The Lower Mainland is a name commonly applied to the region

Region

Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...

 surrounding and including Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, 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...

. As of 2007, 2,524,113 people (60% of British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

's total population) live in the region; sixteen of the province's thirty most populous municipalities are located there.

While the term Lower Mainland has been recorded from the earliest period of non-native settlement in British Columbia, it has never been officially defined in legal terms. 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 whole region south of Whistler

Whistler, British Columbia

Whistler is a Canadian resort town in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the province of British Columbia, Canada, approximately north of Vancouver...

 and west of Hope. However, 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

Hope, British Columbia

Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...

 at the eastern end of the Fraser Valley

Fraser Valley

The Fraser Valley is the section of the Fraser River basin in southwestern British Columbia downstream of the Fraser Canyon. The term is sometimes used to refer to the Fraser Canyon and stretches upstream from there, but in general British Columbian usage of the term refers to the stretch of the...

.

Climate, ecology and geology of the Lower Mainland are consistent enough that it has been classified as a separate ecoregion (the Lower Mainland Ecoregion

Lower Mainland Ecoregion

The Lower Mainland Ecoregion is the biogeoclimatic region that surrounds Vancouver, British Columbia, comprising the eastern edge of the Georgia Depression and extending from Powell River, British Columbia on the Sunshine Coast to Hope at the eastern end of the Fraser Valley...

) within the Ecological framework of Canada, used by both Federal and Provincial Environment Ministries. The region is the traditional territory of the Sto:lo, a Halkomelem

Halkomelem language

Halkomelem is a language of the First Nations peoples of southeastern Vancouver Island from the west shore of Saanich Inlet northward beyond Nanoose Bay, and of the mainland around the Fraser River Delta upriver to Harrison Lake and the lower...

-speaking people of the Coast Salish

Coast Salish

Coast Salish languages are a subgroup of the Salishan language family. These languages are spoken by First Nations or Native American peoples inhabiting the territory that is now the southwest coast of British Columbia around the Strait of Georgia and Washington state around Puget Sound...

 linguistic and cultural grouping. There are two Regional Districts within the region, Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley Regional District

Fraser Valley Regional District

The Fraser Valley Regional District is a regional district in British Columbia, Canada. The FVRD covers an area of 13,361.74 km²...

.

Geography

The region is bounded to the north by the Coast Mountains

Coast Mountains

The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia. They are so-named because of their proximity to the sea coast, and are often...

 and to the southeast by the Cascade Mountains

Cascade Range

The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, and the notable volcanoes known as the High Cascades...

, and is traversed from east to west by the 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...

. Due to its consistency of climate

Climate

Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...

, flora and fauna, geology

Geology

Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...

 and land use

Land use

Land use is the human use of land. Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as fields, pastures, and settlements. It has also been defined as "the arrangements, activities and inputs people undertake in a certain land cover...

, "Lower Mainland" is also the name of an ecoregion

Ecoregion

An ecoregion , sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than an ecozone and larger than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, geographically distinct assemblages of natural...

—a biogeoclimatic region—that comprises the eastern part of the Georgia Depression

Georgia Depression

The Georgia Depression is a landform in the Pacific Northwest, part of the Insular Mountain System of the North American Cordillera in British Columbia, Canada, and in Washington, United States...

 and extends from Powell River on the Sunshine Coast

Sunshine Coast, British Columbia

The Sunshine Coast is a region of the southern mainland coast of British Columbia, on the eastern shore of the Strait of Georgia, and just northwest of Greater Vancouver...

 to Hope at the eastern end of the Fraser Valley.

One of the mildest climates in Canada, the region has a mean annual temperature in the Lower Mainland is 9°C with a summer mean of 15 °C and a winter mean of 3.5 °C. Annual precipitation ranges from an annual mean of 850 mm in the west end to 2000 mm 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.

