Critical Habitat Polygons For Aquatic Species At Risk In Canada

Canada's Fisheries and Oceans Canada delineates areas containing critical habitat for aquatic species listed as Endangered or Threatened under the Species at Risk Act. The dataset provides geospatial polygons derived from federal orders and provincial hydrological data to enforce legal prohibitions against habitat destruction. It was last updated in March 2026 by the Government of Alberta.

Use Cases

• Identify development project locations intersecting critical habitat polygons to assess legal compliance with SARA prohibitions.
• Map the proximity of proposed infrastructure to aquatic critical habitat extents for environmental impact assessments.
• Analyze the spatial distribution of protected habitat polygons for different aquatic species to inform regional conservation strategies.

Strengths

• Data is legally authoritative, derived from federal Critical Habitat Orders under the Species at Risk Act.
• Polygons integrate detailed data from DFO's Species at Risk dataset and provincial hydrological systems.
• Dataset is actively maintained, with a recorded update in March 2026.

Limitations

• Specific row counts, spatial resolution, and total area covered are not provided.
• The dataset's scope is limited to aquatic species with active federal protection orders, excluding terrestrial species.
• Geographic coverage may be biased towards regions where critical habitat orders have been enacted.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and Alberta Environment and Protected Areas.

Collection Method

Polygons derived from DFO's Species at Risk dataset and provincial FWMIS Hydrology data, combined with a buffer.

Freshness

Updated March 2026.

Geography

Canada, with data provided by the Government of Alberta.