The Lower Mainland is a geographic and cultural region of the mainland coast of the Canadian province of British Columbia that generally comprises the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Home to approximately 3.05million people as of the 2021 Canadian census, the Lower Mainland contains sixteen of the province's 30 most populous municipalities and approximately 60% of the province's total population.
The region was historically occupied by the Sto:lo, a Halkomelem-speaking people of the Coast Salish linguistic and cultural grouping.
Boundaries Although the term Lower Mainland has been used from the earliest period of European colonization in British Columbia, it has never been officially defined in legal terms. The term has historically been in popular usage for over a century to describe a region that extends from Horseshoe Bay south to the Canada–United States border and east to Hope at the eastern end of the Fraser Valley. This definition makes the term Lower Mainland almost synonymous with the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley.Gentilcore, R.L., ed. 1993. Historical Atlas of Canada, Vol II, The Land Transformed 1800–1891. Plate 36, "Lower Mainland 1881." Toronto: University of Toronto Press. .
However, the British Columbia Geographical Names Information System (BCGNIS) comments that most residents of Vancouver might consider it to be only areas west of Mission and Abbotsford, while residents in the rest of the province consider it to be the Sea-to-Sky Corridor south of Whistler and west of Hope.
Geography
The region is bounded to the north by the Pacific Ranges and to the southeast by the Cascade Mountains, and is traversed from east to west by the Fraser River. Due to its consistency of climate, flora and fauna, geology and land use, "Lower Mainland" is also the name of an ecoregion—a biogeoclimatic region—that comprises the eastern part of the Georgia Depression and extends from Powell River on the Sunshine Coast to Hope at the eastern end of the Fraser Valley.Environment Canada. Ecoregions of Canada – Lower Mainland . Ecological Framework of Canada. Retrieved on: 9 July 2011
Climate One of the mildest climates in Canada, the region has a mean annual temperature of with a summer mean of and a winter mean of . Annual precipitation ranges from an annual mean of in the west end to in the eastern end of the Fraser Valley and at higher elevations. Maximum precipitation occurs as rain in winter. Less than ten percent falls as snow at sea level but the amount of snowfall increases significantly with elevation.
Demographics
Population As of the 2021 census, the population of the Lower Mainland core area totals 2,966,830: 2,642,825 in Metro Vancouver Regional District 324,005 in the Fraser Valley Regional District
These figures are slightly inflated due to the inclusion of areas within the regional districts which are not normally considered to be part of the Lower Mainland, notably the lower Fraser Canyon and the heads of Harrison and Pitt Lakes, which are within the FVRD, and Lions Bay and Bowen Island, which are within the Metro Vancouver Regional District.
Ethnicity
The Lower Mainland is among the most multicultural and diverse regions in Canada.
As of 2021, Europeans form a plurality with 1,337,105 persons or 45.7 percent of the total population, followed by East Asians with 614,860 persons or 21.0 percent and South Asians with 422,880 persons or 14.5 percent. + Panethnic groups in the Lower Mainland (2001−2021)Panethnicgroup20212016201120062001 European 1,337,105 1,387,125 1,403,525 1,381,770 1,397,990 East Asian 614,860 564,445 494,130 458,165 399,785 South Asian 422,880 330,925 285,780 233,530 183,660 Southeast Asian 207,420 173,060 159,430 115,185 88,000 Middle Eastern 89,135 63,300 49,505 36,085 27,595 Indigenous 87,355 83,660 70,915 54,845 48,380 Latin American 54,545 36,855 30,510 24,480 20,040 African 44,700 32,325 25,385 21,945 19,320 Other/multiracial 67,755 43,295 33,165 25,815 16,565 Total responses 2,924,685 2,715,000 2,552,350 2,351,805 2,201,330 Total population 2,966,830 2,759,365 2,590,921 2,373,612 2,224,515
Religion
The Lower Mainland includes large irreligious, Christian, and Sikh communities. The Sikh population, numbering over 265,000 persons or 9.1 percent of the total population is statistically significant across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley; proportionally, it is more than four times the national average of 2.1 percent. + Religious groups in the Lower Mainland (2001−2021)Religiousgroup202120112001 Irreligion 1,361,800 1,042,815 758,130 Christianity 989,105 1,088,160 1,138,505 Sikhism 265,870 184,810 116,110 Islam 113,880 74,320 53,225 Buddhism 72,595 79,680 76,140 Hinduism 71,210 42,205 28,440 Judaism 20,430 19,125 17,555 Indigenous spirituality 2,895 2,590 2,225 Other 26,900 18,640 11,015 Total responses 2,924,685 2,552,350 2,201,325 Total population 2,966,830 2,590,921 2,224,515
Language
+Knowledge of language (2016−2021) Language20212016English 2,772,150 2,569,215 Mandarin 295,400 252,260 Punjabi 286,270 223,510 Cantonese 235,220 224,655 French 185,330 185,420 Tagalog 113,205 98,395 Hindi 119,435 75,125 Spanish 100,355 79,885 Korean 63,335 52,650 German 43,490 47,825 Total responses 2,924,680 2,714,995 Total population 2,966,830 2,759,365
+Mother tongue (2016−2021) Language20212016English 1,576,995 1,537,875 Punjabi 219,015 182,050 Mandarin 193,190 176,435 Cantonese 183,860 185,135 Tagalog 69,895 68,240 Persian 54,985 41,645 Korean 54,385 47,715 Spanish 49,255 38,705 French 27,280 27,820 German 24,795 32,210 Total responses 2,939,500 2,731,255 Total population 2,966,830 2,759,365
Regional districts
Regional districts were first created across British Columbia from 1966 to 1967 to form bodies for inter-municipal coordination and to extend municipal-level powers to areas outside existing municipalities. Today, the Lower Mainland includes two regional districts: the Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD) and the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD). Both regional districts, however, include areas outside the traditional limits of the Lower Mainland. Metro Vancouver includes areas like Surrey and Langley that are geographically in the Fraser Valley.