Population

In 2007 there were approximately 2,524,113 people living in the communities of the Lower Mainland, comprising

• 274,388 in the Fraser Valley Regional District
  Fraser Valley Regional District
  The Fraser Valley Regional District is a regional district in British Columbia, Canada. The FVRD covers an area of 13,361.74 km²...
  
  
• 2,249,725 in the Greater Vancouver Regional District
  Greater Vancouver Regional District
  Metro Vancouver is the brand name of the board of the inter-municipal administrative body known as the Greater Vancouver Regional District , a regional district in British Columbia, Canada...
  
  

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

Fraser Canyon

The Fraser Canyon is an 84 km landform of the Fraser River where it descends rapidly through narrow rock gorges in the Coast Mountains en route from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia to the Fraser Valley...

 and the heads of Harrison

Harrison Lake

Harrison Lake is the largest lake in the southern Coast Mountains of Canada, being about 250 square kilometres in area. It is about 60 km in length and at its widest almost 9 km across. Its southern end, at the resort community of Harrison Hot Springs, is c. 95 km east of...

 and Pitt Lake

Pitt Lake

Pitt Lake is the second-largest lake in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, being about 53.5 square kilometres in area. It is about 25 km long and about 4.5 km wide at its widest, and is also one of the world's largest tidal lakes, its confluence with the Fraser being only a few miles upstream...

s, which are within the FVRD

Fraser Valley Regional District

The Fraser Valley Regional District is a regional district in British Columbia, Canada. The FVRD covers an area of 13,361.74 km²...

, and Lions Bay and Bowen Island, which are within the GVRD

Greater Vancouver Regional District

Metro Vancouver is the brand name of the board of the inter-municipal administrative body known as the Greater Vancouver Regional District , a regional district in British Columbia, Canada...

The population of the Lower Mainland was up 10.4 percent from the 2001 census. This is among the highest growth rates in the continent.

Regional districts

Regional districts were first created across British Columbia in 1966–1967 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 Greater Vancouver Regional District

Greater Vancouver Regional District

Metro Vancouver is the brand name of the board of the inter-municipal administrative body known as the Greater Vancouver Regional District , a regional district in British Columbia, Canada...

 and the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD). Both regional districts, however, include areas outside the traditional limits of the Lower Mainland, and the Fraser Valley

Fraser Valley

The Fraser Valley is the section of the Fraser River basin in southwestern British Columbia downstream of the Fraser Canyon. The term is sometimes used to refer to the Fraser Canyon and stretches upstream from there, but in general British Columbian usage of the term refers to the stretch of the...

 as a term includes much of the GVRD.

The Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) is made up of 21 municipalities. The GVRD 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

Whatcom County, Washington

Whatcom County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. Its name ultimately derives from the Lummi word Xwotʼqom, meaning "noisy water." As of 2010, the population was 201,140. The county seat is at Bellingham, which is also the county's largest city...

, in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

The Fraser Valley Regional District lies east of the Greater Vancouver Regional District, and comprises the cities of Abbotsford

Abbotsford, British Columbia

Abbotsford is a Canadian city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. It is the fifth largest municipality in British Columbia, home to 123,864 people . Its Census Metropolitan Area, which includes the District of Mission, is the 23rd largest in Canada,...

 and Chilliwack

Chilliwack, British Columbia

Chilliwack is a Canadian city in the Province of British Columbia. It is a predominantly agricultural community with an estimated population of 80,000 people. Chilliwack is the second largest city in the Fraser Valley Regional District after Abbotsford. The city is surrounded by mountains and...

, the district municipalities

District municipality

A district municipality is a designation for a class of municipalities found in several locations, including Canada, Lithuania, and South Africa.-Usage in British Columbia:...

 of Mission

Mission, British Columbia

Mission, the core of which was formerly known as Mission City, is a district municipality in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is situated on the north bank of the Fraser River overlooking the City of Abbotsford and with that city is part of the Central Fraser Valley. Mission is the...

, Kent

Agassiz, British Columbia

Agassiz is a small community located in British Columbia's Fraser Valley. The only town within the jurisdiction of the District Municipality of Kent, it contains the majority of Kent's population.-References:...

