Mackenzie River basins, mostly in Alberta. The cold northern permafrost regions beyond the Arctic Circle are very sparsely populated, mainly by indigenous peoples. Most of the Mackenzie watershed is unbroken wilderness and human activities have little influence on the overall water quality, although there are some localized impacts. Some parts of the Mackenzie basin are rich in natural resources – oil and gas in the Northwest Territories and in central Alberta, lumber in the Peace River headwaters, uranium in Saskatchewan, gold and zinc in the Great Slave Lake area and tungsten in the Yukon. As of 2003 there were two operational gold
Petitot River Petitot River Petitot is a river in northern Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. It is a tributary of the Liard River. Petitot River originates from Bistcho Lake in northwestern Alberta, and flows westwards along the northern borders of Alberta and British Columbia. It then passes in the Northwest Territories, where it discharges in the Liard River at the village of Fort Liard. From there, its waters are carried to the Arctic Ocean through the Mackenzie River. The river takes its name from Father Émile Petitot, one of the first European to reach the area in 1867–68. The name in the