The Metro Vancouver Regional District is made up of 21 municipalities. The MVRD is bordered on the west by the Strait of Georgia, to the north by the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, on the east by the Fraser Valley Regional District, and to the south by Whatcom County, Washington, in the United States.
The Fraser Valley Regional District lies east of the Metro Vancouver Regional District, and comprises the cities of Abbotsford and Chilliwack, the district municipalities of Mission, Kent, and Hope, and the village of Harrison Hot Springs. It also includes many unincorporated areas in the Fraser Valley and along the west side of the Fraser Canyon (the Fraser Canyon is not in the Lower Mainland).
Regional district powers are very limited and other localized provincial government services are delivered through other regionalization systems.
Indigenous territories
The region was historically occupied by the Musqueam and Tsleil'waututh, and the southern portion was historically occupied by the Squamish. Its claims overlap those of the Tsleil-waututh, Musqueam, and Kwikwetlem. Other peoples who historically occupied the region are the Sto:lo, Chehalis, Katzie, Kwantlen, Tsawwassen, and Semiahmoo; many of their territories overlap with those of the Musqueam, and with each other. Many other peoples of the Georgia Strait region also frequented the lower Fraser, including those from Vancouver Island and what is now Whatcom County, Washington. Sto:lo "traditional territory", known as Solh Temexw in Halkomelem, roughly coincides with the Lower Mainland, except for the inclusion of Port Douglas at the head of Harrison Lake, which is in In-SHUCK-ch territory, and the lands around Burrard Inlet.
Health regions Health system services and governance in the Lower Mainland are provided by Vancouver Coastal Health, serving Vancouver, Richmond and the North Shore, and the mainland coast as far north as the Central Coast region, and Fraser Health, which serves the area of the Lower Mainland east of Vancouver and Richmond.BC Ministry of Health. British Columbia Health Authorities: Maps . Retrieved on: 10 July 2011.
Natural threats
Flooding The Lower Mainland is considered to have a high vulnerability to flood risk. There have been two major region-wide floods in 1894 and 1948, both associated with an extreme spring freshet of the Fraser River. Other major floods in the Lower Mainlandincluding June 1972, November 1990, and November 2021have been more localized, primarily impacting areas in the Fraser Valley like the Sumas Prairie, with comparatively minor impacts to Metro Vancouver. Prior to the 2021 flood, according to the Fraser Basin Council, scientists predicted a one-in-three chance of a similar-sized flood occurring in the next 50 years.
In the second quarter of 2007, the Lower Mainland was on high alert for flooding. Higher than normal snow packs in the British Columbia Interior prompted municipal governments to start taking emergency measures in the region. Dikes along the Fraser River are regulated to handle approximately at the Mission Gauge (the height above sea level of the dykes at Mission). Warmer than normal weather in the province's Interior region caused large amounts of snow to melt prematurely, resulting in higher-than-normal water levels, which, nevertheless, remained well below flood levels.Nguyen, Linda (7 June 2007). Lower Mainland at flood risk for weeks yet . Vancouver Sun. Retrieved on: 18 June 2008.
Flooding can cover much of the Lower Mainland. Cloverdale, Barnston Island, low-lying areas of Maple Ridge, areas west of Hope, White Rock, Richmond, parts of Vancouver, and parts of Surrey are potentially at risk. In 2007, the Lower Mainland was largely spared, although northern regions of the province, along the Skeena and Nechako Rivers, experienced floods. Climate scientists predict that increasing temperatures will mean wetter winters and more snow at the high elevations. This will increase the likelihood of snowmelt floods.
The provincial government maintains an integrated flood hazard management program and extensive flood protection infrastructure in the Lower Mainland. The infrastructure consists of dikes, pump stations, floodboxes, riprap, and relief wells.
Earthquakes While earthquakes are common in British Columbia and adjacent coastal waters, most are minor in energy release or are sufficiently remote to have little effect on populated areas. Nevertheless, earthquakes with a magnitude of up to 7.3 have occurred within of the Lower Mainland.
Based on geological evidence, however, stronger earthquakes appear to have occurred at approximately 600-year intervals. Therefore, there is a probability that there will be a major earthquake in the region within the next 200 years.British Columbia. Provincial Emergency Program. (1999). British Columbia Earthquake Response Plan, Appendix 2-The Earthquake Threat . . Retrieved on: 7 April 2008.
In April 2008, the United States Geological Survey released information concerning a newly found fault south of downtown Abbotsford, called the Boulder Creek Fault. Scientists now believe this fault is active and capable of producing earthquakes in the 6.8 magnitude range.. Earthquake risk. Retrieved on 12 May 2009.
Volcanoes