Доклад: Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan

The Land

Located in the prairie region of Canada, Saskatchewan is bordered by Manitoba,

Alberta, the Northwest Territories and the United States, and is the only

Canadian province with entirely man-made boundaries. The province is

rectangular in shape and is 651 900 km2 in area. Half of it consists

of forests, one-third of cultivated lands, and one-eighth is covered with

water.

The northern zone rests on a formation of Precambrian rock characteristic of

the Canadian Shield. As a result, there are numerous (over 100 000) lakes,

rivers, bogs and rocky outcroppings.

The southern part of the province is relatively flat, with occasional valleys

created by erosion from the glacial era. This prairie zone is where most of

the people live.

Camel caravans might not seem out of place in certain parts of Saskatchewan.

Athabasca Provincial Park has sand dunes 30 metres high and semi-arid

vegetation. Nowhere else in the world are dunes found this far north.

The name Saskatchewan comes from the Cree word "kisiskatchewanisipi," which

means "swift-flowing river." The province has four major rivers: the

Assiniboine, the North Saskatchewan, the South Saskatchewan and the

Churchill.

The whole province enjoys a hot, dry summer but the town of Estevan is the

undisputed "sunshine capital" of Canada, enjoying 2 540 hours of sunshine per

year.

The History

The first European explorers and trappers to visit Saskatchewan found

established settlements of Aboriginal people. The Chipewyan Indians lived in

the north; the Assiniboine inhabited the eastern plains, while the nomadic

Blackfoot roamed the west. The territory of the Cree, who were long-time

residents of the north, also extended southward to the plains.

The earliest explorer was Henry Kelsey, a Hudson's Bay Company agent, who in

about 1690 followed the Saskatchewan River to the southern plains of

Saskatchewan. On the heels of the trappers came fur-trading companies and

trading posts, which became the foundation of many present-day settlements.

For 200 years, the Hudson's Bay Company owned and administered the vast

Northwest Territories. Realizing their agricultural potential and the

opportunities for colonization, the Government of Canada acquired the

Territories in 1870. After the Dominion Lands Act of 1872, which

encouraged homesteaders, and another Act to stimulate immigration, the new

railway began bringing settlers in to farm these rich lands.

In 1905, Saskatchewan separated from the Northwest Territories and was

established as a province. Regina became the provincial capital. The years

following were years of prosperity, until the 1929 economic crash, combined

with a decade of drought and bad harvests, brought the lean years of the

Great Depression to the province.

In 1944, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) became the first

socialist government elected in North America. Its leader, Tommy Douglas, led

the fight for public hospitalization and medicare, earning Saskatchewan the

reputation as the "social laboratory of North America."

The recovery of the 1940s and 1950s saw the economy, once dependent solely on

agriculture, become more diversified with the development of oil, uranium,

potash, coal and other minerals.

The People

The Métis, people of mixed European and Aboriginal descent, were among

the first settlers, many of them having migrated from Manitoba. With land

available at token prices, agriculture gradually replaced the fur trade. A

major wave of immigration began in 1899 and continued until 1929.

Today, Saskatchewan's population stands at approximately 1 024 000.

Saskatchewan is Canada's only province where the majority of the population

is of neither British nor French background. The population has a variety of

ethnic inheritances - German, Ukrainian, Scandinavian, Amerindian, Dutch,

Polish and Russian, as well as British, French and many other non-European

origins.

Regina and Saskatoon are the two main cities and together have more than one-

third of the total population. Named in recognition of Queen Victoria

(Victoria Regina), the capital is the site of Wascana Centre, one of the

world's largest urban parks. Saskatoon, which has a larger population, is

bisected by the South Saskatchewan River.

The Economy

Saskatchewan has changed greatly since it became a province in 1905. Back

then, agriculture was the only industry, and it centred on wheat farming.

Today, Saskatchewan produces over 54 percent of the wheat grown in Canada.

Other crops include canola, rye, oats, barley and flaxseed. Saskatchewan is

also a major producer of cattle and hogs. The average Saskatchewan farm is

about 420 hectares in size.

Northern Saskatchewan's 350 000 km2 of forests are the province's

most important renewable natural resource. Softwoods (coniferous trees) are the

focal point of forestry development.

Saskatchewan is also a province rich in minerals. Potash, uranium, coal, oil

and natural gas are the leading mineral resources. Saskatchewan's almost 19

000 active oil wells produce about 20 percent of Canada's total oil output.

In addition, with an estimated two-thirds of the world's reserves,

Saskatchewan is the leading exporter of potash.

Research and development is a growing business in Saskatchewan, as attested

to by the inauguration of Saskatoon's Innovation Centre and more recently,

the construction of the Canadian Light Source synchrotron, one of only a few

such facilities in the world. The province's technological potential in

agriculture, space technology and biotechnology is now recognized

internationally.