, and Hope

Hope, British Columbia

Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...

, and the village of Harrison Hot Springs

Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia

The Village of Harrison Hot Springs is a small community at the southern end of Harrison Lake in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia. It is a member of the Fraser Valley Regional District; its immediate neighbour is the District of Kent and included in it, the town of Agassiz. It is a resort...

. It also includes many unincorporated areas in the Fraser Valley and along the west side of the Fraser Canyon

Fraser Canyon

The Fraser Canyon is an 84 km landform of the Fraser River where it descends rapidly through narrow rock gorges in the Coast Mountains en route from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia to the Fraser Valley...

 (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.

First Nations territories

The traditional territories of the Musqueam and Tsleil'waututh

Tsleil-Waututh First Nation

The Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, also known as the Burrard Indian Band or Burrard Band, is a First Nations government in the Canadian Province of British Columbia...

 lie completely within the region; the southern portion of Skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) traditional territory is also in the region. Its claims overlap those of the Tsleil-waututh, Musqueam, and Kwekwitlem. Other peoples whose territories lie within the region are the Sto:lo

Stó:lo

The Sto:lo , alternately written as Stó:lō, Stó:lô or Stó:lõ and historically as Staulo or Stahlo, and historically known and commonly referred to in ethnographic literature as the Fraser River Indians or Lower Fraser Salish, are a group of First Nations peoples inhabiting the Fraser Valley of...

, Chehalis

Sts'Ailes

The Sts'ailes are a First Nations people in the Lower Mainland of the Canadian province of British Columbia. They are a Halqemeylem-speaking people but are distinct historically and politically from the surrounding Sto:lo peoples...

, 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

Whatcom County, Washington

Whatcom County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. Its name ultimately derives from the Lummi word Xwotʼqom, meaning "noisy water." As of 2010, the population was 201,140. The county seat is at Bellingham, which is also the county's largest city...

.

Sto:lo traditional territory, known as Solh Temexw in the Halkomelem language, more or less coincides with the traditional conception of the Lower Mainland, except for the inclusion of Port Douglas

Port Douglas, British Columbia

Port Douglas, sometimes referred to simply as Douglas, is a remote community in British Columbia, Canada at the head of Harrison Lake, which is the head of river navigation from the Strait of Georgia...

 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

Vancouver Coastal Health

Vancouver Coastal Health is a regional health authority providing direct and contracted health services including primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary care, home and community care, mental health services, population and preventive health and addictions services in part of Greater Vancouver...

, serving Vancouver, Richmond and the North Shore, and the mainland coast as far north as the Central Coast region, and Fraser Health

Fraser Health

Fraser Health is one of six publicly funded health care Regions into which the Canadian province of British Columbia is divided. It has 22,000 employees and serves the region from Boston Bar in the Fraser Canyon all the way down the Fraser River Valley to the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby...

, which serves the area of the Lower Mainland east of Vancouver and Richmond.

Flooding

The Lower Mainland is considered to have a high vulnerability to flood risk. There have been two major floods, the largest in 1894 and the second largest in 1948. According to the Fraser Basin Council, scientists predict a one-in-three chance of a similar-sized flood occurring in the next 50 years.

In the spring of 2007, the Lower Mainland was on high alert for flooding. Higher than normal snow packs in the British Columbia Interior

British Columbia Interior

The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...

 prompted municipal governments to start taking emergency measures in the region. Dikes along the 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...

 are regulated to handle about 8.5 m at the Mission Gauge (the height above sea level of the dykes at Mission). Warmer than normal weather in the interior caused large amounts of snow to melt prematurely, resulting in higher than normal water levels, which, nevertheless, remained well below flood levels.

Flooding can cover much of the Lower Mainland. Cloverdale

Cloverdale, British Columbia

Cloverdale is an historic town and designated town centre of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, located near Langley, which is east of Vancouver. The town was founded initially as a small farm community in 1870 for its fertile land and temperate climate, and has since become enveloped by suburban...

