The distribution and morphometry of lakes and reservoirs in British Columbia: a provincial inventory

Abstract

An inventory of provincial lakes and reservoirs has been developed to characterise and assess the distribution and morphometry of standing water bodies in British Columbia. In the province, there are over 241,500 lakes and reservoirs greater than 1,000 m 2 in size. These water bodies cover 2.37 percent of the province area and contain an estimated 521 km 3 of water (312 km 3 in natural lakes and 209 km 3 in reservoirs). A hypsometric relation suitable for order‐of‐magnitude estimates of lake volume from lake area is presented. Based on the distribution and morphometric attributes of lakes, several distinctive limnologic regions were identified, including the northeastern Alberta Plateau (highest proportion of circular lakes), the southwestern Alberta Plateau (lowest lake density/coverage and highest proportion of irregularly shaped lakes) and the Milbanke Strandflat (highest density of lakes). Observed regional and scale‐related patterns in lake distribution/morphometry appear to be largely related to geomorphic controls, particularly tectonic and glacial history. Large‐scale hydrologic implications of these standing water bodies and potential ecosystem/water resource management applications of the provincial inventory are also discussed.