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49-681: Fraser Valley Regional Library (FVRL) was established in 1930 in the Fraser Valley area of British Columbia (BC). In 1927, the Provincial Public Library Commission organized a province-wide survey of library services in BC. From FVRL's website, The key finding from the survey was that large administrative library districts based on cooperation and resource sharing between municipalities and school districts should be created to serve BC’s rural communities that could not afford to provide

98-619: A few days. Ground-level ozone tends to be from local sources in the valley and varies with prevailing winds. With prevailing winds from the northeast during the late fall and winter, air quality is seldom a problem. Air quality in the Fraser Valley at times exceeds the Canada-Wide Standard (CWS) for ozone (at Hope) and is close to exceeding the CWS for Particulate Matter. In colloquial usage, "Fraser Valley" usually refers only to that part of

147-663: A library service on their own. As a result of the survey, the Commission secured a $ 100,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to establish and maintain a rural library project for five years. In 1930, the library’s first director, Dr. Helen Gordon Stewart, launched the Fraser Valley Book Van, which served as the public library to the rural residents from Ladner to Hope . This traveling library displayed books along its outside shelves and travelled through

196-599: A massive campaign of public meetings, handouts, posters, and newspaper articles to gain support. Twenty of the original 24 areas voted "yes" so the Fraser Valley Union Library created the first regional library system in North America. The first operating budget was established by the board at a per capita rate of 35 cents. The resources of the Carnegie Demonstration Project were turned over to

245-411: A more substantial and consistent flow that becomes a first-order tributary of that river. The tributary with the longest course downstream of the headwaters is regarded as the main stem . The United States Geological Survey (USGS) states that a river's "length may be considered to be the distance from the mouth to the most distant headwater source (irrespective of stream name), or from the mouth to

294-651: Is a geographical region in southwestern British Columbia , Canada and northwestern Washington State . It starts just west of Hope in a narrow valley encompassing the Fraser River and ends at the Pacific Ocean stretching from the North Shore Mountains , opposite the city of Vancouver BC, to just south of Bellingham, Washington . In casual usage it typically describes the Fraser River basin downstream of

343-583: Is considered the head of the Fraser Delta . From there the river passes through some of the most fertile agricultural land in British Columbia—as well as the heart of the Metro Vancouver region—on its way through the valley to its mouth at Georgia Strait . During the last ice age , the area that would become the Fraser Valley was covered by a sheet of ice, walled in by the surrounding mountains. As

392-488: Is defined as ending at Yale, Hope is generally to be considered the southern end of the canyon, partly because of the change in the character of the highway from that point, and perhaps also because it is at Hope that the first floodplains typifying the course of the Lower Fraser are found. Downstream from Hope, the river and adjoining floodplains widen considerably in the area of Rosedale , Chilliwack and Agassiz , which

441-559: Is included within the Lower Fraser Valley. The Upper Fraser Valley means from Chilliwack and Agassiz to Hope. The phrases "Fraser Valley towns" and "Fraser River municipalities" include Delta and Richmond, though the colloquial "in the Valley" means from Surrey and Coquitlam eastwards. The "Tidal Fraser area" is usually defined as the area of the Fraser from the mouth at the Pacific Ocean to

490-505: Is named by some USGS and other federal and state agency sources, following Lewis and Clark 's naming convention, as the confluence of the Madison and Jefferson rivers, rather than the source of its longest tributary (the Jefferson). This contradicts the most common definition, which is, according to a US Army Corps of Engineers official on a USGS site, that "[geographers] generally follow

539-434: Is now possible to compare BC communities on a variety of measures. Comparative data on four measures— fine particulate matter , ground-level ozone , nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide —shows the Fraser Valley to have better air quality than Vancouver on several measures. For example, Fraser Valley communities had less than half the levels of nitrogen dioxide, and were lower in fine particulate matter and sulphur dioxide (on

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588-511: Is one of the largest tidal freshwater lakes in the world . Oxbow lakes and side-sloughs are a common feature of the Lower Fraser's geography. The two main oxbows are those of Hatzic Lake and the Stave River on opposite sides of Mission, although that of the Stave has been silted in and part of it drained for a man-made lake. Around Fort Langley is an oxbow formation, mostly swamped in at the time of

