil, and the bedrock is visible in many places