, Barnston Island, low-lying areas of Maple Ridge

Maple Ridge, British Columbia

Maple Ridge is a District Municipality in British Columbia, located in the northeastern section of Metro Vancouver. Maple Ridge has a population of approximately 68,949.-History:...

, areas west of Hope

Hope, British Columbia

Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...

, White Rock

White Rock, British Columbia

White Rock is a city in British Columbia, Canada, that lies within the Metro Vancouver regional district. It borders Semiahmoo Bay and is surrounded on three sides by the City of Surrey, British Columbia. To the south lies the Semiahmoo First Nation, which is within the city limits of Surrey...

, Richmond

Richmond, British Columbia

Richmond is a coastal city, incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of Metro Vancouver, its neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south, while the Strait of Georgia forms its western border...

, parts of Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, and parts of Surrey

Surrey, British Columbia

Surrey is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of Metro Vancouver, the governing body of the Greater Vancouver Regional District...

 are potentially at risk. In 2007, the Lower Mainland was largely spared, although northern regions of the province, along the Skeena

Skeena River

The Skeena River is the second longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada . The Skeena is an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan - whose names mean "inside the Skeena River" and "people of the Skeena River" respectively, and also during the...

 and Nechako

Nechako River

The Nechako River arises on the Nechako Plateau east of the Kitimat Ranges of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia and flows north toward Fort Fraser, then east to Prince George where it enters the Fraser River...

 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

Riprap

Riprap — also known as rip rap, rubble, shot rock or rock armour or "Rip-rap" — is rock or other material used to armor shorelines, streambeds, bridge abutments, pilings and other shoreline structures against scour, water or ice erosion.It is made from a variety of rock types, commonly granite or...

, and relief well

Relief well

A relief well is a well drilled to intersect an oil or gas well that has experienced a blowout. Specialized liquid, such as heavy drilling mud followed by cement, can then be pumped down the relief well in order to stop the flow from the reservoir in the damaged well.The first use of a relief well...

s.

Earthquakes

While earthquake

Earthquake

An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...

s 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

Richter magnitude scale

The expression Richter magnitude scale refers to a number of ways to assign a single number to quantify the energy contained in an earthquake....

 of up to 7.3 have occurred within 150 kilometres 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.

In April 2008, the United States Geological Survey

United States Geological Survey

The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...

 released information concerning a newly found fault line south of downtown Abbotsford

Abbotsford, British Columbia

Abbotsford is a Canadian city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. It is the fifth largest municipality in British Columbia, home to 123,864 people . Its Census Metropolitan Area, which includes the District of Mission, is the 23rd largest in Canada,...

, called the Boulder Creek Fault. Scientists now believe this fault line is active and capable of producing earthquakes in the 6.8 magnitude range.

Communities

The Lower Mainland's communities includes large cities in Metro Vancouver, and smaller cities, towns and villages along both banks of the Fraser River. Neighbourhoods within cities are not listed unless historically or otherwise notable and/or separate. Only some of the many Indian Reserves are listed.
Upper Fraser Valley

• Agassiz
  Agassiz, British Columbia
  Agassiz is a small community located in British Columbia's Fraser Valley. The only town within the jurisdiction of the District Municipality of Kent, it contains the majority of Kent's population.-References:...
  
  
• Bridal Falls
  Bridal Falls, British Columbia
  Bridal Falls is a community in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia, located east of Rosedale and immediately adjacent to the on-ramps for the Agassiz-Rosedale Bridge, which connects the Trans-Canada Highway at Bridal Falls to Agassiz, on BC Highway 7. Bridal Falls is mostly a highway services...
  
  
• Chehalis
  Chehalis, British Columbia
  Chehalis, British Columbia is a small forestry, agricultural and First Nations community in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia located on Highway 7 on the west bank of the Harrison River between the town of Mission and the resort community of Harrison Hot Springs.Chehalis is the site of...
  