637-512: Is split between the 24 branches and consists of over 42,000 items in 14 languages. FVRL supports lifelong learning and literacy. To promote ongoing learning and literacy within the community FVRL offers various programs and workshops for all age groups from toddlers to seniors. Programs include: FVRL has an Administrative Centre located in Abbotsford and 25 community branches located in 14 municipalities. Fraser Valley The Fraser Valley

686-551: Is the northernmost area of rice cultivation in the world. As the valley population grows and traffic increases, air pollution becomes an increasingly important issue; various controversies have risen over the years (most recently over " Sumas 2 ", a defeated proposal for a power plant just south of the Canadian/USA border) as to whether or not air pollution is a problem, and if it is a problem, how this should be addressed. Air quality monitoring has improved in recent years and it

735-695: The Fraser Canyon . The term is sometimes used outside British Columbia to refer to the entire Fraser River sections including the Fraser Canyon and up from there to its headwaters , but in general British Columbian usage the term refers to the stretch of Lower Mainland west of the Coquihalla River mouth at the inland town of Hope , and includes all of the Canadian portion of the Fraser Lowland as well as

784-473: The Fraser Valley Regional District , though that consists of only about half of the actual Fraser Valley, and is made up of the municipalities and incorporated areas from Abbotsford and Mission eastwards to Hope. It also includes areas not in the Fraser Valley, particularly the lower Fraser Canyon from Boston Bar to Hope. The term "Central Fraser Valley" refers to Mission and Abbotsford and

833-724: The valleys and upland areas flanking it. It is divided into the Upper Fraser Valley and Lower Fraser Valley by the Vedder River mouth at the eastern foothills of Sumas Mountain , although the Lower Valley section upstream of McMillan Island and the Salmon River mouth (at Fort Langley ) used to be called the Central Fraser Valley up until 1995 (see Central Fraser Valley Regional District ). Administratively,

882-461: The "uppermost" or most remote section of the marsh would be the true source. For example, the source of the River Tees is marshland . The furthest stream is also often called the head stream. Headwaters are often small streams with cool waters because of shade and recently melted ice or snow. They may also be glacial headwaters, waters formed by the melting of glacial ice . Headwater areas are

931-404: The 2011 Census, 76.47% of the Fraser Valley regional district in BC have English as mother tongue ; Punjabi is the mother tongue of 10.02% of the population, followed by German (3.49%), Dutch (1.39%), French (1.07%), Korean (0.69%), Spanish (0.66%), Tagalog (0.35%), Chinese, n.o.s. (0.33%), and Vietnamese (0.30%). Today, the Fraser Valley has a mix of land uses, ranging from

980-463: The Fraser Valley comprises parts of the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley Regional District . The main population centres in the Fraser Valley are Greater Vancouver , Abbotsford and Chilliwack . This section of the Fraser River is known by local indigenous peoples as "Sto:lo" in the Halqemeylem language of the area, and this term has been adopted to refer to all of

1029-448: The Fraser but help drain its lowland. The Fraser is tidal as far upstream as the town of Mission and, across the river, the City of Abbotsford , which is at the Fraser's closest approach to the international boundary, about 6 miles north of Sumas, Washington . Pitt Lake , one of the Fraser's last tributaries and among its largest, is so low in elevation, despite its mountain setting, that it

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1078-654: The Fraser's lower tributaries have floodplains of their own, shared in common with the Fraser freshet. Of varying size these include the Harrison River , Chilliwack River ( Vedder River ), Hatzic Creek and Hatzic Lake, the Stave , Alouette , Pitt and Coquitlam Rivers . Also incorporated in the Fraser delta region are the Nicomekl and Serpentine River floodplains and the Sumas River drainage, which flow to saltwater independently of

1127-628: The Mission bridge. Everything in between there is influenced greatly by ocean tides, including the largest tidal lake in North America, Pitt Lake. The south shore of the Central and Upper Fraser Valley is also known colloquially as the " Bible Belt " of British Columbia and is home to many of Canada's largest churches, notably the Mennonite Brethren and the Dutch Reformed Church , a reflection of

1176-614: The West Coast in both Canada and the United States. The interaction of indigenous peoples and settlers led to the growth of Chinook Wawa , a pidgin language that was used throughout the Fraser River Valley until the early 1900s. Industrialization of the river began with the use of the traditional trade waterway by steamboats and eventually, roads and railways were built, fueled by and in turn fuelling further population growth. Today,

