How to use this product

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• Purpose of the product
• General Methodology
• Content
• Limitations
• Comparison with other products
• Comparison to the 2001 Agricultural Ecumene

Purpose of the product

The agricultural ecumene allows users to thematically map data aggregated to the census division level, limiting the displayed data to those areas where agricultural activity is concentrated in Canada.

The ecumene concept is recommended for use in dot and choropleth maps. If an ecumene is not applied to dot maps, the requisite number of dots may be randomly spread over entire unit areas; this approach defeats the main attributes of dot mapping (i.e. showing correct location, extent and density of the dot symbols). One of the inherent limitations of choropleth maps is that the statistical distribution is assumed to be homogeneous or uniformly spread over each unit area, and is consequently represented by tones or colours covering the entire unit. Thus, an ecumene renders a more accurate depiction of the spatial distribution of data.

This product was created for the display of thematic data on national maps. Although the product was designed to display census division data, data may be displayed without census division boundaries as a flag is used to distinguish ecumene and non-ecumene polygons in the boundary layer.

General Methodology

The 2006 agricultural ecumene was created using spatial data from Geography Division's National Geographic Base. The National Geographic Base contains the boundaries of the 2006 dissemination areas (DAs). Agricultural data from the 2006 Census of Agriculture, aggregated to the dissemination area level, were used to derive the agricultural ecumene.

The dissemination areas included in the agricultural ecumene boundary layer were selected according to three separate, but complementary, indicators of agricultural intensity. The primary indicator was the ratio of total agricultural land to total DA land area. Agricultural land included all land in the DA devoted to crops (including Christmas trees), summerfallow, tame or seeded pasture, and natural land for pasture. This ratio was calculated for each DA within a province and the DAs sorted in descending order, starting with the largest ratio. DAs were selected for inclusion in the agricultural ecumene until the cumulative total area of the selected DAs exceeded a pre-determined percentage of the total agricultural land area for the province.

The second indicator of agricultural intensity was the ratio of total agricultural receipts to total DA land area. This is particularly important for DAs containing farms with large sales on a relatively small land base, such as greenhouses or feedlots. This ratio was also calculated for all DAs in a province and the DAs sorted in descending order. Using the same principle as for the previous indicator, DAs were selected for inclusion in the ecumene until the cumulative total area of the selected DAs exceeded a pre-determined percentage of the total agricultural land area for the province.

The third indicator was to include all DAs in a province that exceeded not only a specific agricultural land total but also a certain ratio of total agricultural land to total DA land area. The final list of selected DAs in a province consisted of all DAs meeting the criteria for one or more of the three indicators, and ensured that the ecumene reflected those areas of significant agricultural activity in a province.

This DA selection process was successful in all provinces except Newfoundland and Labrador. The poor results in this province were due primarily to a combination of many large DAs in the province and a limited and localized pattern of agricultural activity. As a result, the DA selection process was replaced with a procedure that identified and selected smaller areas of significant agricultural activity within dissemination areas. The territories were not included in the delineation of the agricultural ecumene.

A base ecumene layer was created by integrating the selected DAs in nine provinces with the selected DA components in Newfoundland and Labrador. Every DA or DA component polygon was classified as either being an ecumene DA (meeting the agricultural activity criteria) or not being an ecumene DA. This base layer was divided into three component layers: main ecumene, other ecumene pockets (outside the main ecumene) and non-ecumene pockets (within the main ecumene). Five subsequent steps generalized the base layer into an agricultural ecumene boundary layer suitable for small-scale mapping of census division data.

First, small internal non-ecumene pockets and external ecumene pockets were eliminated. Second, the detailed boundaries of the remaining external ecumene pockets were smoothed (generalized) and enlarged to increase their visibility on small-scale maps. Third, the detailed boundaries of the large internal non-ecumene pockets and main ecumene were smoothed. Then, a generalized shoreline around Canada, the Great Lakes, and large inland lakes were incorporated into the ecumene. Finally, the 2006 census division boundaries were integrated into the ecumene boundary layer.

The census division boundary layer and the province/territory boundary layer were derived from the National Geographic Base. The hydrography (generalized shoreline, the Great Lakes, and large inland lakes) included in the ecumene boundary layer was also incorporated into these two boundary layers. The census division boundary layer was assigned census division names from the Query Base, a database maintained within Statistics Canada. The province/territory boundary layer was also assigned province/territory names from the same base.

Content

This product contains three separate layers of information: the ecumene boundary layer, the census division boundary layer and the province/territory boundary layer.

Figure 1

The agricultural ecumene boundary layer

Description

Figure 2
The census division boundary layer

Description

Figure 3
The province/territory boundary layer

Description

Limitations

The agricultural ecumene boundary layer incorporating the shoreline around Canada has been generalized to be suitable for cartographic display at a small scale (1:20,000,000 to 1:25,000,000). The position of the boundaries and shorelines are not compatible with Geography Division's Cartographic Boundary Files, Road Network Files or Road Network and Geographic Attribute Files. Similarly, the product does not support cadastral, surveying or engineering applications.

Comparison with other products

Due to the extensive generalization and the use of a different generalized coastline, the 2006 Agricultural Ecumene Census Division Boundary File is not compatible with other 2006 Census Boundary File products or other spatial files.

Comparison to the 2001 Agricultural Ecumene

The 2006 Agricultural Ecumene Census Division Boundary File is derived in the same fashion as the 2001 agricultural ecumene, using the dissemination area.

The census division boundaries within the 2006 Agricultural Ecumene Census Division Boundary File are updated to reflect boundary changes and are not compatible with the census division boundaries contained in the 2001 Agricultural Ecumene Census Division Boundary File.