Water Maps
Water maps are published in many different forms by virtually all provincial and territorial jurisdictions across Canada. These forms may include aquifers, water wells, waterways, marine navigation maps, and watersheds. Federally, the Canadian Hydrographic Service publishes a wide variety of water themed maps that are applicable for transboundary water management and coastal/maritime navigation purposes.
The following is a selection of map resources you can find online.
Alberta maps
Alberta’s Watershed Planning and Advisory Councils (WPACs) and River Basins
There are 11 WPACs in Alberta representing the major basins [i]. The WPACs are non-profit organisations tasked with reporting on watershed health and facilitating collaborative planning and stewardship activities.
- Athabasca Watershed Council, maps
- Battle River Watershed Alliance, maps
- Bow River Basin Council, maps
- Lesser Slave Watershed Council, maps
- LICA – Beaver River Watershed, maps
- Mighty Peace Watershed Alliance, maps
- Milk River Watershed Council Canada, maps
- North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance, maps
- Oldman Watershed Council, maps
- Red Deer River Watershed Alliance, maps
- South East Alberta Watershed Alliance, maps
The Government of Alberta also produces various maps such as the drainage basins and ocean watersheds for Alberta map.
Alberta Flood Maps
A web site providing current and draft flood hazard maps for a range of flood sizes, floodway and flood fringe areas and, in some areas, the ability to compare floods of different sizes.
AgroClimatic Information Service (ACIS)
ACIS is supported by Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation, an interactive tool that provides weather forecasts, current and historic maps, and access to weather data received from more than 270 weather stations in and around Alberta. This service was developed to describe Alberta’s weather, climate and related agriculture features to help with your long-term planning and decision-making throughout the year.
Through ACIS you can view:
- Alberta Weather Station Data and Graphs
- Alberta Weather Station Conditions Summary
- Alberta Climate and Atlas Maps
- Alberta Weather Conditions Map
- Alberta Weather Radar Imagery
- Alberta Weather Forecast
Alberta River Basins
An interactive map (and mobile app) showing updated Daily/Weekly/Monthly precipitation and flows, forecaster comments, ice observation reports, Water Supply Outlook, and archives.
Environmentally Significant Areas
A 2014 update of the Alberta Environmentally Significant Areas Report including data and map for the province.
Canada: Water Maps and Data Summaries
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC)
AAFC publishes a wide variety of agriculture-related maps showing topics such as soil moisture, evaporative stress, climate and drought. The Canadian Drought Monitor web site provides updated monthly information on drought conditions across Canada.
Environment Canada (link)
In this section, find information on water maps, water management, and environment-related water issues over which Environment Canada has jurisdiction.
Natural Resources Canada (link)
Supports “The Atlas of Canada” which has several Water Maps of Canada…even maps for recreational activities like swimming and beach activity, canoeing, kayaking and sailing, power boating and recreational fishing.
Global Water Maps
Some globally focused maps can be found through the following websites:
- United Nations: UNEP/GRID-Arendal library of graphics resources
- World Resources Institute: Watersheds of the World
- German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources: Global Groundwater Resources (WHYMAP)
Sources:
[i] Government of Alberta, n.d. Watershed Planning and Advisory Councils. https://www.alberta.ca/watershed-planning-and-advisory-councils. Accessed 2023-08-25.