The Canadian Heritage Rivers System (CHRS) was established in 1984 by the federal, provincial and territorial governments to conserve and protect the best examples of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

's river heritage, to give them national recognition, and to encourage the public to enjoy and appreciate them. It is a cooperative program of the governments of Canada, nine provinces, and the three territories. A 14-member national board administers the program. Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 withdrew its participation in 2006.

The first Canadian Heritage River was the French River

French River (Ontario)

The French River is a river in Central Ontario, Canada. It flows from Lake Nipissing west to Georgian Bay. The river largely follows the boundary between the Parry Sound District and the Sudbury District, and in most contexts is considered the dividing line between Northern Ontario and Southern...

 in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, designated in 1986, and rivers are now designated in every province and territory except for Quebec. There are currently 37 designated and 4 nominated rivers.

Designated rivers

The rivers currently designated as a Canadian Heritage River are:

River	Province/Territory	Year
Alsek River Alsek River The Alsek River is a wilderness river flowing from the Yukon into Northern British Columbia and into Alaska. The surrounding area from the Western edge of the Alsek to East of the East Alsek is known to locals as Dry Bay.-Course:...	Yukon	1986
Arctic Red River Arctic Red River The Arctic Red River is the name of a tributary to the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories, Canada.In 1993 the river was designated as part of the Canadian Heritage Rivers System. It was also the name of a community on the Mackenzie where the river joins, now known as Tsiigehtchic...	Northwest Territories	1993
Athabasca River Athabasca River The Athabasca River originates from the Columbia Glacier of the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada...	Alberta	1989
Bay du Nord River Bay du Nord River The Bay du Nord River is located on the south coast of the Island of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Much of the drainage basin is contained within the Middle Ridge Wildlife Reserve and the Bay du Nord Wilderness Reserve of central Newfoundland.The river empties...	Newfoundland	2006
Bloodvein River Bloodvein River The Bloodvein River is a pristine river on the east side of Lake Winnipeg, in Ontario and Manitoba, Canada. This wilderness area has no logging roads, mines, or hydro developments nearby. Many native locals and tourists enjoy canoeing and fishing in this remote and clean river...	Manitoba/Ontario	1987/1998
Bonnet Plume River Bonnet Plume River The Bonnet Plume River is one of the Yukon's better-known rivers. It flows from a mountain lake source in the Bonnet Plume Range in the Mackenzie Mountains through several mountain ranges to its confluence with the Peel. It is very popular with outdoor enthusiasts as a canoe, kayak or rafting trip...	Yukon	1998
Boundary Waters Boundary Waters The Boundary Waters — also called the Quetico-Superior country — is a region of wilderness straddling the Canada–United States border between Ontario and Minnesota, in the region just west of Lake Superior. This region is part of the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota, and in Canada...	Ontario	1996
Clearwater River Clearwater River (Saskatchewan) Clearwater River is the name of a river in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta.-Course:The Clearwater River totals 295 kilometres in length and rises in northwestern Saskatchewan in the northern forest region of the Precambrian Shield. From its headwaters at Broach Lake it flows...	Saskatchewan/Alberta	1987/2004
Cowichan River Cowichan River The Cowichan River is a moderately sized river in British Columbia, Canada. It originates in Cowichan Lake, flowing east towards its end at Cowichan Bay. Its drainage basin is in size....	British Columbia	2003
Detroit River Detroit River The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...	Ontario/Michigan	2001
Fraser River Fraser River The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...	British Columbia	1998
French River French River (Ontario) The French River is a river in Central Ontario, Canada. It flows from Lake Nipissing west to Georgian Bay. The river largely follows the boundary between the Parry Sound District and the Sudbury District, and in most contexts is considered the dividing line between Northern Ontario and Southern...	Ontario	1986
Grand River Grand River (Ontario) The Grand River is a large river in southwestern Ontario, Canada. From its source, it flows south through Grand Valley, Fergus, Elora, Waterloo, Kitchener, Cambridge, Paris, Brantford, Caledonia, and Cayuga before emptying into the north shore of Lake Erie south of Dunnville at Port Maitland...	Ontario	1994
Hayes River Hayes River The Hayes River is a river in Northern Region, Manitoba, Canada that flows from Molson Lake to Hudson Bay at York Factory. It was an historically important river in the development of Canada, and is today a Canadian Heritage River and the longest naturally flowing river in Manitoba.-Course:The...	Manitoba	2006
Hillsborough River Hillsborough River (Prince Edward Island) The Hillsborough River, also known as the East River, is a Canadian river in northeastern Queens County, Prince Edward Island.-Battle at Port-la-Joye :...	Prince Edward Island	1997
Humber River	Ontario	1999
Kazan River	Nunavut	1990
Kicking Horse River Kicking Horse River The Kicking Horse River is a river located in the Canadian Rockies of southeastern British Columbia, Canada.The river was named in 1858, when James Hector, a member of the Palliser Expedition, was kicked by his packhorse while exploring the river. Hector survived and named the river and the...	Alberta/British Columbia	1989
Main River Main River (Newfoundland) Main River is a river in Newfoundland, Canada, a very popular canoeing destination. It is 57 km long, originates in the Long Range Mountains and enters the sea at White Bay.Main River was designated a Canadian Heritage River in February 2001.-References:*...	Newfoundland	2001
Margaree River Margaree River The Margaree River is a river on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. The northeast branch of the river derives from the watershed of the Cape Breton Highlands, while the Southwest Margaree flows northeast from Lake Ainslie. The two branches join at Margaree Forks...	Nova Scotia	1998
Mattawa River Mattawa River The Mattawa River is a river in central Ontario, Canada. It flows east from Trout Lake east of North Bay and enters the Ottawa River at the town of Mattawa. Counting from the head of Trout Lake, it is 76 km in length...	Ontario	1988
Missinaibi River Missinaibi River The Missinaibi River is a river in northern Ontario, Canada, which flows northeast from Missinaibi Lake, north of Chapleau, and empties into the Moose River, which drains into James Bay. This river is in length...	Ontario	2004
North Saskatchewan River North Saskatchewan River The North Saskatchewan River is a glacier-fed river that flows east from the Canadian Rockies to central Saskatchewan. It is one of two major rivers that join to make up the Saskatchewan River....	Alberta/British Columbia	1989
Red River Red River of the North The Red River is a North American river. Originating at the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and Otter Tail rivers in the United States, it flows northward through the Red River Valley and forms the border between the U.S. states of Minnesota and North Dakota before continuing into Manitoba, Canada...	Manitoba	2007
Rideau Waterway	Ontario	2000
Seal River Seal River The Seal River is a river in the Northern Region of Manitoba, Canada. It travels from Shethanei Lake to the Hudson Bay. The river was nominated for the Canadian Heritage Rivers System in 1987 and was officially listed in 1992.-Geography:...	Manitoba	1992
Shelburne River Shelburne River The Shelburne River is a 53 km long river in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a wilderness river and is a tributary of Mersey River. It starts in the Tobeatic Wilderness Area.The Shelburne River was designated a Canadian Heritage River in 1997.- References :...	Nova Scotia	1997
Soper River Soper River The Soper River is a waterway in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Baffin Island.It flows over and then empties to the Soper Lake and Pleasant Inlet....	Nunavut	1992
South Nahanni River South Nahanni River The South Nahanni River is a major tributary of the Liard River, located roughly 500 kilometres west of Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the centerpiece of Nahanni National Park Reserve...	Northwest Territories	1987
St. Croix River St. Croix River (Maine-New Brunswick) The St. Croix River is a river in northeastern North America, in length, that forms part of the Canada – United States border between Maine and New Brunswick . The river rises in the Chiputneticook Lakes and flows south and southeast, between Calais and St. Stephen...	New Brunswick	1991
St. Marys River St. Marys River (Michigan-Ontario) The St. Marys River , sometimes written as the St. Mary's River, drains Lake Superior, starting at the end of Whitefish Bay and flowing 74.5 miles southeast into Lake Huron, with a fall of ....	Ontario	2000
Tatshenshini River Tatshenshini River The Tatshenshini River is a river in the southwestern Yukon and the northwestern corner of British Columbia. It originates in British Columbia, near Haines Highway...	Yukon	2004
Thames River Thames River (Ontario) The Thames River is located in southwestern Ontario, Canada.The Thames flows west through southwestern Ontario, through the cities of Woodstock, London and Chatham to Lighthouse Cove on Lake St. Clair...	Ontario	2000
Thelon River Thelon River The Thelon River stretches across northern Canada. Its source is Whitefish Lake in the Northwest Territories, and it flows east to Baker Lake in Nunavut. The Thelon ultimately drains into Hudson Bay at Chesterfield Inlet.-Geography:...	Nunavut	1990
The Three Rivers The Three Rivers The Three Rivers is the collective name given to three tidal estuaries in eastern Prince Edward Island, Canada. The water bodies are the Brudenell, Cardigan and Montague rivers, which in 2004 were included on the list of outstanding Canadian Heritage Rivers...	Prince Edward Island	2004
Upper Restigouche River Restigouche River The Restigouche River is a river that flows across the northwestern part of the province of New Brunswick and the southeastern part of Quebec....	New Brunswick	1998
Yukon River Yukon River The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...  (The Thirty Mile Section)	Yukon	1991

