Canadian Heritage Rivers: The North Saskatchewan River North Saskatchewan River Basin Council 2017 This document was prepared for the North Saskatchewan River Basin Council. Prepared by Katherine Finn Cover photo: Katherine Finn 1 Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................ 4 Chapter One: Canadian Heritage River Status .............................................................................................. 7 Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................... 7 Résumé Analytique ................................................................................................................................... 8 The North Saskatchewan River Basin Council ......................................................................................... 11 The Background Report .......................................................................................................................... 12 About Canadian Heritage River Systems ................................................................................................ 14 Study Area ............................................................................................................................................... 17 Previous Studies ...................................................................................................................................... 18 The North Saskatchewan River as a CHRS .............................................................................................. 18 Overview of Heritage Values .................................................................................................................. 19 Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................................................... 19 Endnotes ................................................................................................................................................. 20 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................ 20 Chapter Two: Cultural Heritage Values ....................................................................................................... 21 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 21 Theme One: Resource Harvesting .......................................................................................................... 22 1.1 Fishing ........................................................................................................................................... 23 1.2 Shoreline Resources ...................................................................................................................... 23 1.3 Extraction of Water ....................................................................................................................... 26 Theme Two: Water Transport ................................................................................................................. 28 2.1 Commercial Transportation .......................................................................................................... 28 2.2 Transportation Services ................................................................................................................ 32 2.3 Exploration and Surveying ............................................................................................................ 33 Theme Three: Riparian Settlement ......................................................................................................... 35 3.1 Siting of Dwellings ......................................................................................................................... 35 3.2 River Based Communities ............................................................................................................. 38 3.3 River-influenced Transportation ................................................................................................... 40 Theme Four: Culture and Recreation ...................................................................................................... 43 4.1 Spiritual Associations .................................................................................................................... 44 4.2 Cultural Expression ....................................................................................................................... 48 4.3 Early Recreation ............................................................................................................................ 53 2 Theme Five: Jurisdictional Uses .............................................................................................................. 54 5.1 Conflict and Military Associations ................................................................................................. 54 5.2 Boundaries .................................................................................................................................... 61 5.3 Environmental Regulations ........................................................................................................... 61 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................... 62 End Notes ................................................................................................................................................ 66 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................ 72 Chapter Three: Natural Values ................................................................................................................... 74 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 74 Theme One: Hydrology ........................................................................................................................... 75 1.1 Drainage Patterns ......................................................................................................................... 75 1.2 Seasonal Variation ........................................................................................................................ 76 1.3 Water Content .............................................................................................................................. 78 1.4 River Size ....................................................................................................................................... 79 Theme Two: Physiography ...................................................................................................................... 80 2.1 Physiographic Region .................................................................................................................... 80 2.2 Geological Processes ..................................................................................................................... 81 2.3 Hydrogeology ................................................................................................................................ 83 2.4 Topography ................................................................................................................................... 84 Theme Three: River Morphology ............................................................................................................ 86 3.1 Valley Types .................................................................................................................................. 86 3.2 Channel Patterns ........................................................................................................................... 87 3.3 Channel Profiles ............................................................................................................................ 89 3.4 Fluvial Landforms .......................................................................................................................... 90 Theme Four: Biotic Environments .......................................................................................................... 93 4.1 Aquatic Ecosystems ....................................................................................................................... 93 4.2 Terrestrial Ecosystems .................................................................................................................. 93 Theme Five: Vegetation .......................................................................................................................... 95 5.1 Significant Flora Species ................................................................................................................ 95 5.2 Rare Flora Species ......................................................................................................................... 98 Theme Six: Fauna .................................................................................................................................... 99 6.1 Significant Animal Populations ....................................................................................................