Canadian Land Surface Scheme (CLASS)

Scientists at ECCC develop climate models to understand how the atmosphere is affected by natural and human activities and provide projections of future change to inform adaptation decisions.  The accurate representation of interactions between the land surface and the atmosphere is an important component of these climate models. The Canadian Land Surface Scheme (CLASS) has been developed in ECCC to represent the physical exchanges of heat and moisture between the land surface and the atmosphere.  CLASS is specifically designed to represent the effects of vegetation, soil and snow cover properties on these exchanges. 

ECCC scientists carry out field studies and collect measurements to support new understanding of the land surface and the processes that need to be represented in CLASS and ECCC climate models. 

Services and information

Learn more about ECCC climate models and snow and ice research:

Questions? Send your enquiries, comments and suggestions to:

Environment and Climate Change Canada
Climate Research Division
4905 Dufferin Street
Toronto, Ontario CANADA
M3H 5T4
Email: ec.enviroinfo.ec@canada.ca