  
• Chilliwack
  Chilliwack, British Columbia
  Chilliwack is a Canadian city in the Province of British Columbia. It is a predominantly agricultural community with an estimated population of 80,000 people. Chilliwack is the second largest city in the Fraser Valley Regional District after Abbotsford. The city is surrounded by mountains and...
  
  
• Cultus Lake
  Cultus Lake, British Columbia
  Cultus Lake Park is a lake, associated community and provincial park in the Fraser Valley region of British Columbia, Canada. It is the source of the Sweltzer River. The lake itself is warm, and the area has become a popular recreation destination with ample opportunities for fishing, water...
  
  
• Greendale
  Greendale, British Columbia
  Greendale is a primarily agricultural town within Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada, located 92 kilometres east of the city of Vancouver. Greendale is located on the west side of Chilliwack, bordering the east side of the city of Abbotsford. Greendale, originally called Sumas until 1951, was...
  
  
• Lake Errock
• Kent
  Kent, British Columbia
  The District of Kent is a district municipality located east of Vancouver, British Columbia. Part of the Fraser Valley Regional District, Kent consists of several communities, the largest and most well-known being Agassiz, the only town in the municipality, Harrison Mills, Kilby, Mount Woodside,...
  
  
• Harrison Hot Springs
  Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia
  The Village of Harrison Hot Springs is a small community at the southern end of Harrison Lake in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia. It is a member of the Fraser Valley Regional District; its immediate neighbour is the District of Kent and included in it, the town of Agassiz. It is a resort...
  
  
• Harrison Mills
• Hope
  Hope, British Columbia
  Hope is a district municipality located at the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Hope is at the eastern end of both the Fraser Valley and the Lower Mainland region, and is at the southern end of the Fraser Canyon...
  
  
• Flood
  Flood, British Columbia
  Flood is a rural community in the District of Hope, British Columbia, Canada, located west of the town of Hope on the south bank of the Fraser River in the far eastern end of the Fraser Valley region. It is primarily argricultural in nature. Its official name is Floods though it is usually...
  
  
• Laidlaw
  Laidlaw, British Columbia
  Laidlaw is an unincorporated settlement in the Upper Fraser Valley region of British Columbia, Canada, located just west of the westernmost boundary of Hope, British Columbia on the south side of the Fraser River and along the Trans-Canada Highway....
  
  
• Popkum
  Popkum, British Columbia
  Popkum is a rural farming and tourism based community east of Chilliwack, British Columbia. The community is named after the Indian Reserve of the Popkum First Nation, which is located on the Fraser River nearby...
  
  
• Rosedale
  Rosedale, British Columbia
  Rosedale is a farming-based community located in Chilliwack, British Columbia. It serves as a base for many tourists, both in summer and winter. The hills and valleys of British Columbia are popular skiing, snowboarding and dogsledding locations...
  
  
• Ruby Creek
  Ruby Creek, British Columbia
  Ruby Creek is a locality on the Fraser River in the District of Kent, British Columbia, Canada, in the Upper Fraser Valley region, located on BC Highway 7 and the mainline of the Canadian Pacific Railway, near the confluence of Ruby Creek with the Fraser, northeast of Sea Bird Island. Ruby Creek...
  
  
• Sardis
  Sardis, British Columbia
  Sardis is a small community located within Chilliwack five kilometres south of Downtown Chilliwack in the Fraser River Valley located to the south of British Columbia Highway 1. Sardis includes many of Chilliwack's shopping malls and big box stores.-Climate:...
  
  
• Yarrow
  Yarrow, British Columbia
  Yarrow is a small community located 90 kilometres east of Vancouver and 12 km southwest of downtown Chilliwack, in British Columbia, Canada. It is in the Fraser Valley at the foot of Vedder Mountain. The village was first settled by Mennonites in the late 1920s, following the draining of...
  
