Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
20141231
Watersheds of Alberta (GOA)
vector digital data
Edmonton
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
https://genesis.srd.alberta.ca/genesis_tokenauth/services/Watersheds_of_Alberta/Latest/MapServer/WMSServer
This dataset is produced for the Government of Alberta and is available to the general public. Please consult the Distribution Information of this metadata for the appropriate contact to acquire this dataset. Note that the Watersheds of Alberta (GOA) product replaces the previously released Watersheds of Alberta 2011.
The Watersheds of Alberta is a digital spatial database depicting various classification levels of watersheds and drainage basins within the province of Alberta as interpreted by the former Alberta Environment. The base unit of mapping is the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) region, which is an administrative designation (system) based on catchment areas. There are 132 WSC regions defined within Alberta; each is classified with a "00ZZ" alpha-numerical coding system. These units have been grouped into four major levels of drainage basin classification: Major Sub-watersheds; Watersheds of Alberta; Major Basins (two versions); and Continental Drainage (two versions). The data represents an accumulated 20 to 25 years of project work of the Hydrology Branch which held the mandate to determine watersheds and watershed boundaries within the Government of Alberta. Boundaries were delineated and refined over time using 1:50,000 NTS topographic maps and some air photography of various scales. It should be noted that the Watersheds of Alberta (GOA) feature class polygons may be represented as multipart polygons (i.e. there may be only one record in the database associated with more than one polygon). Multipart polygons are typically located in the same watershed or basin where by two (or more) polygons flow into another province or territory. Multipart polygons may be exploded into single part polygons if required.
The Watersheds of Alberta (GOA) data and index map are available from Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta.
en
These data are being used as input into a number of environmental and resource development initiatives, including (but not restricted to): baseline mapping; administrative classification systems; water allocation and water management; watershed planning and watershed management; education and outreach; environmental impact assessment; integrated resource planning; fish and wildlife habitat resource mapping; and forest management. This type of information is intended for use in broad scale/reconnaissance level analyses only. Very localized determination of watershed boundaries should be independently checked.
In 1998 or 1999 the hardcopy drainage basin linework was digitized off of 1:50,000 NTS topographic maps using Pan Map. The digital linework was passed to staff in Parks and Protected Areas for cleaning and conversion into ArcInfo coverage format. Continental basin, major watershed and Water Survey Canada region codes were assigned at that point. Subsequently, the digital map was updated in 2003 to recognize two additional sub-basins and the names were revised. In 2006, text descriptions of the Water Survey Canada regions were added into the dataset; additional subbasin/subwatershed classifications were added; and one boundary adjustment was made. At some point a version of the dataset was referred to the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Agency (PFRA) by the former Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (SRD) and areas were compared against the PFRA boundaries (2005) and comments were captured (subsequently removed in the 2014 publication). A final revision of the dataset occurred in late 2010/early 2011 to correct boundaries in two of the WSC regions and to create the required metadata to meet GOA standards for the distribution of spatial data. In the 2014 update, there were minor changes in the attribute table and a local boundary correction was made; in addition, the polygons were processed to ensure they conform to the base features Alberta political boundary.
20141231
publication date
None planned
-120.901818
-108.451806
60.094798
48.895730
ISO 19115 Topic Category
inlandWaters
geoscientificInformation
None
watershed
drainage basin
major basin
sub-watershed
sub-basin
basin
drainage area
catchment
Water Survey of Canada
Water Act
None
Canada
Western Hemisphere
North America
Mid-latitude
Northern Hemisphere
Alberta
Alberta Geographic Names (GNS)
Alberta
General Public: For conditional general public use. User must accept terms and conditions in a product license agreement before obtaining data. Government of Alberta Ministries: Conditional access to this data for internal business purposes is available to Government of Alberta Ministries and authorized agencies through Informatics Branch of Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development.
