The Athabasca is truly one of Canada's most outstanding and ecologically valuable river systems:

• Running more than 1538 km, the Athabasca is the longest river wholly contained within Alberta and the longest undammed river in the prairies.

• The Athabasca River and Peace River watersheds join to form the Mackenzie River Basin, into which waters from 1.8 million km² (18%) of Canada's total area drain.

• From the start of its flow in the Columbia Icefields - the hydrological apex of North America - the Athabasca crosses three significant physiographic regions in Alberta including the Rocky Mountains, the Interior Plains and the Canadian Shield before it reaches its end at the Peace-Athabasca Delta.

• The Peace-Athabasca Delta is the largest inland freshwater delta in the world and one of the most important nesting and breeding ground for waterfowl in North America; it is also a critical nesting habitat for the endangered Whooping Crane, whose population was once limited to a staggeringly low 21 individuals worldwide.

The Athabasca River's significance is recognized nationally and internationally. Portions of the river are designated as a Canadian Heritage River, with areas protected by two Canadian National Parks and a Provincial Wildland Park. The Peace-Athabasca Delta has been designated as a Ramsar Wetland of International Biological Importance due to its importance as a nesting and breeding ground for migratory birds from all of the four major flyways in North America

For more information, see:

• Alberta Environment: Northern River Basins Study Final Report
• Canadian Heritage River Systems: Athabasca River

• National Parks of Canada:
• Jasper National Park
• Wood Buffalo National Park
• Provincial Wildland Park:
• Grand Rapids Wildland Park
• Wetlands Int.: Ramsar Information Sheet on the Peace-Athabasca Delta