Discover Canada's Resource Industries and Natural Resources

A natural resource is something found in nature that people use, such as water, trees, fish, or minerals. Natural resources are not made by people they come from the earth, water, or air.

Resource industries are industries that take natural resources directly from the land or water. These are also called primary industries. You can learn more about how resources connect to the economy by exploring Using Earth's Resources.

Forestry Industry

The forestry industry involves cutting down trees and turning them into products like lumber and paper. British Columbia is one of Canada's most important forestry provinces because of its vast forests of Douglas fir and cedar. A logger is a worker who cuts down trees so the wood can be used to make products.

Fishing Industry

The fishing industry catches seafood from Canada's oceans, lakes, and rivers. Provinces like Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador depend on the Atlantic Ocean for fish like cod, lobster, and salmon. Workers use large nets dragged through the water to catch fish.

Mining Industry

The mining industry digs into the earth to find valuable metals and minerals such as gold, silver, nickel, and copper. A miner digs underground or in open-pit mines to extract these materials. The Canadian Shield is a large rocky region covering much of central and northern Canada that is rich in minerals like nickel, gold, and copper.

Farming and Agriculture

Agriculture is the industry of growing crops and raising animals to produce food for people. The Prairie provinces Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta have very fertile soil perfect for growing wheat and canola. Saskatchewan is often called the "breadbasket of Canada" because it produces so much wheat.

Oil and Gas Industry

The oil and gas industry drills underground to find petroleum used for energy. Alberta is home to the oil sands, one of the largest oil deposits in the world. Oil is refined into gasoline that fuels cars and trucks on roads.

A renewable resource is a resource that can be replaced naturally over time, such as trees, fish, and fresh water. If people are careful not to use too much, renewable resources can last a very long time.

A non-renewable resource is one that cannot be replaced once it is used up, like oil and coal. It took millions of years for these resources to form underground. You can explore how people make choices about resources by visiting Sharing Earth's Resources.

Using resources carefully so there is enough for the future is called sustainable use. For example, replanting trees after logging helps ensure forests will grow back. Learn more about this idea at Sustainable Development.

First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples in Canada have traditionally lived sustainably by hunting animals, fishing, and gathering plants from the land for thousands of years. These practices show a deep respect for the natural world. You can explore more about this at Human-Animal Relations: Domestication, Hunting and Fishing.

Resource industries like mining, logging, and oil drilling can damage natural habitats if they are not managed carefully. That is why Canada has environmental rules to help protect nature. You can learn more about this at Community Environmental Effects and Environmental Protection.

Forests are important because they provide habitat for wildlife and help clean the air. Canada's boreal forest is one of the largest in the world and is home to bears, wolves, and moose. Explore how human actions affect nature at Human Effects on Nature.

Natural Resource: Something found in nature that people use, such as water, trees, fish, or minerals. Natural resources are not made by people they come from the earth, water, or air.

Resource Industry: An industry that takes natural resources directly from the land or water to make products. Examples include forestry, fishing, mining, and farming.

Primary Industry: Another name for a resource industry one that collects raw materials directly from nature as the first step in making products.

Forestry: The industry that harvests trees and turns them into products like lumber, paper, and furniture. Canada has vast forests, especially in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec.

Agriculture: The industry of growing crops and raising animals to produce food for many people. Canada's prairies are famous for growing wheat and canola.

Mining: The industry that digs into the earth to find and collect valuable metals and minerals such as gold, silver, nickel, and diamonds.

Renewable Resource: A resource that can be replaced naturally over time, such as trees, fish, and fresh water. Renewable resources can last a long time if used carefully.

Non-Renewable Resource: A resource that cannot be replaced once it is used up, like oil and coal. These resources took millions of years to form.

Sustainable Use: Using natural resources carefully so there is enough for future generations. Replanting trees after logging is one example of sustainable use.

Harvest: To collect or gather a resource from nature for use, such as harvesting fish from the ocean, trees from a forest, or wheat from a field.

Canadian Shield: A large region of ancient rock covering much of central and northern Canada that is rich in minerals and metals, making it very important for mining.

Logger: A worker in the forestry industry who cuts down trees using special equipment and prepares the logs to be transported to sawmills.

Miner: A worker who digs into the earth to extract valuable materials such as gold, silver, nickel, and coal.

Hydroelectric Power: Electricity made using the power of flowing water, usually from rivers or dams. Canada is one of the world's top producers of hydroelectric power.

Oil Sands: Large deposits of oil mixed with sand found mainly in northern Alberta near Fort McMurray. They are one of the largest oil deposits in the world.

You can practice identifying Canada's resource industries by matching each industry forestry, fishing, mining, farming, and oil and gas to the natural resource it uses and the product it makes. For example, the forestry industry uses trees to make lumber and paper.

You can also practice sorting resources into renewable and non-renewable groups. Try sorting: trees, oil, fish, coal, fresh water, and wheat. Think about whether each one can be replaced naturally over time. Explore how industries and jobs connect at Types of Work and Jobs in Communities.

Before learning about resource industries, you explored important ideas that help you understand this topic. You learned about Goods and Services and how products are made and sold. You also studied Changing Workplaces and how jobs change over time.

You explored Environmental Consequences of Economic Activities, which helps you understand how industries affect nature. These ideas all connect to resource industries and help you see the big picture.

Resource industries connect to many other important topics you will explore. You will learn how resources are found and developed at Resource Exploration and Development, and how industries change over time at Changing Industries.

You can discover how goods are traded at Exchange of Goods and how Canada trades with other countries at International Commerce. You will also explore how technology changes resource industries at Technology Impact.

You can learn how communities are shaped by their environments at Communities and Their Environments and Human Geography. Geographic features matter too explore them at Geographic Features and Regional Characteristics.

You will also study how land is changed for development at Land Modification: Reshaping Terrain for Development and Infrastructure, and how economic systems work at Labor Systems and Economic Activities and Basic Economics.

This topic prepares you for more advanced ideas like Natural Resource Types and Distribution Patterns, Resources and Industry, and Resources as Catalysts for Economic Development. You will also build on ideas about Decision Making when it comes to using resources wisely.