Accurate local weather data is essential for designing buildings and infrastructure that are resilient to the changing climate. A wide range of federal, provincial, territorial, municipal, academic, and industry organizations collect and analyze weather and climate data in Canada. Standards play an important role in helping ensure this data is reliable, accessible, and shareable nationwide, while also supporting its compatibility with international systems.
With support from the Standards Council of Canada (SCC), CSA Group has published a series of National Standards of Canada (NSC) for hydrometeorological monitoring stations. These standards aim to facilitate access to accurate weather and climate data to improve the climate resilience of Canada’s infrastructure.
CSA R100:20, Canadian metadata standard for hydrometeorological monitoring stations
This Standard promotes best practices for collecting metadata for hydrometeorological stations across Canada, facilitating public access through a centralized repository.
CSA R101:22, Automated hydrometeorological monitoring stations: Site selection, instrument installation, and instrument maintenance
This Standard provides guidance for selecting sites for automated, surface-based hydrometeorological monitoring stations and installing and maintaining automated hydrometeorological instrumentation.
CSA R102:22, Data qualification for Canadian automated hydrometeorological monitoring stations
This Standard provides a framework to assess, tabulate, and quantify factors contributing to the quality of hydrometeorological data.
CSA R103:23, Protocols for sharing automated hydrometeorological monitoring stations data and metadata
This Standard provides guidance for the sharing of data collected at hydrometeorological monitoring stations, including equipment and software considerations.