General Public: This digital data is protected under copyright to the Government of Alberta with all rights reserved and is subject to the conditions outlined in the Informatics Branch License Agreement for Digital Data. Government of Alberta Ministries: Government of Alberta Ministries and authorized agencies may conditionally use this data for internal business purposes which includes conditional sharing of the data with other third parties (i.e. contractors, stakeholders) if necessary for reasonable use of the data relating to the provision of services to the Crown as represented by each Ministry.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Michael Seneka
Surface Water Section, Water Policy Branch, Policy Division
mailing address
9820 - 106 Street
7th Floor, Oxbridge Place
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804279976
7804226712
michael.seneka@gov.ab.ca
08:15 to 16:30, Monday to Friday
This is the point of contact regarding the creation of, and characteristics of the data set. Queries about the creation of the dataset submitted through facsimile or electronic mail must include the salutation "Attention: Michael Seneka, Surface Water Section, Water Policy Branch, Policy Division; Dataset: "Watersheds of Alberta (GOA)". For Distribution Information contact instructions, refer to the Distribution Information section of this metadata record. For Metadata Information contact instructions, refer to the Metadata Reference Information section of this metadata record.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Government of Alberta Security Classification Guidelines
Protected
Esri ArcGIS 10.1.1.3176
https://genesis.srd.alberta.ca/genesis_httpauth/services/Hydrologic_Unit_Code_Watersheds_of_Alberta/Latest/MapServer/WMSServer
https://genesis.srd.alberta.ca/genesis_tokenauth/rest/services/Hydrologic_Unit_Code_Watersheds_of_Alberta/Latest/MapServer
Hydrologic Unit Code Watersheds of Alberta
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
20140815
First
vector digital data
Not available
The Watersheds of Alberta (GOA) feature dataset and its associated feature classes are complete for the extent of the province.
Exact horizontal accuracy cannot be determined but may be inferred from individual processes: 1) the representation of elevation/topographic features on 1:50,000 NTS paper maps (exact value not known); 2) the interpretation of watershed boundary features from aerial photography (exact value not known); 3) the watershed boundary lines drawn on the map sheets (estimated at 50 metres); and 4) digitizing accuracy of those lines (estimated at 100 metres).
+/- 200 metres
Assumes that the accuracy of deriving basin boundaries from features represented on maps or photos probably has at least or greater inaccuracy than the delineation process itself. Source accuracy will depend on terrain depicted, topographic relief, scale and data type (air photo versus map, paper versus digital). Note that accuracy likely varies by location; e.g. northern areas with older coverages and having less project work completed may not have the same level of inferred accuracy.
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Aerial Photography
Edmonton, Alberta
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
0
hardcopyPaper
unknown
ground condition
AP
Base for interpretation of drainage basin boundaries
Natural Resources Canada
unknown
National Topographic Series - 1:50 000 topographic maps
Unknown
Natural Resources Canada
50000
hardcopyPaper
19800101
Unknown
NTS
Base for interpretation of drainage basin boundaries
Environment Canada
unknown
Water Survey Canada
Unknown
Environment Canada
Estimated the maps were copied in the mid to late 1970's
50000
hardcopyPaper
20060101
publication date
WSC
Water Survey Canada sub sub drainage area boundaries were traced from the PFRA hardcopy maps and the basin codes are based on the WSC standard drainage area classification system (SDAC).
Digital maps cleaned up and converted into a coverage with attributes for WSC regions (four digit alpha-numeric code), continental and (major) watersheds.
Unknown
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development
Duke Hunter
Conservation and Recreation Planning, Land Management, Parks Division
mailing and physical address
9820 - 106 Street
3rd Floor, Oxbridge Place
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804276673
7804275980
duke.hunter@gov.ab.ca
In 1998 or 1999, the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) region boundaries were digitized using Pan Map from 1:50 000 NTS map sheets. WSC region boundaries were delineated on 1:50 000 topographic maps and using some air photography of various scales. The boundaries reflect a continual refinement over a 25-30 year period by the Hydrology Branch of the former Alberta Environment through their project work and mandate for defining watershed boundaries within Alberta. The very first version of boundaries were traced off of Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) maps in the early to mid 1970's but the current linework has been refined significantly since that time. Though both are based on WSC regions, there can be significant variations in delineated boundaries if the ESRD and PFRA data is compared today.
