Air Pollution Sources in the Prairies and Northern Region

Although only 17% of Canada’s population live in the provinces and territories that make up Prairie and Northern Region, the region is responsible for a significant proportion of Canada’s air pollutant emissions.  This high level of emissions is primarily due to the importance of energy intensive oil and gas production, mining and smelting and other resource extraction in the region.  The use of coal for electricity generation in Alberta and Saskatchewan is also a significant contributor to air pollutant emissions.

The graph below shows the percentage of total Canadian emissions of fine particulate matter (PM_2.5), sulphur oxides (SO_x), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), and volatile organic compounds (VOC) that are emitted from Prairie and Northern Region.  Roughly 40% of Canadian SO_x, NO_x, and VOC emissions come from Prairie and Northern Region.

Prairie and Northern Region Proportion of Canadian Emissions of Air Pollutants

The main sectors of the economy contributing to air pollutant emissions in Prairie and Northern Region are different for each pollutant.

By far the largest amount of PM_2.5 emissions originate from “open sources” such as dust from unpaved roads and agriculture.  The remaining PM_2.5 emissions come mainly from transportation (cars, trucks, planes, trains), electricity generation (mainly coal-fired power plants), and the forest products sector.  Smaller contributions of PM_2.5 come from a wide range of sectors such as mining and smelting, residential wood heating, and the oil and gas industry.

Sources of PM_2.5emissions in Prairie and Northern Region

Emissions of SO_x in Prairie and Northern Region are dominated by large industrial sources such as the oil and gas industry, mining and smelting, and electricity generation in coal fired power plants.

Sources of SO_x emissions in Prairie and Northern Region

Emissions of NO_x in Prairie and Northern Region come mainly from the transportation sector, the oil and gas industry, and electricity generation from coal, diesel and natural gas.

Sources of NO_x emissions in Prairie and Northern Region

VOC have both natural and anthropogenic sources.  Anthropogenic emissions of VOC in Prairie and Northern Region come mainly from oil and gas production and transportation.  One quarter of VOC emissions come from a wide variety of sources such as solvent and paint use, residential wood heating, fuel marketing (i.e. gas stations), and the chemical industry.

Sources of VOC emissions in Prairie and Northern Region