1225-491: The air mass collides with the Olympic Mountains . The cold air from the Fraser Valley can also flow out over the Pacific Ocean. Lanes of convective ocean-effect clouds and showers are produced as heat and moisture modify the very dry, frigid air mass. These then typically organize as a low pressure system which returns the showers to the coast south of Canada, often bringing snow to unusually low elevations. According to

1274-419: The fort's foundation, which was drained and made part of the fort's farm and remains farmland today. The system of sloughs and side-channels of the river is complicated, but important sloughs include those around Nicomen Island , Sea Bird Island and flanking the river from Rosedale to Sumas Mountain , on the western side of Chilliwack . In winter, the Fraser Valley occasionally plays a significant role in

1323-564: The furthest point from which water could possibly flow ephemerally . The latter definition includes sometimes-dry channels and removes any possible definitions that would have the river source "move around" from month to month depending on precipitation or ground water levels. This definition, from geographer Andrew Johnston of the Smithsonian Institution , is also used by the National Geographic Society when pinpointing

1372-588: The headwaters of the stream commonly known as the source stream". As an example of the second definition above, the USGS at times considers the Missouri River as a tributary of the Mississippi River . But it also follows the first definition above (along with virtually all other geographic authorities and publications) in using the combined Missouri—lower Mississippi length figure in lists of lengths of rivers around

1421-462: The heavy settlement of the Valley by post-war Dutch and German immigrants, as well as the Canadian headquarters of many Christian/ Evangelical para-church organisations such as Focus on the Family and Power to Change, the Canadian branch of Cru_(Christian_organization) , formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ. Voters in south shore ridings typically elect right-wing candidates, while in ridings on

1470-456: The ice receded, land that had been covered by glaciers became covered by water instead, then slowly rose above the water, forming the basin that exists today. The valley is the largest landform of the Lower Mainland ecoregion, with its delta considered to begin in the area of Agassiz and Chilliwack, although stretches of floodplain flank the mountainsides between there and Hope. Several of

1519-580: The indigenous peoples of the Fraser Lowland , other than the Squamish and Musqueam . The indigenous peoples of the area have long made use of the river valley for agricultural and commercial exploits and continue to do so today. The Indigenous people were not consulted in the Treaty of Oregon , which saw the United States and Great Britain define and recognize each other's claims to the area. This overstepping of jurisdiction inevitably led to conflict as Great Britain

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1568-535: The largest public library system in British Columbia. FVRL is governed by a board of directors and financially supported by its member municipalities and through a Government of BC operating grant. Board members are elected officials of its member municipalities. The FVRL has allotted $ 80,000 per year to its World Languages Collection, which provides both adult and children's fiction and non-fiction books, DVDs, and CDs in languages other than English. The collection

1617-600: The latter measure, Abbotsford and Chilliwack were among the lowest of all BC sites). In certain weather conditions during the summer, prevailing westerly winds blow air pollution from vehicles and from ships in Vancouver harbour east up the triangular delta, trapping it between the Coast Mountains on the north and the Cascades on the southeast. Air quality suffers. This usually occurs during a temperature inversion , and lasts for

1666-585: The longest tributary to identify the source of rivers and streams." In the case of the Missouri River, this would have the source be well upstream from Lewis and Clark's confluence, "following the Jefferson River to the Beaverhead River to Red Rock River , then Red Rock Creek to Hell Roaring Creek ." Sometimes the source of the most remote tributary may be in an area that is more marsh -like, in which

1715-465: The main distribution center. To continue library services for the Fraser Valley after the Carnegie funds were exhausted, residents were asked to vote whether they wished to support the library through local taxes. A referendum was scheduled for January 1934. The timing was difficult since taxpayers were asked to vote in favor of higher taxes during a severe economic depression. Stewart and her staff launched

1764-592: The most important transportation through the region are the Canadian Pacific Railway and Canadian National Railway transcontinental main lines, the Lougheed Highway (Hwy 7), and the Trans-Canada Highway ( Hwy 1 ). After descending through the rapids of the Fraser Canyon , the Fraser River emerges almost at sea level at Yale , over 100 km inland. Although the canyon in geographic terms