Nominated rivers

River	Province/Territory	Year
Churchill River Churchill River (Hudson Bay) The Churchill River is a major river in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada. From the head of the Churchill Lake it is 1,609 km long. It was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and governor of the Hudson's Bay Company from 1685 to 1691...	Saskatchewan
Coppermine River Coppermine River The Coppermine River is a river in the North Slave and Kitikmeot regions of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut in Canada. It is long. It rises in Lac de Gras, a small lake near Great Slave Lake and flows generally north to Coronation Gulf, an arm of the Arctic Ocean...	Nunavut
Ottawa River Ottawa River The Ottawa River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. For most of its length, it now defines the border between these two provinces.-Geography:...	Ontario	2007
St. John River	New Brunswick	2008

Quebec participation

As of 2011, Quebec is the only province or territory to not have a designated or nominated river. Quebec withdrew its participation in the Canadian Heritage Rivers System in 2006.

Quebec's lack of participation potentially impacts nominations for rivers shared with other provinces. In 1998, the New Brunswick portion of the Restigouche River

Restigouche River

The Restigouche River is a river that flows across the northwestern part of the province of New Brunswick and the southeastern part of Quebec....

 was designated (as "Upper Restigouche"), while the Quebec portion was not. The Ottawa River was nominated in 2007, but local media reports acknowledged the challenge facing the Ottawa River's bid, as only the Ontario portion of the river would be designated and protected. Unlike the Restigouche, the Ottawa River forms much of the Ontario-Quebec border, so protecting the Ontario shore would be somewhat pointless if the Quebec shore wasn't also protected.

See also

• American Heritage Rivers
  American Heritage Rivers
  American Heritage Rivers are designated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency to receive special attention to further three objectives: natural resource and environmental protection, economic revitalization, and historic and cultural preservation.The American Heritage Rivers...
  
  , America's counterpart to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System

External links

• Canadian Heritage River Website