Thursday, October 30, 2008

Preserving the Waters of the Great Lakes

ONTARIO APPLAUDS U.S. RATIFICATION OF
GREAT LAKES WATER COMPACT
On October 3, United States President George W. Bush signed the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact. His signature followed the ratification of the compact by eight Great Lakes states - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin - and the U.S. Congress. This step enacts in U.S. law a historic cross-border partnership among Ontario, Quebec and the Great Lakes states to protect the waters of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin.

In 2005, Premier Dalton McGuinty, Quebec Premier Jean Charest and the governors of the eight states signed a good-faith agreement protecting the waters of the basin. The states also endorsed a companion interstate compact.
The agreement and the compact:
• place a virtual ban on removing or transferring water out of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin;
• establish a common, basin-wide standard for managing the resource;
• set goals and objectives for conserving water; and
• commit the parties to creating a science strategy for critical issues facing the Great Lakes, such as the impacts of climate change and the cumulative effects of water use.
The terms of the agreement were incorporated in Ontario's 2007 Safeguarding and Sustaining Ontario's Water Act. Quebec’s National Assembly voted to endorse the agreement and tabled legislation in June. With the U.S. ratification of the compact, the terms of the agreement and compact will apply throughout the Great Lakes states.
This international partnership is a landmark in cooperation among governments and across borders. In addition to this partnership, the advice and input of a multi-party advisory panel, Ontario First Nations and the public was critical in helping Ontario pursue a strong agreement.
The Great Lakes are of vital importance to Ontario, and we look forward to collaborating with our neighbours. Most Ontario residents get their drinking water from the Great Lakes Basin and it supports more than half of Canada’s manufacturing output, a quarter of the country's agriculture and $300 billion annually in trade between Ontario and the U.S.
The Great Lakes agreement and compact are part of Ontario's long-term plan to work with other governments and partners to protect, restore and sustain the Great Lakes for the benefit of Ontarians now and in the future.