Val-d'Or | |
|---|---|
 Val-d'Or city | |
 Location within La Vallée-de-l'Or RCM | |
  Val-d'Or Location in western Quebec | |
| Coordinates:48°06′N77°47′W / 48.100°N 77.783°W /48.100; -77.783[1][2] | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Quebec |
| Region | Abitibi-Témiscamingue |
| RCM | La Vallée-de-l'Or |
| Constituted | January 1, 2002 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Céline Brindamour |
| • Federal riding | Abitibi—Baie-James— Nunavik—Eeyou |
| • Prov. riding | Abitibi-Est |
| Area | |
• City | 3,979.63 km2 (1,536.54 sq mi) |
| • Land | 3,536.84 km2 (1,365.58 sq mi) |
| • Urban | 25.17 km2 (9.72 sq mi) |
| • Metro | 3,539.98 km2 (1,366.79 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 306 m (1,004 ft) |
| Population (2021)[4] | |
• City | 32,752 |
| • Density | 9.3/km2 (24/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 25,473 |
| • Urban density | 1,011.9/km2 (2,621/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 34,037 |
| • Metro density | 9.6/km2 (25/sq mi) |
| • Pop (2016-21) |  0.8% |
| • Dwellings | 15,884 |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) |
| Postal code(s) | |
| Area code(s) | 819/873 |
| Highways |  R-111 R-113  R-117 (TCH) R-397 |
| Website | www |
Val-d'Or (/ˈvældɔːr/VAL-dor,[7]French:[valdɔʁ],locally[valdɑɔ̯ʁ]; meaning "Golden Valley" or "Valley of Gold") is acity inQuebec, Canada with a population of 32,752 inhabitants according to the2021 Canadian census. The city is located in theAbitibi-Témiscamingueregion nearLa Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve.
TheAlgonquin toponym of the town isOzawaconia Odena.[8]
Gold was discovered in the area in 1923. The name of the town is French for "Valley of Gold." While gold is still mined in the area today, base metals, such ascopper (Cu),zinc (Zn), andlead (Pb) have become increasingly important resources. The ore is usually found in volcanic rocks that were deposited on the sea floor over 2.7 billion years ago. They are referred to as volcanic-hosted (orvolcanogenic) massive sulphide deposits (VMS).[2]
The city is known for its vast parks, cycle tracks, and forests. Some other attractions include theCity of Gold and the mining village ofBourlamaque, which were officially proclaimed historic sites in 1979.
The city hosted theQuebec Games in 1987. The local hockey team, theVal-d'Or Foreurs, have played in theQMJHL since 1993, winning the league championship in 1998, 2001 and 2014 to claim a spot in theMemorial Cup. They play atCentre Air Creebec. The Foreurs' mascot is called Dynamit, named afterdynamite which was extensively used by the mining industry of Val-d'Or.
Val-d'Or was once home toCFS Val-d'Or, aCanadian Forces Station.
In themunicipal reorganizations of January 1, 2002, Val-d'Or was merged with the neighbouring municipalities ofDubuisson,Sullivan,Val-Senneville andVassan.[2]
TheRadio-Canada investigative television program,Enquête, revealed in October 2015 numerous allegations of assault and sexual abuse of local aboriginal women by members of the provincial police, theSûreté du Québec.[9] The news propelled the town into the national spotlight, causing Québec's Public Safety Minister,Lise Thériault, to suspend the officers and launch an independent investigation led by theMontréal police force.[10]
Val-d'Or is situated on theCanadian Shield at an elevation of 1100 feet (330m) above sea level. Although its name refers to a valley ("Val"), the city is actually situated on a vast, slightly undulating plain.
