Conference Paper

Canada's National Atlas Program in the computer era

By Richard Groot· 1979

Publication: The Purpose and Use of National and Regional Atlases
Pages: 41-52

Canada · Version 4

1995

Groot, director of the Geographical Services Directorate in the Surveys and Mapping Branch, sets out the federal National Atlas program: a Canada Gazetteer Atlas (1980, from the 1976 census) and a thematic atlas built of data base sheets at 1:7.5M and 1:2M, each subject realm accompanied by an overview sheet, issued as loose-leaf sheets (91.44 × 116.84 cm) sold by subscription, as folios or as single sheets. For the 5th edition he announces continuous revision in place of a finite 6th edition, and notes that one private publisher planned to reuse all 46 gazetteer maps in its own Atlas of Canada. He records the criticism the format drew — librarians' handling and storage problems, and the view that loose sheets will never amount to a complete atlas — and argues that digital technology pays off only if it yields a data base serving many users on demand, estimating roughly $300,000 a year amortized, a 35 per cent rise in the annual budget, with a federal task force setting 1983 as the target for substantial computer application.

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Richard Groot explains the user-oriented redesign of Canada’s National Atlas program and its planned adoption of digital technology. The National Atlas of Canada, fourth edition, supplied maps for research, planning, education, publishing and public inquiries. An EMR evaluation could document such uses and estimate time savings, yielding a benefit/cost ratio above 2:1 under stated assumptions, but could not quantify improvements in decisions or research. The redesigned program prioritizes administration and research while serving education and the public directly and through publishers. It combines a Canada Gazetteer Atlas, planned for early 1980 using the 1976 census, with thematic mapping: standardized large-scale data-base sheets, source-data references and overview sheets explaining subjects in relation to Canadian life. Groot links the fifth edition to an ongoing revision program, with updates according to each subject’s changing information. Loose-leaf sheets and flexible purchasing and reproduction options support this approach, though their size creates handling and storage difficulties. Groot argues that digital data supply and user practices will make computer adoption increasingly necessary. He anticipates the greatest return from database management linking geographical and socioeconomic information for customized maps and analyses. Faster research and map production alone may not justify the substantial investment; the additional user benefits remain unquantified. A national task force recommended substantial computer use by 1983. The article presents this digital development as a plan for improving access and utility, not an accomplished system.

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