Our Ocean Domain

Canada has the second largest landmass in the world at 9,970,610 km2. The ocean areas under Canadian jurisdiction are almost equal in size, creating a second, seaward Canada.

We have has the world's largest coastline measuring 243,792 kilometres, stretched out as a single continuous line, Canada's coastline would circle the Earth more than six times! We border 3 oceans, the Atlantic, the Pacific and the Arctic. These waters contain some of the world's largest untapped reserves of offshore oil and natural gas.

East Coast 200 mile zone 1,400,000 km2
West Coast 200 mile zone 980,000 km2
Arctic 200 mile zone 2,920,000 km2
Internal Arctic Waters 3,380,000 km2
Continental Margin outside the 200 mile zone 1,800,000 km2
TOTAL 9,880,000 km2

The ocean areas for which Canada is responsible for defending under a combination of NATO and Canada-US Defence treaties and agreements is over 12 million square kilometres.

About 7 million Canadians live in coastal communities, where many depend on the coast and the sea to make a living. Approximately 1⁄4 of all political ridings border on one of Canada's oceans.