Edmonton Metropolitan Region

This article is about the region surrounding and including the City of Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. For other uses, see Edmonton (disambiguation).

The Edmonton Metropolitan Region (EMR), also commonly referred to as Greater Edmonton or Metro Edmonton, is a conglomeration of municipalities centred on Edmonton, the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta.

Edmonton Metropolitan Region
Metropolitan area
Downtown Edmonton skyline
Member municipalities of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board
Location of the region in Alberta
Coordinates: 53°34′N 113°31′W
Province	Alberta
Country	Canada
Area  (2021) [1]
• CMA	9,416.19 km2 (3,635.61 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[1]
• CMA	1,418,118
• CMA density	150.6/km2 (390/sq mi)
GDP
• CMA	CA$87.5 billion (2020)[2]
Time zone	UTC-7 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-6 (MDT)
Forward sortation areas	T4X to T6Z, T7X to T8R, T8T, T9E to T9G
Area code(s)	780, 587, 825
Highways	2, 2A, 14, 15, 16, 16A, 19, 21, 28, 28A, 37, 39, 43, 44, 60, 100, 216
Website	emrb.ca

While the EMR is not a strictly defined entity, its commonly known boundaries are coincident with those of the Edmonton census metropolitan area (CMA) as delineated by Statistics Canada. However, the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board (EMRB) – established by the provincial government to provide a form of regional government, fostering cooperation for regional planning amongst the City of Edmonton and its surrounding municipalities – has a membership that differs slightly from the CMA.

The EMR is considered a major gateway to northern Alberta and the Canadian North, particularly for many companies, including airlines and oil/natural gas exploration. Located within central Alberta and at the northern end of the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor, the EMR is both the northernmost metropolitan area in Canada and the northernmost metropolitan area in North America with a population of over one million.

Edmonton CMA

As of the 2021 Canadian census, the Edmonton CMA includes the following 34 census subdivisions (municipalities or municipality equivalents):^[3]

• six cities (Beaumont, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, Spruce Grove and St. Albert);
• one specialized municipality (Strathcona County, which includes the Sherwood Park urban service area);
• three municipal districts (Leduc County, Parkland County, and Sturgeon County);
• ten towns (Bon Accord, Bruderheim, Calmar, Devon, Gibbons, Legal, Morinville, Redwater, Stony Plain and Thorsby);
• two villages (Spring Lake and Warburg);
• eight summer villages (Betula Beach, Golden Days, Itaska Beach, Kapasiwin, Lakeview, Point Alison, Seba Beach, and Sundance Beach); and
• four Indian reserves for three First Nations (Alexander 134 of the Alexander First Nation, Enoch Cree Nation 135 of the Enoch Cree Nation, and Wabamun 133A and 133B of the Paul First Nation).

The Edmonton CMA is the largest of the 41 CMAs^{[lower-alpha 1]} in Canada by area, at 9,416.19 km² (3,635.61 sq mi).^[5] In the 2021 Canadian census, it had a population of 1,418,118, making it the sixth largest CMA in Canada by population, with the second largest percentage increase in national CMA population (37.0% versus 37.3% for the Calgary CMA) over the 15 years since the 2006 Canadian census.^[6] The Edmonton CMA comprises the majority of Statistics Canada's Division No. 11 in Alberta.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Edmonton

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Edmonton metropolitan region recorded a population of 1,418,118 living in 548,624 of its 589,554 total private dwellings, a change of 7.3% from its 2016 population of 1,321,441. With a land area of 9,416.19 km² (3,635.61 sq mi), it had a population density of 150.6/km² (390.1/sq mi) in 2021.^[1]

Ethnicity

Panethnic groups in Metro Edmonton (2001−2021)

Panethnic group	2021[7][8]		2016[9]		2011[10]		2006[11]		2001[12]
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
European[lower-alpha 2]	849,515	60.78%	857,085	66.07%	822,830	72.2%	797,420	77.81%	750,315	80.94%
South Asian	123,340	8.82%	91,420	7.05%	61,135	5.36%	40,205	3.92%	29,065	3.14%
Southeast Asian[lower-alpha 3]	101,410	7.26%	78,310	6.04%	56,240	4.94%	30,655	2.99%	23,865	2.57%
Indigenous	87,600	6.27%	76,205	5.87%	61,765	5.42%	52,105	5.08%	40,930	4.42%
African	80,575	5.76%	57,820	4.46%	32,725	2.87%	20,380	1.99%	14,095	1.52%
East Asian[lower-alpha 4]	74,140	5.3%	70,255	5.42%	59,140	5.19%	53,235	5.19%	45,965	4.96%
Middle Eastern[lower-alpha 5]	39,955	2.86%	32,255	2.49%	21,590	1.89%	14,865	1.45%	10,840	1.17%
Latin American	21,955	1.57%	18,755	1.45%	14,530	1.28%	9,210	0.9%	7,515	0.81%
Other/Multiracial[lower-alpha 6]	20,200	1.45%	15,170	1.17%	9,640	0.85%	6,750	0.66%	4,430	0.48%
Total responses	1,397,750	98.56%	1,297,280	98.17%	1,139,585	98.25%	1,024,820	99.02%	927,020	98.85%
Total population	1,418,118	100%	1,321,426	100%	1,159,869	100%	1,034,945	100%	937,845	100%
Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses

