Lake Athabasca: description, flora and fauna, environmental problems

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

Lake Athabasca is located on the territory of two Canadian provinces: northeastern Alberta and northwestern Saskatchewan, on the edge of the Precambrian shield. With an impressive area of 7,935 sq km and 2,140 km of coastline, it is the eighth largest in Canada.

General information about the lake

The lake belongs to two provinces at once and is the largest in Alberta and Saskatchewan (Canada), which owns about 70% of the water surface area. It is located at an altitude of 213 m above sea level, the average depth is 20 m, the maximum is 124 m. The reservoir is stretched for 283 km in length, the maximum width is 50 km. The lake is fed by the Athabasca and Mira rivers. Water flows down the Slave River and Mackenzie into the Arctic Ocean.

The origin of the Athabasca basin is defined as glacial-tectonic. It arose as a result of the processing of tectonic depressions in the earth's crust by a glacier. Along with the other largest lakes in Canada (Great Slave and Bear), Athabasca is the remnant of a vast glacialMcConnell Reservoir.

History of the lake

The name of Lake Athabasca comes from the word athapiscow from the Cree language (an ethnic community of North America). By this term they denoted an open water area (swamps, lakes, etc.), along the banks of which willows, grasses and reeds grew. Together with other ethnic groups such as the Beaver and Chipeyan, the Cree people are the first to inhabit these lands over 2,000 years ago.

Initially, the name was applied only to the Athabasca Delta in the southwest corner of the lake. In 1791, Philip Ternor, a cartographer for the Hudson's Bay Company, wrote down the name "Atapison" in one of his journals. Before him, Peter Fiedler in 1790 designated it as the "Great Arabuska". By 1801, a more or less unified spelling had developed, as close as possible to the modern one - Athapaskov Lake. It wasn't until 1820 that George Simpson named the river and lake Athabasca.

The reservoir for them was a key point for the fur trade. One of the oldest European settlements on the coast (in Alberta) is Fort Chipewyan, founded back in 1788 by Peter Pond as part of the Northwest Company. The settlement was named after the local Chipeyan people living in the area.

Flora and fauna of the lake

The lake is part of the Peace-Athabasca Delta, a biodiverse wetland located to its west. The delta is an important migration point and nesting area for these species.birds like the American swan, sandhill crane, and numerous geese and ducks. In addition, about 80% of the area belongs to the Wood Buffalo National Park (UNESCO World Heritage Site), which is home to the largest herd of wild bison.

Since 1926, fishing has been organized on Lake Athabasca. The catch consists mainly of lake trout, walleye and northern pike. In addition to them, there are such species as grayling, perch, burbot, arctic char. In 1961, with the help of a large gill net, fishermen managed to catch a trout with a record weight of 46.3 kg.

Environmental Issues

Lake Athabasca is rich in mineral deposits. People didn't lose sight of it. As a result, as early as the century before last, active mining of uranium and gold began in these places. Numerous workers with their families arriving at the lake founded the village of Uranium City on its shores. The last mine was closed in the 1980s, the consequences of mining heavily polluted the northern shores of the reservoir. The situation was aggravated by several large oil fields located nearby. Gold mines on the lake are still functioning.

In October 2013, one of the coal mines collapsed and more than 600 billion liters of sludge fell into the Plant and Aletovun Creeks. The plume of pollution also flowed into the Athabasca River, heading downstream. Within a month, it reached the lake and spilled over 500 km.

The area where Lake Athabasca is located is very close to the oil sands. This fact currently worries environmentalists the most. Up until 1997the impact of mining on the aquatic ecosystem has not been monitored, and the effectiveness of monitoring is currently being questioned, since it is financed by oil companies.

Despite some problems in data collection, recent environmental studies have shown a direct link between increased lake pollution and oil sands. An increase in the amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in lake ecosystems near deposits has been demonstrated. This is a concern as the substances remain in the environment for a long time and do not decompose.

Sand Dunes

Another unique feature of the lake are the moving sand dunes located near the southern shores. In 1992, this amazing natural ecosystem was taken under state protection. Organized Athabasca Sand Dunes Park. It is located in the province of Saskatchewan (Canada). The park extends over 100 km along the southern edge of the lake. The sand dunes are 400 to 1500 m long and about 30 m high. These places can only be reached by the water surface of the lake.