  

Central Fraser Valley

• Abbotsford
  Abbotsford, British Columbia
  Abbotsford is a Canadian city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. It is the fifth largest municipality in British Columbia, home to 123,864 people . Its Census Metropolitan Area, which includes the District of Mission, is the 23rd largest in Canada,...
  
  
• Aldergrove
  Aldergrove, British Columbia
  Aldergrove is a small town within the jurisdiction of the The Township of Langley, a municipality within Greater Vancouver. Located at the southeastern edge of both Langley and Greater Vancouver, and nearby to the metropolitan area of Abbotsford, British Columbia just east, Aldergrove has a...
  
  
• Bradner
  Bradner, British Columbia
  Bradner is a community within the City of Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada, located in a rural northwest region of that city which also includes Mount Lehman. Bradner occupies a height of land above the Fraser River, immediately across which is the community of Silverdale, a part of the...
  
  
• Clayburn
  Clayburn, British Columbia
  Clayburn is a small historic village now located with the City of Abbotsford, in the Central Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Largely surrounded by farmland and green fields, on the northern slopes of Sumas Mountain's eastern ridge, the historic centre is situated immediately north and east of...
  
  
• Clearbrook
  Clearbrook, British Columbia
  Clearbrook is a neighbourhood of the City of Abbotsford, British Columbia, located in the western portion of the city in the vicinity of Clearbrook Road. The area was originally known as Sandy Flats or West Abbotsford, and was located in the Poplar district of the Matsqui Municipality...
  
  
• Deroche
  Deroche, British Columbia
  Deroche is a farming and railway community on the Canadian Pacific Railway and BC Highway 7 located approximately 110 km east of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Deroche is adjacent to the eastern end of Nicomen Island, from which it is separated by the Nicomen Slough...
  
  
• Dewdney
  Dewdney, British Columbia
  Dewdney is an unincorporated community in the Central Fraser Valley of British Columbia, Canada, about 15 km east of the town of Mission. It was incorporated as a district municipality in 1893 but has since become unincorporated and is now represented as part of Electoral Area 'G' in the...
  
  
• Durieu
  Durieu, British Columbia
  Durieu is a farming community, located on Hatzic Prairie northeast of Mission, British Columbia, Canada in the Fraser Valley region of that province's Lower Mainland. Also known locally as Hatzic Prairie, it has few services other than a store, feed co-op, school and community hall.The community...
  
  
• Hatzic

• Huntingdon
  Huntingdon, British Columbia
  Huntingdon is a community within Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada. It is located immediately north of the Canada - US Border. The main road through the community is Highway 11. The name of the community is also the present name of the border crossing connecting to Sumas, Washington...
  
  
• Matsqui
• Mission
  Mission, British Columbia
  Mission, the core of which was formerly known as Mission City, is a district municipality in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is situated on the north bank of the Fraser River overlooking the City of Abbotsford and with that city is part of the Central Fraser Valley. Mission is the...
  
  
• Mount Lehman
  Mount Lehman, British Columbia
  Mount Lehman or Mt. Lehman is a small rural community located in the Fraser Valley of southwestern British Columbia, Canada...
  
  
• Nicomen Island
  Nicomen Island
  Nicomen Island is an island in the Fraser River east of Mission and between Deroche and Dewdney . Located on the river's north side, and separated from the foot of the Douglas Ranges by Nicomen Slough, the island is near-totally given over to agriculture and constitutes a rural community in its...
  
  
• Ruskin
  Ruskin, British Columbia
  Ruskin is a rural and industrial area about 40 kilometres east of Vancouver, British Columbia straddling the border between the suburban municipalities of Maple Ridge and Mission, on the west bank of the lower Stave River.-History:...
  
  
• Silverdale
  Silverdale, British Columbia
  Silverdale is a semi-rural neighbourhood of the District of Mission, British Columbia, Canada c. 40 km east of Vancouver on the west bank of the Stave River at its confluence with the Fraser. Noted for its historic Italian Canadian community, its economy was farming, fishing and logging based...
  