Language

The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses. The following figures are from the 2021 Canadian Census, and lists languages that were selected by at least 1,000 respondents.

Knowledge of Languages in Metro Edmonton

Language	2021[13]
	Pop.	%
English	1,372,110	98.17%
French	96,620	6.91%
Cree	3,915	0.28%
Oromo	2,615	0.19%
Somali	10,555	0.76%
Amharic	5,965	0.43%
Arabic	34,760	2.49%
Hebrew	1,360	0.1%
Tigrigna	6,440	0.46%
Khmer (Cambodian)	1,055	0.08%
Vietnamese	12,490	0.89%
Bisaya, n.o.s.	1,055	0.08%
Cebuano	3,190	0.23%
Hiligaynon	1,510	0.11%
Ilocano	4,760	0.34%
Tagalog	63,930	4.57%
Malayalam	6,485	0.46%
Tamil	4,870	0.35%
Telugu	2,140	0.15%
Czech	1,035	0.07%
Polish	10,715	0.77%
Russian	10,420	0.75%
Serbo-Croatian	5,845	0.42%
Ukrainian	12,680	0.91%
German	18,685	1.34%
Afrikaans	1,360	0.1%
Dutch	4,380	0.31%
Greek	1,545	0.11%
Bengali	3,865	0.28%
Gujarati	10,620	0.76%
Hindi	41,900	3%
Kacchi	1,110	0.08%
Marathi	1,470	0.11%
Nepali	2,500	0.18%
Punjabi	53,280	3.81%
Sinhala	2,105	0.15%
Urdu	16,575	1.19%
Pashto	1,155	0.08%
Dari	2,220	0.16%
Iranian Persian	3,740	0.27%
Italian	8,095	0.58%
Portuguese	6,500	0.47%
Romanian	2,960	0.21%
Spanish	36,115	2.58%
Japanese	3,320	0.24%
Korean	8,020	0.57%
Akan (Twi)	1,660	0.12%
Igbo	1,295	0.09%
Kinyarwanda (Rwanda)	1,520	0.11%
Rundi (Kirundi)	1,060	0.08%
Shona	1,100	0.08%
Swahili	5,030	0.36%
Yoruba	3,230	0.23%
Mandarin	32,395	2.32%
Min Nan (Chaochow, Teochow, Fukien, Taiwanese)	1,685	0.12%
Cantonese	29,300	2.1%
Turkish	2,920	0.21%
Hungarian	1,805	0.13%
Total Responses	1,397,750	98.56%
Total Population	1,418,118	100%

Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board

Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board Logo

A fragmentation in regional cooperation and partnership has long played a divisive role within the EMR. Particularly, Edmonton was frustrated that its surrounding municipalities were receiving an increased tax base for major industrial development, while not contributing to Edmonton's burden to maintain and build new infrastructure within Edmonton used by the residents and businesses of the surrounding municipalities.

After pulling out of the Alberta Capital Region Alliance (ACRA), Edmonton lobbied the provincial government to establish some form of regional government that would be more effective in fostering regional cooperation between it and its surrounding municipalities. As a result, Premier Ed Stelmach announced in December 2007 that a governing board would be established for Edmonton's Capital Region.^[14] Four months later, the Capital Region Board was formed on April 15, 2008 with the passing of the Capital Region Board Regulation by Order in Council 127/2008 under the authority of the Municipal Government Act.^[15]

On October 26, 2017,^[16] the Capital Region Board (CRB) was renamed to the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board (EMRB).^[17]

Member municipalities

The original Capital Region Board (CRB) was established with 25 participating or member municipalities,^[18] differing slightly from the municipalities that Statistics Canada included in the Edmonton CMA as the CRB excluded entities which did not take active involvement in the greater regional planning activity (four Indian reserves, eight summer villages and one village) while including the non-CMA Lamont County and the Town of Lamont.^[19] The number of member municipalities was reduced to 24 on September 10, 2010^[20] after the Village of New Sarepta dissolved to hamlet status under the jurisdiction of Leduc County on September 1, 2010.^[21] Concurrent with the CRB's name change to the EMRB in October 2017, municipal membership decreased from 24 to 13, with the two non-CMA CRB members (Lamont County and Town of Lamont) no longer included, and only those municipalities within the CMA with a population of 5,000 or more remain as members (smaller municipalities are represented by their municipal districts).^[22]