Val-d'Or is at the heart of a vast hydrographic network which includes to the northLake Blouin, the head water of theHarricana River and to the south Baie Carrière, a reservoir which feeds theOttawa River.[11]
Val-d'Or has ahumid continental climate (Köppen Climate ClassificationDfb), closely bordering on asubarctic climate (Dfc) with warm, humid summers and severely cold winters. Winters are snowy with a January mean of −17.4 °C (0.7 °F). There are 18.4 days where the temperature will fall below −30 °C (−22.0 °F) although with the wind chill factored in, it can occasionally drop below −40 °C (−40.0 °F).[12] Snowfall totals are heavy, averaging 288 centimetres (113 in) with reliable snow cover from November to April.[12] Summers are warm with a July daily high of 23.7 °C (74.7 °F) though highs reach above 30.0 °C (86.0 °F) an average of 4.3 days per year. Val-d'Or receives 905 millimetres (36 in)of precipitation per year which is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year, though precipitation is heaviest during the warmest months. Val-d'Or receives 1853 hours of sunshine per or about 39.5 of possible daylight hours, ranging from a low of 19.2% in November to a high of 52.9% in July.
| Climate data for Val-d'Or (1981−2010) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record highhumidex | 10.6 | 11.9 | 17.9 | 29.0 | 39.3 | 46.0 | 47.9 | 41.5 | 39.9 | 31.5 | 20.8 | 16.2 | 47.9 |
| Record high °C (°F) | 9.7 (49.5) | 12.3 (54.1) | 25.0 (77.0) | 28.2 (82.8) | 32.8 (91.0) | 34.0 (93.2) | 36.1 (97.0) | 36.1 (97.0) | 32.2 (90.0) | 26.1 (79.0) | 18.3 (64.9) | 13.7 (56.7) | 36.1 (97.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −10.9 (12.4) | −7.9 (17.8) | −1.5 (29.3) | 7.2 (45.0) | 15.9 (60.6) | 21.1 (70.0) | 23.7 (74.7) | 21.9 (71.4) | 16.0 (60.8) | 8.9 (48.0) | 0.2 (32.4) | −7.0 (19.4) | 7.3 (45.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −17.4 (0.7) | −14.7 (5.5) | −8.1 (17.4) | 1.4 (34.5) | 9.2 (48.6) | 14.6 (58.3) | 17.5 (63.5) | 15.9 (60.6) | 10.5 (50.9) | 4.4 (39.9) | −4.1 (24.6) | −12.5 (9.5) | 1.4 (34.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −23.9 (−11.0) | −21.4 (−6.5) | −14.7 (5.5) | −4.5 (23.9) | 2.5 (36.5) | 7.9 (46.2) | 11.3 (52.3) | 9.8 (49.6) | 5.0 (41.0) | −0.2 (31.6) | −8.3 (17.1) | −18.0 (−0.4) | −4.5 (23.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −43.9 (−47.0) | −42.2 (−44.0) | −36.1 (−33.0) | −26.1 (−15.0) | −11.1 (12.0) | −3.9 (25.0) | −0.1 (31.8) | −2.8 (27.0) | −6.2 (20.8) | −13.3 (8.1) | −30.0 (−22.0) | −40.6 (−41.1) | −43.9 (−47.0) |
| Record lowwind chill | −55.2 | −53.5 | −47.2 | −32.8 | −18.7 | −9.2 | 0.0 | −2.9 | −10.0 | −18.3 | −36.0 | −50.1 | −55.2 |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 51.7 (2.04) | 39.3 (1.55) | 58.6 (2.31) | 66.4 (2.61) | 85.1 (3.35) | 90.4 (3.56) | 97.4 (3.83) | 93.5 (3.68) | 94.8 (3.73) | 83.7 (3.30) | 83.9 (3.30) | 60.4 (2.38) | 905.1 (35.63) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 5.6 (0.22) | 4.2 (0.17) | 16.5 (0.65) | 35.3 (1.39) | 82.3 (3.24) | 90.3 (3.56) | 97.4 (3.83) | 93.5 (3.68) | 93.3 (3.67) | 70.8 (2.79) | 40.9 (1.61) | 9.4 (0.37) | 639.4 (25.17) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 52.2 (20.6) | 39.6 (15.6) | 44.3 (17.4) | 29.9 (11.8) | 2.6 (1.0) | 0.07 (0.03) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 1.5 (0.6) | 12.6 (5.0) | 46.6 (18.3) | 58.8 (23.1) | 288.1 (113.4) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 18.3 | 15.6 | 14.4 | 13.8 | 14.3 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.5 | 16.6 | 17.8 | 20.6 | 21.4 | 196.8 |
