Land-use change

National land-use change

Key results

Looking at land-use changes between cropland, forest and settlement south of 60° North (the southern territorial border of Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut) from 2010 to 2015:^{Footnote 1}

• 3 473 km² of land-use change was observed, representing well under 1% of the overall area
• Of the land-use change observed, a large proportion (65% or 2 258 km²) was the conversion of forest to cropland
• About 1 215 km² of cropland and forest were converted to settlement

Conversion of total area by land-use class, Canada, 2010 to 2015

How this indicator is calculated

Note: Cropland includes agricultural land used for growing perennial or annual crops. Forest includes forest cover, wetlands with forest cover, forest regenerating after harvest, and forest regenerating after fire. Settlement refers to all residential, commercial, industrial, transportation or other built infrastructure use. Values are only reported for the portion of Canada south of 60° North.
Source: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (2021) Science and Technology Branch.

Deforestation means converting forests to other land uses. In Canada, deforestation is mainly caused by cropland expansion or conversion to settlement land uses, such as mining, and oil and gas development.^{Footnote 2,Footnote 3}Deforestation depletes biodiversity and wildlife habitat, and degrades air, water and soil quality. Also, because forests store carbon and reduce the impacts of drought and flooding, the loss of forests reduces carbon sequestration^{Footnote 3} and climate resilience.

The conversion of forests to cropland was the largest land-use change observed between 2010 and 2015 (2 258 km²). Agricultural expansion is the main driver for the loss of natural land in Canada and around the world.^{Footnote 4,Footnote 5} Forested lands located near existing urban and agricultural areas are most at risk of being converted to cropland.^{Footnote 6}

Land conversion to settlement is also a significant driver of land-use change. This can impact local environments by degrading or paving over soil,^{Footnote 7} altering water and nutrient cycles, and increasing water and air pollution. In the Toronto, London, St. Catharines–Niagara and Windsor metropolitan areas, 85% of the land converted to settlements between 1971 and 2011 was high-value agricultural land. In the same time period, large amounts of forests were also converted to settlement in the Halifax, St. John's, Saint John and Trois-Rivières metropolitan areas.^{Footnote 8}

The methodologies for compiling the data for land-use change improve over time. Data and analysis are based on the best information currently available.

Regional land-use change

Key results

Between 2010 and 2015,

• the Ontario and Quebec region experienced the largest loss of forest cover (1 150 km²), followed by the Prairies region (1 096 km²)
• the Ontario and Quebec region had the largest conversion to settlement (610 km²), followed by the Prairies region (256 km²)

Total area converted to cropland or settlement by region, Canada, 2010 to 2015

How this indicator was calculated

Note: Values of land conversion to forest were not included because the indicator focuses on the conversion from natural and semi-natural land for human activity. No settlement was converted back to cropland or forest from 2010 to 2015. The Atlantic region includes the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The Prairie region includes the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. The Pacific region consists of the province of British Columbia. Cropland includes agricultural land used for growing perennial or annual crops. Forest includes forest cover, wetlands with forest cover, forest regenerating after harvest, and forest regenerating after fire. Settlement refers to residential, commercial, industrial, transportation or other built infrastructure use. Values are only reported for the portion of Canada south of 60° North.
Source: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (2021) Science and Technology Branch.

Ontario and Quebec showed the most land-use conversion to settlement, likely driven by population growth and subsequent urban expansion.^{Footnote 9} Cities grow in size when built infrastructure is expanded to accommodate population growth. Making more efficient use of existing built infrastructure protects cropland, forests and other natural infrastructure within and around Canadian cities, and can enrich the amenities accessible to residents.

Most of Canada's land suitable for growing crops are in the Prairies, and Ontario and Quebec. Accordingly, these regions showed the most forest to cropland land-use change.

The Pacific region, which consists of British Columbia, showed the smallest amount of land-use change. British Columbia experiences the lowest annual amount of forest land conversion to cropland and settlement, and this has been noted consistently in recent decades.^{Footnote 10} 

About the indicator

What the indicator measures

This indicator measures the amount of land-use change from 2010 to 2015. It reports the proportion of agricultural land that has been converted to settlement and the amount of forest that has been converted to cropland or settlement in Canada south of 60° North.

Why this indicator is important

Land-use change is the main cause of biodiversity loss globally. Agricultural expansion and intensification are leading factors in the loss of natural areas. Natural areas provide habitat for wildlife and ecosystem services such as water purification, carbon storage, and climate regulation. Additionally, most newly built artificial surfaces are constructed on cropland. Conversion of land from agriculture to settlement is further associated with increased pressure on biodiversity, soil degradation, and flood risk.^{Footnote 5} Measuring land-use change provides a way to quantify pressures on ecosystems and biodiversity, and can be used to inform environmental management and policy to prevent further loss of ecological integrity.