More specifically, the EMRB includes:^[22][23]

• six cities (Beaumont, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, St. Albert, and Spruce Grove);
• one specialized municipality (Strathcona County, which includes the Sherwood Park urban service area);
• three municipal districts (Leduc County, Parkland County, and Sturgeon County); and
• three towns (Devon, Morinville, and Stony Plain).

Edmonton Metropolitan Region Growth Plan

Under the CRB Regulation, the CRB was tasked with preparing a growth plan to cover land use, intermunicipal transit, housing, and geographic information services components.^[24] In March, 2010, Growing Forward: The Capital Region Growth Plan (CRGP), consisting of individual plans for these four components and two addenda, was approved by the Government of Alberta.^[25]

The CRGP includes a population and employment forecast for the Capital Region. With a base population of 1.12 million in 2009, the CRB has forecasted the population of the Capital Region to reach 1.31 million by 2019.^[26] However, the 2019 population estimate was reached and exceeded by 2014.^[27] The CRGP also designates priority growth areas and cluster country residential areas within the Capital Region.^[28]

List of municipalities

St. Albert

Strathcona County (Sherwood Park)

Fort Saskatchewan

Morinville

The following is a list of municipalities in the Edmonton CMA, with those that are members of the EMRB indicated accordingly.

Municipality	Municipal status[29]	Federal census population (2021)[30]	Latest municipal census population (2016-2017)[31]	Latest municipal census year[31]	EMRB member[22]
Alexander 134	Indian reserve	1,077			N
Beaumont	City	20,888	19,236	2019	Y
Betula Beach	Summer village	27			N
Bon Accord	Town	1,461			N
Bruderheim	Town	1,329			N
Calmar	Town	2,183			N
Devon	Town	6,545			Y
Edmonton	City	1,010,899	972,223	2019	Y
Enoch Cree Nation 135	Indian reserve	1,825			N
Fort Saskatchewan	City	27,088	26,942	2019	Y
Gibbons	Town	3,218			N
Golden Days	Summer village	248			N
Itaska Beach	Summer village	30			N
Kapasiwin	Summer village	24			N
Lakeview	Summer village	29			N
Leduc	City	34,094	33,032	2019	Y
Leduc County	Municipal district	14,416			Y
Legal	Town	1,232			N
Morinville	Town	10,385	10,578	2020	Y
Parkland County	Municipal district	32,205			Y
Point Alison	Summer village	18			N
Redwater	Town	2,115			N
Seba Beach	Summer village	229			N
Spring Lake	Village	711			N
Spruce Grove	City	37,645	35,766	2018	Y
St. Albert	City	68,232	66,082	2018	Y
Stony Plain	Town	17,993			Y
Strathcona County	Specialized municipality	99,225			Y
Sturgeon County	Municipal district	20,061			Y
Sundance Beach	Summer village	42			N
Thorsby	Town	967			N
Wabamun 133A and 133B	Indian reserve	1,001			N
Warburg	Village	676			N
Total Edmonton CMA		1,418,118	—	—	—

• ^ Strathcona County's 2021 federal census population of 99,225 includes 72,017 in the Sherwood Park urban service area.^[32]
• ^ The combined Wabamun 133A and 133B population of 1,001 includes 981 in Wabamun 133A and 20 in Wabamun 133B.^[30]

Major industrial areas

Major industrial areas within the ECR include the northwest, southeast and Clover Bar industrial areas in Edmonton, Nisku Industrial Business Park in Leduc County, Acheson Industrial Area in Parkland County, Refinery Row in Strathcona County, and Alberta's Industrial Heartland spanning portions of Sturgeon County, Strathcona County, Lamont County and Fort Saskatchewan.

At the moment, two more major industrial areas are in the final stages of establishment. The establishment of the Horse Hills industrial area in northeast Edmonton is in the final planning stages, while Edmonton Airports is currently planning its inland port development under the Port Alberta initiative at the Edmonton International Airport within Leduc County.