withheld
withheld
withheld
unknown
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Jim Ames
Water Management Operations, Environmental Management
mailing and physical address
9820 - 106 St
11th Floor Oxbridge Place
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804270228
7804228837
jim.ames@gov.ab.ca
1) Incorporation of 2 additional sub-basins (likely the two small northern pieces of 06BA, but not certain) 2) Revised the names of the watersheds in attribute table
20030101
withheld
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Sean Douglas
Water Management Operations, Environmental Management
mailing and physical address
8th Floor, Oxbridge Place
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804270520
7804274347
sean.douglas@gov.ab.ca
The data was checked against PFRA WSC (2005) boundaries. A field was created in the attribute table to capture those comments. The comments were consolidated into the Drainage Basins of Alberta (2006) but were subsequently removed in more recent versions.
20060101
withheld
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Kathleen Jaques
Information and Data Provisioning Services, Informatics Branch, Corporate Services Division
mailing and physical address
14th Floor, Oxbridge Place
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804225117
kathleen.jaques@gov.ab.ca
7804220712
1) Boundary of 05GA (Sounding Creek) was clipped in the south by a new basin polygon 05HB (Tributary of the South Saskatchewan) - effectively changing that portion from previously having been thought to contribute to the North Saskatchewan River basin. (Now a total of 132 polygons). 2) A text description of all the 132 WSC regions was added. Note that some the descriptions are at variance from what PFRA seem to use for their definitions. 3) Fields describing various levels of different basin classifications (from continental-level (3-4) to major basin (7) to major watershed/sub-watersheds (18 or 25, depending on desired detail) were added.
20061201
withheld
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Michael Seneka
Water Policy, Environmental Assurance
mailing and physical address
9820 - 106 Street
7th Floor, Oxbridge Place
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804279976
7804226712
michael.seneka@gov.ab.ca
1) The original shapefile was converted to geodatabase format and continuity checks undertaken 2) The data within the PFRA_COMMENT field from Sustainable Resource Development's version of the data set was added. 3) Final metadata was created
20101206
withheld
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Don Page
4033407117
1) The boundaries of 05AH and 05HA were corrected to reflect that MacKay, McAlpine and Boxelder Creeks flowing to Many Island Lakes basin would flow east (if water levels rose sufficiently) as part of 05HA (Maple Creek, SK). Previously those tributaries were represented as part of 05AH although in fact they did not spill to the South Saskatchewan River in Alberta. 2) The attribute table fields were renamed and regenerated. The WSC_CTCHMT field was lengthened to 90 character and the descriptions were reviewed and revised/clarified. 3) A field, AENV_W_REG was added to exactly reflect the wording of the Water Act/Water (Ministerial) Regulation of the seven major basins (a few sub-basins of Alberta fall outside the strict definition with the regulations). 4) Several new subwatersheds were identified uniquely in the table under the MAJ_WSHEDS field (the total is now 32). [This field is intended to depict major subwatersheds in Alberta] 5) A portion of the 07NB (Slave R) polygon was clipped to reflect the addition of a second, westerly piece of the 07QA (Taltson R) basin that was previously not identified. 6) The Area field was recalculated for square kilometres.
20110204
withheld
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Michael Seneka
Water Policy, Environmental Assurance
mailing and physical address
7th Floor, Oxbridge Place
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804279976
7804226712
michael.seneka@gov.ab.ca
Minor adjustments were made to the data including one boundary adjustment along the Beaver River and Athabasca River basin boundary and the modification of naming and attributes within the Ministerial Regulation field. The aliases were adjusted for two fields. The PFRA_COMMENT field was deleted (deemed not relevant), as well as the static (pre-computed) AREA field.
7th Floor, Oxbridge Place
mailing and physical address
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
7804279976
7804226712
michael.seneka@gov.ab.ca
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Michael Seneka
Surface Water Section, Water Policy Branch, Policy Division
201411
withheld
The feature class was reconciled to the Alberta Township System Version 4.1 provincial boundary. The topology was validated for overlaps and gaps within the feature class.