  
• Silverhill
  Silverhill, British Columbia
  Silverhill is a settlement in British Columbia....
  
  
• Stave Falls
• Steelhead
  Steelhead, British Columbia
  Steelhead is a settlement in British Columbia located north of Mission BC and east of Stave Lake....
  
  
• Sumas
  Sumas, British Columbia
  Sumas was a district municipality in the Fraser Valley region of British Columbia, Canada, located between the then-Village of Abbotsford and Chilliwack . It was amalgamated with the Village of Abbotsford in 1972 into the City of Abbotsford....
  
   (Sumas Prairie)
• Whonnock

Lower Fraser Valley/Greater Vancouver

• Albion
  Albion, British Columbia
  Albion, British Columbia is a neighbourhood in Maple Ridge, British Columbia and is one of several small towns incorporated within the municipality at its creation...
  
  
• Anmore
• Annieville
  Annieville, British Columbia
  Annieville is a settlement in British Columbia....
  
  
• Barnston Island
• Belcarra
  Belcarra, British Columbia
  See also Belcarra, County Mayo in the Republic of Ireland.Belcarra is a village on the shore of Indian Arm, a side inlet of Burrard Inlet, and is part of Metro Vancouver. It lies northwest of Port Moody and immediately east of the Deep Cove area of North Vancouver, across the waters of Indian Arm...
  
  
• Boundary Bay
  Boundary Bay, British Columbia
  Boundary Bay, named for the bay of the same name is a neighbourhood of Delta, British Columbia, Canada, located southeast of Tsawwassen adjacent to the Canada-United States border. South of it, across the border, is the community of Maple Beach, Washington, although there is no border crossing...
  
  
• Bridgeport
  Bridgeport, British Columbia
  Bridgeport is a settlement in British Columbia....
  
  
• Brighouse
  Brighouse, British Columbia
  Brighouse is a settlement in British Columbia....
  
  
• Burnaby
• Burquitlam
  Burquitlam
  Burquitlam is a portmanteau of Burnaby and Coquitlam, two cities in British Columbia, Canada.It can refer to*Burquitlam *Burquitlam Station, part of the proposed Evergreen Line...
  
  
• Cloverdale
  Cloverdale, British Columbia
  Cloverdale is an historic town and designated town centre of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, located near Langley, which is east of Vancouver. The town was founded initially as a small farm community in 1870 for its fertile land and temperate climate, and has since become enveloped by suburban...
  
  
• Coquitlam
• Crescent Beach
• Derby
  Derby, British Columbia
  Derby is a locality on the lower Fraser River in northwestern Langley. The site of the original Fort Langley, established in 1827 by the Hudson's Bay Company, and was the first post established in Coast Salish territory. The Fort was later moved 4 km to its present location in 1939. In 1858,...
  
   ("Old Derby")
• Douglas
  Douglas, British Columbia
  Douglas is a locality in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, just southeast and outside of the boundary of White Rock, that is the Canadian side of the Peace Arch Border Crossing between British Columbia and Whatcom County, Washington in the United States...
  
  
• Delta
  Delta, British Columbia
  Delta is a district municipality in British Columbia, and forms part of Metro Vancouver. Located south of Richmond, it is bordered by the Fraser River to the north, the United States to the south and the city of Surrey to the east...
  
  

• Fort Langley
  Fort Langley, British Columbia
  Fort Langley is a village with a population of 2,700 and forms part of the Township of Langley. It is the home of Fort Langley National Historic Site, a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company.-History:...
  
  
• Haney
  Haney, British Columbia
  Haney, British Columbia was historically a town in Southern British Columbia and is now part of the larger district municipality of Maple Ridge, British Columbia.-Features:...
  
  
• Kanaka Creek
  Kanaka Creek, British Columbia
  Kanaka Creek is an historic rural residential area located within the District of Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, along the banks of the creek of the same name just east of the district's main town and commercial core of Haney. Just east is Albion and immediately across the Fraser River is...
  
