ABITIBI-TéMISCAMINGUE

(Redirected from Abitibi-Temiscamingue)


'Abitibi-Témiscamingue' is a region located in western Quebec, Canada along the border with Ontario. It became part of the province in 1898. It has a land area of 57,674.26 km² (22,268.16 sq mi). As of the 2006 census, the population of the region was 143,872 inhabitants.

Contents

History

Geography

Economy

Education

Subdivisions

Major communities

External links

History

The land was first occupied about 8 000 years ago by the Algonquins aboriginal group. The first land expeditions were made in 1670 by Radisson as part of the development of the fur trade industry across the Hudson Bay region and through most of the New France colony.
However, the region started to develop during the late 19th and early 20th century with the development of agriculture and forest industries. However, its main colonization occurred during World War I and World War II when a large population coming for urban centers due to the effects of the Great Depression. Federal and provincial plans incited residents to move to undevelopped regions of the province.
The mining industry, which consists essentially of gold also contributed to the growth of the region when numerous mines were open across the region. New cities such as Rouyn-Noranda and Val d'Or were created and is still the backbone of the region's economy as of today.

Geography

The Abitibi-Temiscamingue region is the 4th largest region of the province after the Nord-du-Quebec, Côte-Nord and Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean regions. It has a total surface of 65 000 kilometres squared. Its largest cities are Rouyn-Noranda and Val d'Or.
The region has a mixture of mixte forest to the south across the Temiscamingue area while boreal forests covers the northern section.
The region, like more southerly regions, has a continental humid climate, but has much higher temperature variations due to its latitude and being closer to Hudson Bay and the Arctic.

Economy

The region has one of the highest percentage of workforce in the primary sector with near 1 out of 6 employees working in that sector. The mining sector is the most important economic activity of the region. Despite recent declines in workforce, agriculture and forest industries still contribute significantly to the region's economy.

Education

The region is home to one university: the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, part of the Quebec public university network.

Subdivisions

'Regional County Municipalities'

★ Abitibi Regional County Municipality, Quebec

★ Abitibi-Ouest Regional County Municipality, Quebec

★ La Vallée-de-l'Or Regional County Municipality, Quebec

★ Témiscamingue Regional County Municipality, Quebec
'Independent City'

★ Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec
'Indian Reserves'

★ Kebaowek, Quebec

★ Lac-Simon, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec

★ Pikogan, Quebec

★ Timiskaming, Quebec
Most important cities: Rouyn-Noranda, Val-d'Or, Amos, Ville-Marie, La Sarre.

Major communities

★ Amos

★ Barraute

★ La Sarre

★ Macamic

★ Malartic

★ Rouyn-Noranda

★ Senneterre

★ Témiscaming

★ Val-d'Or

★ Ville-Marie

External links

★ Portail de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue Official website

★ Profile of the region