| Average rainy days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 2.1 | 1.5 | 4.0 | 8.9 | 13.7 | 14.4 | 15.3 | 14.4 | 16.6 | 13.8 | 7.7 | 2.7 | 115.1 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.2 cm) | 18.2 | 14.9 | 12.6 | 8.3 | 1.7 | 0.27 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 6.9 | 16.3 | 20.9 | 101.0 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 86.5 | 124.4 | 162.3 | 177.8 | 220.7 | 243.0 | 255.9 | 227.2 | 139.9 | 99.0 | 53.7 | 62.9 | 1,853.4 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 31.5 | 43.3 | 44.1 | 43.5 | 47.0 | 50.7 | 52.9 | 51.3 | 37.0 | 29.4 | 19.2 | 24.0 | 39.5 |
| Source:Environment Canada[12] | |||||||||||||
In the2021 Census of Population conducted byStatistics Canada, Val-d'Or had a population of32,752 living in15,033 of its15,884 total private dwellings, a change of0.8% from its 2016 population of32,491. With a land area of 3,536.84 km2 (1,365.58 sq mi), it had a population density of9.3/km2 (24.0/sq mi) in 2021.[4]
| 2021 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 32,752 (+0.8% from 2016) | 32,491 (+2.0% from 2011) |
| Land area | 3,536.84 km2 (1,365.58 sq mi) | 3,550.70 km2 (1,370.93 sq mi) |
| Population density | 9.3/km2 (24/sq mi) | 9.2/km2 (24/sq mi) |
| Median age | 43.2 (M: 42.0, F: 44.0) | 42.5 (M: 41.4, F: 43.8) |
| Private dwellings | 15,884 (total) 15,033 (occupied) | 15,352 (total) 14,565 (occupied) |
| Median household income | $75,500 | $64,864 |
|
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Population counts are not adjusted for boundary changes. Source: Statistics Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mother Tongue (2021):[4]
Air Creebec, a regional airline, has its headquarters in Val-d'Or and theVal-d'Or Airport serves as its hub.[15]
Val-d'Or's proximity to theAbitibi gold belt has made it a large gold producer, being part of a region that produced 45 million ounces of gold since the 1930s.[16][17]
In 2012, Quebec Lithium Corp. re-opened alithium mine which had operated as an underground mine from 1955–65, planning to carve an open pit mine overpegmatite dikes. the mine is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Val d'Or, 38 kilometres (24 mi) southeast ofAmos, and 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) km west ofBarraute. Access to the mine is via paved road from Val d'Or.[18]
ACanadian National Railway line passes through the community. TheVal-d'Or station formerly served CN andVIA Rail Canada passenger trains.[19][20][21]
Transit and paratransit services within Val-d'Or are provided by a contractor.[22] Intercity bus service from and to Val-d'Or is provided byAutobus Maheux [fr].
City council (as of 2022):[23]
List of former mayors since 2002 amalgamation:
TheCentre de services scolaire de l'Or-et-des-Bois operates French-language public schools, while theWestern Quebec School Board operates English-language public schools.
The city also hosts campuses ofCégep de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue and ofUQAT.
Almost all media in Val-d'Or and the nearby city ofRouyn-Noranda serves both cities. Although the cities are far enough apart that radio and television stations in the area serve the cities from separate transmitters, almost every broadcast station in either city has arebroadcaster in the other city. The only nominal exceptions are the cities' separateÉnergie stations, although at present even these stations share the majority of their broadcast schedule.
Adjacent municipal subdivisions | |
|---|---|
 Subdivisions ofLa Vallée-de-l'Or Regional County Municipality | |
|---|---|
| Cities | |
| Municipalities | |
| Parishes | |
| Unorganized territories | |
| |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
