Edmonton Capital Region

The Edmonton Capital Region (ECR), also known as Greater Edmonton or the Alberta Capital Region, comprises Alberta's provincial capital of Edmonton and surrounding communities in Sturgeon County (north), Parkland County (west), the Specialized Municipality of Strathcona County (east) and Leduc County (south). A small portion of Lamont County also lies within the ECR just to the northeast. Up to 35 independent municipalities make up Edmonton's CMA outside the City of Edmonton itself. The largest of these are St. Albert, Sherwood Park (part of the Municipality of Strathcona County), Spruce Grove, Leduc, and Fort Saskatchewan. Towns include Stony Plain, Beaumont, Morinville, Devon, Redwater, Legal, Gibbons, Calmar, Bruderheim, Lamont and Bon Accord. Major industrial areas include Nisku and Port Alberta in Leduc County and the recently established Alberta Industrial Heartland, northeast of Fort Saskatchewan.

Elk Island National Park lies within the eastern part of the Edmonton Capital Region. It is a remaining patch of natural parkland, which is now largely destroyed in this region by extensive agricultural and other human activities. Herds of wood bison and elk can be seen roaming in the national park. Also beaver, moose and other animals make their home in Elk Island National Park.

The ECR's boundaries are the same as that of Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) as outlined by Statistics Canada. The total area of the CMA is convert|9418|km2 - the largest CMA by area in Canada. The population of the ECR and Edmonton CMA is 1,034,945 as per the 2006 census by Statistics Canada. The population of the ECR is expected to reach 1.25 million by 2020 and 1.5 million by 2033.

The ECR is also a part of the Statistics Canada Division No. 11 in Alberta. Unlike the census division, the ECR itself does "not" include Wetaskiwin County or Brazeau County, as does Division No. 11. And division No. 12

In the past, Edmonton annexed a few surrounding communities which are now neighbourhoods of that city, including Beverly (annexed 1961), Jasper Place (annexed 1964), and most famously, Strathcona (annexed 1912), whose downtown is now the Old Strathcona historical district centered on Whyte (82) Avenue. Edmonton has attempted in the past to annex Sherwood Park and St. Albert, but without success to date.

The ECR is fragmented in terms of regional cooperation and partnership, and that has played a role in the history of Edmonton and the surrounding region. The City of Edmonton is pushing for greater cooperation among the surrounding municipalities within the Capital Region. In December 2006, Premier Ed Stelmach ordered the creation of a new regional planning board with binding powers over the municipalities of the ECR. [cite web
url= http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?k=50233&id=574c66c0-f3bf-4de3-8f45-aa3cc5fff4eb
title= Mayor "elated" by new regional planning board
accessdate= 2008-01-09
coauthors= Archie McLean and Susan Ruttan
date= 2007-12-19
publisher= "Edmonton Journal",]

The Edmonton Capital Region is considered a major gateway to northern Alberta and the Canadian North, particularly for many companies, including airlines and oil/natural gas exploration. Located at Coord|name=Edmonton Capital Region|53|34|N|113|31|W, it is the northernmost metropolitan area in Canada and is also located near the geographical centre of Alberta. The ECR is at the northern end of the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor, one of four major economic regions which comprise 50% of Canada's total population.

Communities

Footnotes

ee also

* Calgary-Edmonton Corridor

External links

* [http://www.edmonton.com/portal.asp?page=1 Edmonton.com - Portal to Greater Edmonton]
* [http://www.edmonton.com/eedc/portal.asp?page=2 EEDC - Edmonton Economic Development Corporation]
* [http://www.internationalregion.com Edmonton's International Region]
* [http://www.town.beaumont.ab.ca Life is Better in Beaumont]

Canadian City Geographic Location (8-way)
Northwest = Barrhead County, Lac Ste. Anne County
North = Thorhild County, Westlock County
Northeast = Lamont County
West = Yellowhead County
Centre = Edmonton Capital Region
East = Beaver County
Southwest = Brazeau County
South = Wetaskiwin County
Southeast = Camrose County