Management zones

Ontario is divided into several management zones for the purposes of administration and management programs. The Area of the Undertaking is one of these zones and is described in detail. The northern boreal or far north is essentially all land north of the AOU and is largely inaccessible with some isolated communities scattered across the landscape. The planning area parks are part of Ontario’s Living Legacy and was coupled with the AOU as part of a planning program in the late 1990s designed to expand parks and protected areas within the managed forest. The great lakes zone is a summary of the lakes themselves, and the islands that occur within them, including Manitoulin. Southern Ontario is where most of the population in the province lives, and is dominated by private land.

Total area by land class and administrative zone (hectares)

Land class Area of the Undertaking Planning Area Parks Great Lakes and Islands Northern Boreal Southern Ontario
Water 5,864,260 248,795 8,725,395 4,224,622 372,406
Wetland 467,734 8,419 3,838 8,861,162 136,235
Field/Agriculture 595,793 22 59,169 12 4,746,538
Other 656,638 61,768 47,548 685,299 689,218
Treed Wetland 1,776,527 47,453 3,836 12,283,354 860,777
Forest 35,618,055 1,091,381 264,078 17,921,211 1,198,878
Total Area 44,979,007 1,457,837 9,103,865 43,975,660 8,004,052

Total area by ownership and administrative zone (hectares)

Zone Crown Parks and protected areas Other Total
Area of the Undertaking 34,414,210 4,558,380 6,006,417 44,979,007
Planning Area Parks 9,494 1,448,085 259 1,457,837
Great Lakes and Islands 39,383,164 4,281,085 311,411 43,975,660
Northern Boreal 8,632,690 188,895 282,280 9,103,865
Southern Ontario 211,799 73,467 7,718,786 8,004,052
Total Area 82,651,356 10,549,912 14,319,153 107,520,421

Map of management zones

map of management zones including Northern Boreal, Area of the Undertaking, Planning Area Parks, Great Lakes, and Southern Ontario.

Enlarge map of management zones

Area by region

pie chart of area by region including green for Area of the Understanding, dark green for Planning Area Parks, blue for Great Lakes and Islands, dark brown for Northern Boreal and grey for Southern Ontario.