  
• Langley City
  Langley, British Columbia (city)
  The City of Langley is a municipality in Metro Vancouver. It lies directly east of the City of Surrey, adjacent to Cloverdale, and surrounded on the north, east and south by Township of Langley.-History:...
  
  
• Langley District
  Langley, British Columbia (district municipality)
  The Township of Langley is a district municipality immediately east of the City of Surrey in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It extends south from the Fraser River to the U.S. border, and west of the City of Abbotsford...
  
  
• Maillardville
  Maillardville, British Columbia
  Maillardville is a community on the south slope of the city of Coquitlam, British Columbia.In 1889, Frank Ross and James McLaren opened what would become Fraser Mills, a $350,000, then state-of-the-art lumber mill on the north bank of the Fraser River. By 1908, a mill town of 20 houses, a store,...
  
  
• Maple Ridge
  Maple Ridge, British Columbia
  Maple Ridge is a District Municipality in British Columbia, located in the northeastern section of Metro Vancouver. Maple Ridge has a population of approximately 68,949.-History:...
  
  
• New Westminster
• Newton
• North Vancouver City
  North Vancouver, British Columbia (city)
  The City of North Vancouver is a waterfront municipality on the north shore of Burrard Inlet, directly across from Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the smallest of the three North Shore municipalities, and the most urbanized as well...
  
  
• North Vancouver District
  North Vancouver, British Columbia (district municipality)
  The District of North Vancouver is a district municipality in British Columbia and is part of the GVRD. It surrounds the City of North Vancouver on three sides.-Geography:The District of North Vancouver is separated from Vancouver by Burrard Inlet...
  
  
• Pitt Meadows
• Port Coquitlam
• Port Hammond (Hammond)
• Port Kells
  Port Kells
  Port Kells is a neighbourhood of the City of Surrey in British Columbia, Canada, located at the northeastern end of that city adjacent to the Fraser River and west of the neighbourhood of Walnut Grove .-History:...
  
  
• Port Moody
• Queensborough
  Queensborough, British Columbia
  Queensborough is a neighbourhood in the city of New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. It is on the eastern tip of Lulu Island on the Fraser River.-History:...
  
  
• Richmond
  Richmond, British Columbia
  Richmond is a coastal city, incorporated in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Part of Metro Vancouver, its neighbouring communities are Vancouver and Burnaby to the north, New Westminster to the east, and Delta to the south, while the Strait of Georgia forms its western border...
  
  
• Sapperton
  Sapperton
  Sapperton may refer to:*Sapperton, Derbyshire, England*Sapperton, Gloucestershire, England**Sapperton Tunnel **Sapperton Canal Tunnel*Sapperton, Lincolnshire, England*Sapperton, New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada...
  
  
• Scottsdale
• Steveston
  Steveston, British Columbia
  Steveston was originally a small town near Vancouver, British Columbia, but has since been absorbed into the city of Richmond, British Columbia....
  
  
• Surrey
  Surrey, British Columbia
  Surrey is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of Metro Vancouver, the governing body of the Greater Vancouver Regional District...
  
  
• Tsawwassen
  Tsawwassen, British Columbia
  Tsawwassen is a suburban, mostly residential community located on a peninsula in the southwestern corner of the Corporation of Delta, British Columbia, Canada. Tsawwassen provides the only road access to the community of Point Roberts, Washington via 56th Street...
  
  
• Vancouver
  Vancouver
  Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
  
  
• West Vancouver
• Whalley
• White Rock
  White Rock, British Columbia
  White Rock is a city in British Columbia, Canada, that lies within the Metro Vancouver regional district. It borders Semiahmoo Bay and is surrounded on three sides by the City of Surrey, British Columbia. To the south lies the Semiahmoo First Nation, which is within the city limits of Surrey...
  
  
• Yennadon
  Yennadon, British Columbia
  Yennadon is a settlement in British Columbia....