A National Landmark is a type of protected area in Canada.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the Government of Canada envisioned establishing a system of National Landmarks in order to protect natural features considered to be "outstanding, exceptional, unique, or rare" in Canada. Such features would typically be isolated entities of scientific interest. [1]
Only one landmark has been established— Pingo Canadian Landmark —in the Northwest Territories. Another was proposed at the same time (1984)—Nelson Head Canadian Landmark—on the southern tip of Banks Island, also in the Northwest Territories. It was to include some 180 km2 (70 sq mi), 40 km (25 mi) of coastline, and protect the sea cliffs at Nelson Head and Cape Lambton. Durham Heights were to be included, which reach an elevation of 747 m (2,450 ft). The legislation providing for the Landmark required a formal request be made by the Minister of the Environment within 10 years (until 1994). [2] None was ever made.
Banks Island is one of the larger members of the Arctic Archipelago. Situated in the Inuvik Region, and part of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, of the Northwest Territories, it is separated from Victoria Island to its east by the Prince of Wales Strait and from the mainland by Amundsen Gulf to its south. The Beaufort Sea lies to its west, and to its northeast M'Clure Strait separates the island from Prince Patrick Island and Melville Island.
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for purposes of conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research. They may be designated by government institutions in some countries, or by private landowners, such as charities and research institutions. Nature reserves fall into different IUCN categories depending on the level of protection afforded by local laws. Normally it is more strictly protected than a nature park. Various jurisdictions may use other terminology, such as ecological protection area or private protected area in legislation and in official titles of the reserves.
Nahanni National Park Reserve in the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, approximately 500 km (311 mi) west of Yellowknife, protects a portion of the Mackenzie Mountains Natural Region. The centrepiece of the park is the South Nahanni River. Four noteworthy canyons reaching 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in depth, called First, Second, Third and Fourth Canyon, line its whitewater river. The name Nahanni comes from the indigenous Dene language name for the area; Nahʔa Dehé, which means "river of the land of the Nahʔa people". The park was among the world's first four natural heritage locations to be inscribed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 1978 because of its picturesque wild rivers, canyons, and waterfalls. The park is also said to be haunted or cursed, following the mysterious disappearances and deaths of several gold prospectors over the years.
National parks of Canada are protected natural spaces throughout the country that represent distinct geographical regions of the nation. Under the administration of Parks Canada, a government branch, national parks allow for public enjoyment without compromising the area for future generations, including the management of Canadian wildlife and habitat within the ecosystems of the park. Within Parks Canada's administration is a wide range of protected areas, encompassing National Historic Sites, National Marine Conservation Areas (NMCA), and national park reserves.
Tuktoyaktuk, or TuktuyaaqtuuqIPA: [təktujaːqtuːq], is an Inuvialuit hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada, at the northern terminus of the Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway. Tuktoyaktuk, one of six Inuvialuit communities in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, is commonly referred to simply by its first syllable, Tuk. The settlement lies north of the Arctic Circle on the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and is the only community in Canada on the Arctic Ocean that is connected to the rest of Canada by road. Formerly known as Port Brabant, the community was renamed in 1950 and was the first place in Canada to revert to the traditional Indigenous name.
Nose Hill Park is a natural park in the northwest quadrant of Calgary, Alberta which covers over 11 km2 (4.2 sq mi). It is the fourth-largest urban park in Canada, and one of the largest urban parks in North America. It is a municipal park, unlike Fish Creek, which is a provincial park. It was created in 1980.
Auyuittuq National Park is a national park located on Baffin Island's Cumberland Peninsula, in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, the largest political subdivision of Canada. The park was initially known as Baffin Island National Park when it was established in 1972, but the name was changed in 1976 to its current name to better reflect the region and its history. It features many terrains of Arctic wilderness, such as fjords, glaciers, and ice fields. Although Auyuittuq was established in 1972 as a national park reserve, it was upgraded to a full national park in 2000.
Tuktut Nogait National Park is a national park located in the Northwest Territories of Canada that was established in 1998. Meaning "young caribou" in Inuvialuktun, the park is home to the calving grounds of the Bluenose-West caribou herd.
