People A Summary of the NCRB in Northern Manitoba

© 2014 The International Institute for Sustainable Development IISD.org 10 Cree called the river Missinipi “big river”. Munk branded his discovery the Danish River, but it was renamed the Churchill River as early as 1686, after Governor of the Hudson’s Bay Company, the Duke of Marlborough John Churchill Gough, 2010. The deep connection of Canada’s Indigenous Peoples to this land and watershed is based on their long history and stewardship of the land. Their knowledge in managing these landscapes is integral to integrated watershed-based planning eforts.

2.3 People

In 2011 the population in the northern NCRB was up 2.32 per cent, to 37,215 people, compared to the 2006 census. Though this area covers 31 per cent of Manitoba’s land, only 3.08 per cent of the province’s population lives there Statistics Canada, 2007, 2012. Many of the residents in the northern communities identify as Indigenous. Distribution of the population is discontinuous—issues surrounding transportation and remoteness from major centres preclude a smoother urbanrural distribution. Many of the residents of the area identify as Indigenous and reside in northern communities within the region. In Table 1, “settlement area” deines spatially contiguous boundaries of Statistics Canada’s Dissemination Blocks that have a permanent population greater than zero. Figure 4 shows the population distribution in northern Manitoba. As of the 2011 census, there were zero residents in large swaths of the northern NCRB. Most settlements are either on or adjacent to Indigenous communities—a key historical factor in the resulting distribution of settlement in northern Manitoba. Figure 4 . Map of population distribution in northern Manitoba. Source: Produced by IISD based on the data from the 2011 Canadian census Statistics Canada, 2012 Ilford Gillam Brochet Wabowden Thompson Snow Lake Sherridon Lynn Lake Churchill Cross Lake Pikwitonei Leaf Rapids Tadoule Lake Norway House York Landing Granville Lake Split Lake 171 Pukatawagan 198 Thicket Portage Nelson House 170 Lac Brochet 197A South Indian Lake Populated Places 2011 10 100 10,000 Dissemination Blocks Populated Unpopulated Transportation Highway Winter Road Railway Fox Lake 2 © 2014 The International Institute for Sustainable Development IISD.org 11 Table 1. Settlement area population 2011. Settlement Area Population Total Dwellings Occupied Dwellings Thompson 12,839 5,394 4,741 Norway House 5,066 1,334 1,234 Cross Lake 4,710 1,048 933 Nelson House 170 2,471 512 463 Split Lake 171 2,107 406 389 Pukatawagan 198 1,826 385 356 Gillam 1,281 553 427 Lac Brochet 197A 816 194 175 Churchill 813 523 351 South Indian Lake 767 151 151 Snow Lake 733 531 328 Brochet 552 157 132 Wabowden 550 226 195 Lynn Lake 482 295 169 Thicket Portage 468 238 176 Leaf Rapids 453 264 140 York Landing 450 114 107 Tadoule Lake 321 141 112 Fox Lake 2 193 50 44 Ilford 141 33 31 Sherridon 80 36 32 Pikwitonei 76 26 26 Granville Lake 16 5 5 Source: Produced by IISD based on the data from the 2011 Canadian census. Source: Statistics Canada 2012

2.4 Land Use