See also

• Edmonton
• Calgary-Edmonton Corridor
• Calgary Metropolitan Region

Notes

1. As of the 2021 Census, with the promotion of the Nanaimo, Kamloops, Chilliwack, Fredericton, Drummondville and Red Deer CAs to CMA status, Canada has 41 CMAs.^[4]
2. 2001–2016: Statistic includes all persons that did not make up part of a visible minority or an indigenous identity.
   2021: Statistic includes all persons belonging to the non-indigenous and non-visible minority “White” population group.
3. Statistic includes total responses of "Filipino" and "Southeast Asian" under visible minority section on census.
4. Statistic includes total responses of "Chinese", "Korean", and "Japanese" under visible minority section on census.
5. Statistic includes total responses of "West Asian" and "Arab" under visible minority section on census.
6. Statistic includes total responses of "Visible minority, n.i.e." and "Multiple visible minorities" under visible minority section on census.

References

1. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (February 9, 2022). Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population. www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved August 11, 2023
2. "Statistics Canada. Table 36-10-0468-01 Gross domestic product (GDP) at basic prices, by census metropolitan area (CMA) (x 1,000,000)". Statistics Canada.
3. "Focus on Geography Series, 2021 Census of Population | Edmonton, Census metropolitan area". Statistics Canada. 2022-12-16. Archived from the original on 2022-12-21. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
4. "Dictionary, Census of Population, 2021 | Changes to the name and number of CMAs and CAs for the 2021 Census". Statistics Canada. 2021-11-17. Archived from the original on 2023-04-03. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
5. "Table 98-10-0003-01 Population and dwelling counts: Census metropolitan areas, census agglomerations and census subdivisions (municipalities)". 2022-02-09. Archived from the original on 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
6. "Population change (in percentage), census metropolitan areas, 2006 to 2011, 2011 to 2016 and 2016 to 2021". Statistics Canada. 2022-12-16. Archived from the original on 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
7. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-09-21). "Indigenous identity by Registered or Treaty Indian status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
8. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-10-26). "Visible minority and population group by generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
9. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2021-10-27). "Census Profile, 2016 Census Edmonton [Census metropolitan area], Alberta and Alberta [Province]". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
10. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2015-11-27). "NHS Profile, Edmonton, CMA, Alberta, 2011". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
11. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-08-20). "2006 Community Profiles Edmonton Alberta (Census metropolitan area)". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
12. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2019-07-02). "2001 Community Profiles Edmonton Alberta (Census Metropolitan Area)". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-28.
13. Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-08-17). "Knowledge of languages by age and gender: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
14. Archie McLean & Susan Ruttan (2007-12-19). "Mayor "elated" by new regional planning board". Edmonton Journal. Archived from the original on 2012-11-03. Retrieved 2008-01-09.
15. "Order in Council 127/2008". Alberta Queen's Printer. April 15, 2008. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved December 24, 2009.
16. "Order in Council 355/2017". Alberta Queen's Printer. October 26, 2017. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
17. Simons, Paula (November 1, 2017). "Welcome, neighbours, to the Edmonton Metropolitan Region". Edmonton Journal. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
18. "Order in Council (O.C.) 66/2010". Province of Alberta. 2010-03-15. Archived from the original on 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2012-02-13.
19. "Fact Sheet: Geographic Profile" (PDF). Capital Region Board. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-03-25. Retrieved 2012-02-13.
20. "Order in Council (O.C.) 316/2010". Province of Alberta. 2010-03-15. Archived from the original on 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2012-02-13.
21. "Order in Council (O.C.) 230/2010". Alberta Queen's Printer. Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2010-07-15.
22. "New faces for a newly revitalized region". Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board. October 28, 2017. Archived from the original on November 14, 2017. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
23. Edmonton Metropolitan Region Geographic Information Services (2018-03-26). "Map of EMRB Members". Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board. Archived from the original on 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
24. "Capital Region Board". Capital Region Board. Archived from the original on 2012-01-03. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
25. "Capital Region Growth Plan: Growing Forward". Capital Region Board. Archived from the original on 2015-03-25. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
26. "The Capital Region Growth Plan Addendum" (PDF). Capital Region Board. December 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-03-25. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
27. "Population of census metropolitan areas". Statcan.gc.ca. 2017-03-08. Archived from the original on 2016-12-16. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
28. "The Capital Region Growth Plan Addendum" (PDF). Capital Region Board. October 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-03-25. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
29. "2024 Municipal Codes" (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. June 3, 2024. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
30. Focus on Geography Series, 2021 Census of Population Edmonton, Census metropolitan area. Statistics Canada Retrieved August 12, 2023
31. 2019 Municipal Affairs Population List (PDF). Alberta Municipal Affairs. ISBN 978-1-4601-4623-1. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
32. Census population results. Strathcona County. September 13, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2023

External links

• Official website
• Edmonton.com - Portal to Greater Edmonton
• EEDC - Edmonton Economic Development Corporation
• Government of Alberta Regional Dashboard economic data for the Edmonton CMA