Biogeoclimatic zones of British Columbia

The biogeoclimatic zones of British Columbia are a classification system used by the British Columbia Ministry of Forests for the Canadian province's fourteen different ecosystems. The classification system exists independently of other ecoregion systems, one created by the World Wildlife Fund and the other in use by Environment Canada, which is based on one created by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) and also in use by the American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The system of biogeoclimatic zones was partly created for the purpose of managing forestry resources, but is also in use by the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and other provincial agencies. A biogeoclimatic zone is defined as "a geographic area having similar patterns of energy flow, vegetation and soils as a result of a broadly homogenous macroclimate."

The biogeoclimatic zones of British Columbia are:

The Alpine Tundra zone is the harshest and least-populated biozone in the Province. It occupies the high elevations of mountainous areas, and is especially common in the Coast Range. The elevation range of this zone varies by area: in the southwest it starts at 1,600 metres (5,200 ft), in the southeast, 2,250 metres (7,380 ft), in the north from 1,500 metres (4,900 ft), and in the northwest it can start as low as 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). Most life is found in the lower ranges of the zone.

The terrain in this zone is dominated by ice, snow, rock, and glaciers. Glacier-related features like cirques, talus, alpine lakes and moraine are common. Climate is a major barrier to life; the growing season is extremely short. Mean average temperature usually ranges from 0 °C (32 °F) to 4 °C (39 °F), and even in summer the average temperature does not exceed 10 °C (50 °F). The zone sees heavy precipitation, usually in the form of snow.

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