Canada
The Country
Where do people live?
People in Canada decide where they live based on the climate, trade, and natural resources. For example, Canada's location is on by three different oceans. Therefore, it's a leader in trade. The Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River allow Canada to ship things into the Atlantic Ocean. The climate is different all over Canada. Southern Canada has a much warmer climate than any other place in Canada. More people live there. The Pacific coast gets lots of precipitation year round. Northern Canada is very cold. Temperatures can go to below freezing in the summer. Not very many people live there. Canada has many natural resources such as coal, petroleum, and zinc. These resources are produced all over Canada. People live by the resource that they need the most. For example, farmers live where there is rich soil. These natural resources also help with trade.
Environmental Issues
Canada has environmental issues too. Some of the environmental issues are acid rain, pollution of Great Lakes, extraction and use of natural resources on the Canadian Shield, and the timber industry. Coal burning factories, cars, and truck release all pollute the air. The growth of industries and cities have has caused the air quality to decline which also causes acid rain. In 1970s, the Great Lakes had high levels of pollution. Fishing was unsafe and plants and animals were dying. Factories used the lakes as a dump for their waste. The Canadian Shield is a large area of thin, rocky, soil around the Hudson Bay. This was very important to Canada's economy. Digging and mining hurt the environment. The mining processes released harmful chemicals into the air which causes acid rain. Almost half of the land is covered in forests. So, Canada was led to the timber industry. But, the problem is that citizens think that the timber industry is destroying the forest. Some companies cut all of the trees in the area. But, trees are supposed to help us breath.
History of Canada
Native peoples from Canada came from Asia 12,000 years ago. Twelve tribes made up Canada. The Inuit tribe was one of the first tribes. There are still Inuit people in Canada today. In 1999, the Canadian government gave the Inuit some of their territory. The first explorers in Canada were Norse invaders from the Scandinavian Peninsula. They started to trade with the Inuit tribe. But, the Europeans didn't return until 500 years later. Jacques Cartier explored the St. Lawrence river in 1534. He claimed land for France. In 1608, Samuel de Champlian built the first permanent French settlement in Canada. The British claimed the south region of Canada. But the French didn't like that. The French and Indian War began. Although they are allies, there has been tension between the two countries ever since.