In 1949 a magnitude 8.1 earthquake occurred on the Queen Charlotte Fault, off the west coast of the Haida Gwaii archipelago. This magnitude 7.7 scenario along the Queen Charlotte Fault is slightly different and closer to population centres than the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that occurred in 2012.

Changes in phytoplankton abundance and community composition have the potential to impact the entire food web and alter ecosystem productivity and biogeochemical cycles. Recognizing its importance, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) established a phytoplankton monitoring program on the Pacific coast of Canada based on phytoplankton pigment measurements. Phytoplankton pigments (chlorophylls and carotenoids) and ancillary data are collected annually on DFO cruises at multiple locations in waters of the northeast subarctic Pacific and the west coast of Canada. Water samples are collected at discrete depths in the upper layer and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Description: Seasonal mean total phytoplankton at the surface from the British Columbia continental margin model (BCCM) were averaged over the 1981 to 2010 period to create seasonal mean surface climatology of the Canadian Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone. Methods: Total phytoplankton is the sum of diatoms and flagellates concentration. Spring months were defined as April to June, summer months were defined as July to September, fall months were defined as October to December, and winter months were defined as January to March. The data available here contain a raster layer of seasonal surface phytoplankton climatology for the Canadian Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone at 3 km spatial resolution. Uncertainties: Model results have been extensively evaluated against observations (e.g. altimetry, CTD and nutrient profiles, observed geostrophic currents), which showed the model can reproduce with reasonable accuracy the main oceanographic features of the region including salient features of the seasonal cycle and the vertical and cross-shore gradient of water properties. However, the model resolution is too coarse to allow for an adequate representation of inlets, nearshore areas, and the Strait of Georgia.

The Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations (WSER), developed under the Fisheries Act, came into force in 2012 to manage wastewater releases by systems that collect an average daily influent volume of 100 cubic metres or more. The WSER also does not apply to any wastewater system located in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and north of the 54th parallel in the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. The WSER set national baseline effluent quality standards that are achievable through secondary wastewater treatment. The WSER require owners or operators of wastewater systems with combined sewers to submit an annual report on the total volume and the number of days wastewater is discharged per month via combined sewer overflow (CSO) points as a result of precipitation. The map below shows the volume of effluent (in cubic metres) discharged in a year from all CSO points situated within the collection area of a wastewater system. For the most part, the volumes provided to ECCC are estimates. Please note, a value of “999999999” in the dataset indicates that the volume data is unavailable and it does not mean that a volume of 999,999,999 m3 was released within the collection area of a wastewater system. The map is available in both ESRI REST (to use with ARC GIS) and WMS (open source) formats. For more information about the individual reporting wastewater systems, datasets are available in either CSV or XLS formats. Data from Quebec As of 2018, no combined sewer overflow volumes from Quebec municipalities are available since an equivalency agreement is now in effect. More information on the wastewater sector including the regulations, agreements, contacts and resource documents is available at: https://www.canada.ca/wastewater

The Fisheries and Oceans Canada ecosystem surveys are conducted annually and are a source of integrated ecosystem monitoring data. These survey data are the primary data source for monitoring trends in species distribution, abundance, and biological condition within the region, and also provide data to the Atlantic Zonal Monitoring Program (AZMP) for monitoring hydrographic conditions, along with zooplankton and phytoplankton. The surveys follow a stratified random sampling design, and include sampling using a bottom otter trawl, CTD rosette and vertical plankton tows. Data from the bottom trawl catch are used to monitor the distribution and abundance of fish and invertebrates throughout the Scotian Shelf, Bay of Fundy and Georges Bank. Cite this data as: Clark, D., Emberley, J. Data of MARITIMES RESEARCH VESSEL SURVEYS. Published January 2021. Population Ecology Division, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Dartmouth, N.S. https://open.canada.ca/data/en/dataset/8ddcaeea-b806-4958-a79f-ba9ab645f53b

The Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations (WSER), developed under the Fisheries Act, came into force in 2012 to manage wastewater releases by systems that collect an average daily influent volume of 100 cubic metres or more. The WSER also does not apply to any wastewater system located in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and north of the 54th parallel in the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. The WSER set national baseline effluent quality standards that are achievable through secondary wastewater treatment. The map below presents the wastewater system locations in Canada and the type of treatment they utilize (mechanical, lagoon or no treatment). The data is based on the information submitted to Environment and Climate Change Canada as of November 2022. Note that this layer does not represent the level of wastewater treatment or whether the system complies with the WSER. The map is available in both ESRI REST (to use with ARC GIS) and WMS (open source) formats. For more information about the individual reporting wastewater systems, datasets are available in either Excel or CSV formats at the resource listed below: “Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations Reported Data”. Data from Quebec and Yukon The data for Quebec municipalities (after 2017) is provided to the department separately through the equivalency agreement that was finalized in October 2018. Beginning in 2015, the data reported for the Yukon is provided to the department separately through an equivalency agreement finalized in 2014. More information on the wastewater sector including the regulations, agreements, contacts and resource documents is available at: https://www.canada.ca/wastewater