Sustainably managed lands and forests

This indicator supports measuring progress towards the following 2019 to 2022 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy long-term goal: Lands and forests support biodiversity and provide a variety of ecosystem services for generations to come.

In addition, the indicator contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is linked to the 2030 Agenda's Goal 15: Life on Land. 

Related indicators

Canada's conserved areas indicators report the amount and proportion of Canada's terrestrial and marine area that is conserved.

The Extent of Canada's wetlands indicator measures the extent of Canadian wetlands, and provides a baseline from which change can be measured.

The Sustainability of timber harvest indicator compares the amount of timber harvested with the wood supply. It is one measure of the success of Canada's forest stewardship.

The Wildlife habitat capacity on agricultural land indicator provides a measure of the suitability of agricultural land as habitat for terrestrial vertebrates.

The Land-based greenhouse gas emissions and removals indicator tracks exchanges of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removals between the atmosphere and Canada's managed lands.

Data sources and methods

Data sources

Data for this indicator are from the 2010 and 2015 Land Use maps produced by the Science and Technology Branch of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). The AAFC Land Use Time Series maps cover all areas of Canada south of 60° North at a spatial resolution of 30 m. The land-use classes follow the protocol of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and consist of forest, water, cropland, grassland, wetland, settlement and other land (rock, beaches, ice and barren land).

The AAFC Land Use Time Series maps, and a complete list of the datasets incorporated as evidence, are available on the Government of Canada's Open Government data portal. 

Methods

This indicator summarizes the amount of land converted from one land-use class to another for the years 2010 to 2015. An interval of 5 years was used for long-term change detection within the data. This interval is large enough to reduce the effects of short-term and temporary changes that could appear due to snow cover, flooding, or uncertainty. 

Caveats and limitations

The land-use land-cover (LULC) datasets contributing land class information were created using a mixture of satellite mounted sensor imagery and other spatially related information. Evidence from these datasets were compiled within a common framework of 30 m by 30 m pixels. Some level of error is always expected in classifying earth observation data. Information on the level of errors may be identified in the metadata of source data.

The area of deforestation reported by Canada in National Greenhouse Gas Inventory reporting to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and annual reporting on the State of Canada’s Forests differs from the areas reported in the Land-use change indicator. Canada’s official deforestation monitoring data were produced using a different methodology,^{Footnote 11} which has undergone detailed expert review coordinated by the UNFCCC secretariat. Furthermore, the Canadian territories are not included in the Land Use Time Series dataset used in the development of this indicator. The dataset does not account for land-use change north of 60° North. Users of the data are encouraged to consult Canada’s official deforestation reporting and evaluate methodologies in order to make well-informed use of the data.

The indicator measures only the quantity of land-use change. The quality and value of the land or reasons for land-use change are not reported.

At this time, only data for 2010 to 2015 have been completed. Data from previous years are currently being developed. They will be incorporated in the indicator in future updates. Also, work to estimate land-use change for grassland and wetlands is underway, with the aim of reporting such changes in the future.

Resources

References

Dyk A, Leckie D, Tinis S and Ortlepp S (2015) Canada’s National Deforestation Monitoring System: System description. Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Pacific Forestry Centre. Retrieved April 27, 2021.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (2021) National Inventory Report 1990-2019: Greenhouse gas sources and sinks in Canada. Retrieved on April 27, 2021.

Gilani HR and Innes JL (2020) The state of British Columbia's forests: A global comparison. Forests 11: 10.3390/f11030316. Retrieved March 29, 2021.

Natural Resources Canada (2020) The State of Canada's Forests 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2021.

Natural Resources Canada (2020) Deforestation in Canada: Key myths and facts. Retrieved April 6, 2021.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2018) Monitoring land cover change. Retrieved March 23, 2021.

Statistics Canada (2016) Human Activity and the Environment 2015. The changing landscape of Canadian metropolitan areas. Retrieved April 7, 2021.

Statistics Canada (2016) The changing landscape of Canadian metropolitan areas – Section 2: The census metropolitan area landscape. Retrieved April 7, 2021.

Yemshanov D, Kock FH, Riiters KH, McConkey B, Huffman T and Smith S (2015) Assessing land clearing potential in the Canadian agriculture–forestry interface with a multi-attribute frontier approach. Ecological Indicators 54:71-81.