1813-534: The new Library Board of Management on September 28, 1934, during a ceremony held in Chilliwack , BC. At this time, Stewart left the Fraser Valley to organize other regional libraries. Soon after, the library headquarters was relocated to its present location in Abbotsford, British Columbia . In 1951, the official name was changed to the Fraser Valley Regional Library District (FVRL). FVRL is

1862-414: The regulation of immigration and the continuation of mining on the river by the indigenous inhabitants and the new immigrants. This war was part of a series of local conflicts surrounding the arrival of settlers ahead of American and British capacity to maintain order and refusal to cooperate with or recognize indigenous land claims and demands. These conflicts were pivotal in many aspects to the settlement of

1911-468: The river's north side elections sway between left-wing and right-wing parties regularly. Headwater The headwater of a river or stream is the point on each of its tributaries upstream from its mouth / estuary into a lake / sea or its confluence with another river. Each headwater is considered one of the river's sources , as it is the place where surface runoffs from rainwater , meltwater and/or spring water begin accumulating into

1960-458: The source of rivers such as the Amazon or Nile . A definition given by the state of Montana agrees, stating that a river source is never a confluence but is "in a location that is the farthest, along water miles, from where that river ends." Under this definition, neither a lake (excepting lakes with no inflows) nor a confluence of tributaries can be a true river source, though both often provide

2009-777: The source of the largest river flowing into the lake, the Kagera River . Likewise, the source of the Amazon River has been determined this way, even though the river changes names numerous times along its course. However, the source of the Thames in England is traditionally reckoned according to the named river Thames rather than its longer tributary, the Churn — although not without contention. When not listing river lengths, however, alternative definitions may be used. The Missouri River's source

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2058-515: The starting point for the portion of a river carrying a single name. For example, National Geographic and virtually every other geographic authority and atlas define the source of the Nile River not as Lake Victoria 's outlet where the name "Nile" first appears, which would reduce the Nile's length by over 900 km (560 mi) (dropping it to fourth or fifth on the list of world's rivers), but instead use

2107-642: The upstream areas of a watershed , as opposed to the outflow or discharge of a watershed. The river source is often but not always on or quite near the edge of the watershed, or watershed divide. For example, the source of the Colorado River is at the Continental Divide separating the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean watersheds of North America . A river is considered a linear geographic feature, with only one mouth and one source. For an example,

2156-544: The urban and industrial centres of Vancouver , Surrey , and Abbotsford through golf courses and parks to dairy farms and market gardens . Agricultural land in the valley – much of it protected by the Agricultural Land Reserve – is intensively farmed: the Fraser Valley brings in nearly 40% of British Columbia's annual agricultural revenue, although it makes up a small percentage of the province's total land area. The Fraser Valley, specifically in Abbotsford ,

2205-414: The valley beyond the continuously built-up urban area around Vancouver, up to and including Chilliwack and Agassiz, about 80 km east, and abutting the border with Washington's Whatcom County ; news media typically also include the built-up eastern suburban areas of Vancouver which a few decades ago were mixed farmland and forest, typical of "the Valley". The Fraser Valley region is also the namesake of

2254-477: The valley to small towns and villages, stopping at grocery stores, schoolhouses, and gas stations. The Book Van system operated in conjunction with local libraries in located in the larger towns throughout the valley. It covered an area of approximately 2,600 square km, containing 24 separate governing bodies. Administrative headquarters for the project were located in New Westminster , while Chilliwack served as

2303-532: The weather regime along the west coast of North America as far south as California , acting as a natural outlet for the intensely cold Arctic air mass which typically sits over Western Canada during winter. Under certain meteorological conditions strong winds pour out of the Fraser Valley and over the relatively warmer waters of the Strait of Georgia and the Strait of Juan de Fuca . This can cause ocean-effect snow, especially between Port Angeles and Sequim , where

2352-473: The world. Most rivers have numerous tributaries and change names often; it is customary to regard the longest tributary or stem as the source, regardless of what name that watercourse may carry on local maps and in local usage. This most commonly identified definition of a river source specifically uses the most distant point (along watercourses from the river mouth ) in the drainage basin from which water runs year-around ( perennially ), or, alternatively, as

2401-601: Was incapable of exercising the control they claimed over the river valley. As a wave of immigrants flooded into the Fraser River Valley because of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush , the British were unable to maintain order without the cooperation of the local indigenous peoples, and the Fraser Canyon War broke out. The war was resolved with a series of treaties, none of which remain to this day, but which evidently included

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