Protected areas of Canada consist of approximately 12.1 percent of the nation's landmass and freshwater are considered conservation areas, including 11.4 percent designated as protected areas. Approximately 13.8 percent of Canada's territorial waters are conserved, including 8.9 percent designated as protected areas. Terrestrial areas conserved have increased by 65 percent in the 21st century, while marine areas conserved have increased by more than 3,800 percent.
Pingos are intrapermafrost ice-cored hills, 3–70 m (10–230 ft) high and 30–1,000 m (98–3,281 ft) in diameter. They are typically conical in shape and grow and persist only in permafrost environments, such as the Arctic and subarctic. A pingo is a periglacial landform, which is defined as a non-glacial landform or process linked to colder climates. It is estimated that there are more than 11,000 pingos on Earth. The Tuktoyaktuk peninsula area has the greatest concentration of pingos in the world with a total of 1,350 pingos. There is currently remarkably limited data on pingos.
The geography of Saskatchewan is unique among the provinces and territories of Canada in some respects. It is one of only two landlocked regions and it is the only region whose borders are not based on natural features like lakes, rivers, or drainage divides. The borders of Saskatchewan, which make it very nearly a trapezoid, were determined in 1905 when it became a Canadian province. Saskatchewan has a total area of 651,036 square kilometres (251,366 sq mi) of which 591,670 km2 (228,450 sq mi) is land and 59,366 km2 (22,921 sq mi) is water.
Pingo Canadian Landmark, also known as Pingo National Landmark, is a natural area protecting eight pingos near Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories. It is in a coastal region of the Arctic Ocean which contains approximately 1,350 Arctic ice dome hills—approximately one quarter of the world's pingos.
Thaidene Nene National Park Reserve is a national park in the vicinity of the east arm of Great Slave Lake, located on the northern edge of the boreal forest of Canada in the North Slave Region of the Northwest Territories. It is administered by Parks Canada and is part of the Thaidene Nëné Indigenous Protected Area, which also includes Territorial Protected Area and a Wildlife Conservation Area administered by the Government of the Northwest Territories. The National Park Reserve covers 14,070 km2 of nationally significant boreal forest, tundra, and freshwater ecosystems.
The Southern Arctic Ecozone, as defined by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC), is a Canadian terrestrial ecozone which spans the northern coast of mainland Northwest Territories, most of northern mainland Nunavut excepting the northeast peninsula, and a portion of northwestern Quebec. Its two constituent territories are interrupted by Hudson Bay. The ecozone can also be described as including the northernmost part of the Interior Plains of Western Canada and parts of the Canadian Shield located on both sides of northern Hudson Bay.
Náátsʼihchʼoh National Park Reserve is a Canadian national park reserve encompassing parts of the South Nahanni River watershed in the Northwest Territories. The name means "stands like a porcupine" in the Dene language. The national park reserve covers an area of 4,850 km2 (1,873 sq mi), protecting the Sahtú Settlement Area of the upper South Nahanni River watershed, adjoining Nahanni National Park Reserve. The two areas are to be managed separately, similar to Banff and Jasper National Parks which are also side by side. The South Nahanni watershed is home to several endangered species, including grizzly bears and boreal woodland caribou. The area is also known for its moose, Dall sheep and the northernmost population of mountain goats in Canada.
The Inuvialuit Settlement Region, abbreviated as ISR, located in Canada's western Arctic, was designated in 1984 in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement by the Government of Canada for the Inuvialuit people. It spans 90,650 km2 (35,000 sq mi) of land, mostly above the tree line, and includes several subregions: the Beaufort Sea, the Mackenzie River delta, the northern portion of Yukon, and the northwest portion of the Northwest Territories. The ISR includes both Crown Lands and Inuvialuit Private Lands.
Saoyú-ʔehdacho is a cultural landscape in the Northwest Territories, Canada, comprising two peninsulas in Great Bear Lake. The site has great cultural and spiritual significance for the Sahtu people, as it is considered sacred land and it features prominently in their oral histories.