Vector
Simple
FALSE
132
TRUE
FALSE
coordinate pair
0.0001
0.0001
meter
D North American 1983
GRS 1980
6378137.0
298.257222101
WatershedEdit.GDB.WatershedsOfAlberta
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Feature Class
132
OBJECTID
Internal feature number.
ESRI
Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
OBJECTID
OID
4
10
0
Shape
Feature geometry.
ESRI
Coordinates defining the features.
Shape
Geometry
4
0
0
WSC_CODE
Unique four character alpha-numeric "00ZZ" ID code for the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) regions
Water Survey of Canada (Environment Canada)
WSC Region Code
String
10
0
0
WSC_REGION
Description of the geographic extents of the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) regions. Note that many of these regions by themselves are not "watersheds"; they may be incremental catchment areas along reaches of rivers.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Water Survey of Canada Region Description
String
90
0
0
MAJ_SUBWAT
Classification of the WSC regions into 32 major subwatersheds in Alberta.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Major Subwatersheds of Alberta
String
40
0
0
WATERSHEDS
Classification of the WSC regions into 18 "Watersheds of Alberta". These definitions are the most commonly referenced over time and are typically what has appeared on base maps since the creation of this data set.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Watersheds of Alberta
String
40
0
0
AENV_MAJOR
Classification of the WSC regions into seven major basins that generally follow the concepts within Water (Ministerial) Regulation under the Water Act. Basin interpretations do not precisely match the Regulation in all cases in order that a coverage of the whole province can be created. Also known as the "Seven Major Basins".
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Major Basins of Alberta
String
40
0
0
AENV_W_REG
Classification of the WSC regions into "seven major river basins" that are defined within the Water (Ministerial) Regulation under the Water Act. Basin interpretations match the Regulation (wording references surface waters flowing directly to the River and its tributaries), so some sub-watersheds either do not flow to one of the seven rivers, or are in entirety non-contributing/non-spilling basin areas.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Water(Min.)Reg. Major River Basin
String
40
0
0
SUB_CONTNL
Classification of the WSC regions into five subcontinental basins in Alberta. The five basins are based on Water Survey of Canada's 05, 06, 07, 10 & 11 prefixes.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Subcontinental Basin
String
40
0
0
CONT_BASIN
Classification of the WSC regions into the three continental drainage basins in Alberta, reflecting the ultimate oceanic outlet.
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Continental Drainage Basin
String
40
0
0
GlobalID
Global unique identifier
ESRI
GlobalID
GlobalID
38
0
0
Shape.STArea()
Area of polygon in dataset native units
ESRI
Shape.STArea()
Double
0
0
0
Shape.STLength()
Perimeter of polygon in dataset native units
ESRI
Shape.STLength()
Double
0
0
0
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Data Distribution Unit, Information and Data Provisioning Services, Informatics Branch, Corporate Services Division
mailing address
14th Floor Oxbridge Place
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K2J6
CA
7804277374
7804220712
ESRD.Data@gov.ab.ca
08:15 to 16:30, Monday to Friday
This is the point of contact regarding distribution of the data set. Queries about distribution of the data set submitted through facsimile or electronic mail must include the salutation "Attention: Data Distribution Unit, Information and Data Provisioning Services, Informatics Branch, Corporate Services Division; Dataset: Watersheds of Alberta (GOA)".
The user agrees that the information and each part thereof, any formatting or presentation thereof, any storage media on which it is provided, and any communication of any kind, incidental or in relation thereto, is provided to the user by the Minister and the Crown without warranty or representation as to any matter including but not limited to whether the information and storage media is correct, accurate or free from error, defect, danger, or hazard, and whether it is otherwise useful or suitable for any use the user may make of it. The Crown in right of Alberta, the Minister and her employees and agents, shall not be liable for any claims, costs, losses, or damages, including any special, indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage, which the user may incur or experience as a result of the use or possession of the information or associated storage media.
Offline data
Limited custom order processing of Informatics Branch information may be available to Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development personnel and contractors working on behalf of the Ministry.
To utilize digital information, specialized graphics or GIS software (i.e. ArcInfo, ArcView, ArcGIS, or MicroStation) may be required.
DVD
4.7
GB
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is available, with the exception of data exceeding reasonable size limits or when corporate restrictions have been implemented in which the data will be delivered on DVD-R or portable hard drive device. The client may be required to provide an FTP TCP / IP address, user name, and password. Data may also be delivered via the Ministry external FTP site utilizing WinZip password encrypted files
Portable Hard Drive
varies
varies
ESRI File Geodatabase
ESRI File Geodatabase
File compression technology shall be utilized when required. The Data Distribution Unit presently utilizes WinZip.
Where Applicable
All requests for data / information are accepted via email, FAX, or Canada Post. All requests must include: Government of Alberta Ministry Name / Business Area Name, Physical Address, Contact Person Name(s), Phone and FAX Numbers, email Address, list of products requested, the geographic extent of the request (where product options are available - expressed by NTS block(s), township(s), etc), the delivery option required ( on-line / offline ), the data format when multiple formats are offered, and the intended use of the data.
Requests for information are processed and completed in order of receipt with the exception of ESRD requests that are authorized as priority status. All requests for information are completed with five (5) working days of receiving the request wherever possible.
20141215
Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, Government of Alberta
Michael Seneka
mailing and physical address
9820 - 106 Street
Edmonton
Alberta
T5K 2J6
CA
Seventh Floor, Oxbridge Place
08:15 to 16:30, Monday to Friday
This is the point of contact regarding the creation of, and characteristics of, metadata for the data set. Queries about the creation and/or characteristics of the metadata submitted through facsimile or electronic mail must include the salutation "Attention: Michael Seneka, Surface Water Section, Water Policy Branch, Policy Division; Dataset: "Watersheds of Alberta (GOA)". For Distribution Information contact instructions, refer to the Distribution Information section of this metadata record.
Surface Water Section, Water Policy Branch, Policy Division
7804279976
7804226712
michael.seneka@gov.ab.ca
FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
FGDC-STD-001-1998
local time
20230615
08494700
20150106
16484700
FALSE
{A5A523F3-A054-4EC6-8104-2FAE2D77A8FF}
{55B83D9D-C44F-4C33-8F2C-62A4D2E59C4B}
WatershedsOfAlberta
002
170844.329600
865133.515000
5425575.486700
6659344.340000
1
Projected
GCS_North_American_1983
Linear Unit: Meter (1.000000)
NAD_1983_10TM_AEP_Forest
<ProjectedCoordinateSystem xsi:type='typens:ProjectedCoordinateSystem' xmlns:xsi='http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance' xmlns:xs='http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema' xmlns:typens='http://www.esri.com/schemas/ArcGIS/10.7'><WKT>PROJCS["NAD_1983_10TM_AEP_Forest",GEOGCS["GCS_North_American_1983",DATUM["D_North_American_1983",SPHEROID["GRS_1980",6378137.0,298.257222101]],PRIMEM["Greenwich",0.0],UNIT["Degree",0.0174532925199433]],PROJECTION["Transverse_Mercator"],PARAMETER["False_Easting",500000.0],PARAMETER["False_Northing",0.0],PARAMETER["Central_Meridian",-115.0],PARAMETER["Scale_Factor",0.9992],PARAMETER["Latitude_Of_Origin",0.0],UNIT["Meter",1.0],AUTHORITY["EPSG",3400]]</WKT><XOrigin>-5118700</XOrigin><YOrigin>-9994100</YOrigin><XYScale>10000</XYScale><ZOrigin>0</ZOrigin><ZScale>1</ZScale><MOrigin>0</MOrigin><MScale>1</MScale><XYTolerance>0.001</XYTolerance><ZTolerance>0.001</ZTolerance><MTolerance>0.001</MTolerance><HighPrecision>true</HighPrecision><WKID>102184</WKID><LatestWKID>3400</LatestWKID></ProjectedCoordinateSystem>
20230615
08494700
Version 6.2 (Build 9200) ; Esri ArcGIS 10.7.1.11595
WatershedsOfAlberta
1
-120.902231
-108.457295
60.095171
48.894798
Feature Class
dataset
EPSG
6.11(9.3.0.0)
132
20230615