Geography 2011A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Great Lakes Basin, International Joint Commission, United States Environmental Protection Agency
7 May 2018
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MODULE THREE
Management of the Great Lakes
Goals and Objectives:
This module is designed to outline the framework for managing the Great Lakes (both in terms of water quality and
quantity) between the 2 national governments of Canada and the U.S. and the provinces and states that border
them. Major treaties and agreements will be discussed and current programs will be described and analyzed. Having
developed an understanding of the complexity of Great Lakes problems in the previous module, you are well
prepared to gain an appreciation of the complexity of finding and implementing solutions and management
strategies in the Great Lakes basin.
At the end of the module you should be able to:
• List and describe the key organizations, treaties and agreements respecting the management of the Great
Lakes
• Understand the theory and application of the Ecosystem Approach
• Describe the Remedial Action Plan program and outline progress to date in the Areas of Concern
• Have an appreciation of the complexity of the institutional arrangements for the management of the Great
Lakes
• Reflect on progress to date, and make predictions about future progress
• Develop suggestions to improve the management of the Great Lakes
Readings:
The Great Lakes: An Environmental Atlas and Resource Book, Jointly produced by the Government of Canada
and United States Environmental Protection Agency, Third Edition,
1995 (http://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyNET.exe/P1004ICU.TXT?ZyActionD=ZyDocument&Client=EPA&Index=1995+Thru
+1999&Docs=&Query=&Time=&EndTime=&SearchMethod=1&TocRestrict=n&Toc=&TocEntry=&QField=&QFieldYea
r=&QFieldMonth=&QFieldDay=&IntQFieldOp=0&ExtQFieldOp=0&XmlQuery=&File=D%3A%5Czyfiles%5CIndex%20
Data%5C95thru99%5CTxt%5C00000023%5CP1004ICU.txt&User=ANONYMOUS&Password=anonymous&SortMeth
od=h%7C-
&MaximumDocuments=1&FuzzyDegree=0&ImageQuality=r75g8/r75g8/x150y150g16/i425&Display=p%7Cf&DefSeek
Page=x&SearchBack=ZyActionL&Back=ZyActionS&BackDesc=Results%20page&MaximumPages=1&ZyEntry=1&Se
ekPage=x&ZyPURL)
• Chapter 5 – Joint Management of the Great Lakes (the entire chapter)
• Chapter 6 – New Directions for the Great Lakes Community (the entire chapter)
“Keeping Remedial Action Plans on Target: Lessons Learned from Collingwood Harbour” by G. Krantzberg
from Journal of Great Lakes Research 29 (4): 641-651 (2003). (Posted at the bottom of this page)
“A Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement for the 21st Century” by Lyndon Valicenti. February, 2013. (Posted at
the bottom of this page)
“Great Lakes Blueprint: A Canadian Vision for Protecting and Restoring the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence
River Ecosystem”, by Ecodefence (2007).
www.cielap.org/pdf/GreatLakesBlueprint.pdf
The International Joint Commission (IJC)
• Independent Commission with 6 members
3 appointed by the US President (with Senate advice/approval)
3 appointed by the Governor in Council of Canada (advice of PM)
• established by 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty which states that "boundary waters and waters flowing across
the boundary shall not be polluted on either side to the injury of health or property on the other"
• established to assist governments in finding solutions to problems in boundary waters -- to prevent and
resolve disputes along the Canada-US border
• makes decisions on applications for projects such as dams in boundary waters and regulates the operations
of many of those projects
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• has provided a regulatory framework for the peaceful settlement of issues to the good of both countries for
100 years
• tends to work toward consensus (rather than just a simple majority of 4 commissioners agreeing)
• has split down national lines on only 2 occasions (both about issues in Western Canada and the U.S.)
Here is some more background about the IJC:www.ijc.org/en_/About_the_IJC
The Role of the IJC
• created because Canada and the US recognized that each country is affected by the other's actions
• provides way to cooperate in the management of these waters to protect them for benefit of today's citizens
and future generations
• the IJC has a mandate to respecting the competing interests of all users of the water (i.e. the interests of a
farmer using the water may compete with the interests of recreational beach users, commercial fishing may
compete with shipping or hydro generation).
• the IJC has two permanent “references” or responsibilities directed by the Canada and US
governments: investigating water pollution and investigating air pollution
• the IJC fulfills its duty to “investigate water pollution” in the Great Lakes region through the Great Lakes
Water Quality Agreement
The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA)
• the Lake Erie eutrophication problem of the late 1960s led to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement
(1972)
• GLWQA 1972 focused on non-persistent pollutants (i.e. phosphorous, nitrogen) and was quite successful
• In 1978, concerns around persistent toxic contaminants led to a new agreement (GLWQA 1978) committed
to the virtual elimination of those contaminants. Also in 1987, the GLWQA adopted the “ecosystem
approach” to the management of the Great Lakes.
• In 2012, the Governments of Canada and the United States re-committed to a shared vision of a healthy and
prosperous Great Lakes region. The 2012 GLWQA recognizes the importance of taking action, resolving
existing environmental issues and anticipating and preventing future problems.
This site outlines the history of the GLWQA and includes all the related reports:https://binational.net/glwqa-aqegl/
The Ecosystem Approach:
• Is the result of growing understanding of interrelated and interdependent factors
• does not depend on any one program or course of action
• assumes a comprehensive and interdisciplinary attitude
• has 3 general characteristics:
1. is systemic
2. is geographically comprehensive
3. includes humans
Here is a link that describes the Ecosytem Approach in general: https://www.cbd.int/ecosystem/
Systemic:
• takes a broad view – considers the interaction of physical, chemical and biological components
• recognizes the interdependence of the life in the lakes and the chemical/physical characteristics of water
• uses biological indicators to monitor water quality and changes in the ecosystem
Geographically Comprehensive:
• the ecosystem approach covers the entire system including land, air and water
• recognizes importance of atmospheric inputs of pollutants and the effects of land uses on water quality
Inclusion of Humans:
• includes people as an important factor in the well-being of the system
• recognizes that social, economic, technical and political variables affect how humans use natural resources
• realizes that culture, lifestyles and attitudes must be considered in an ecosystem approach
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
This module is designed to outline the framework for managing the great lakes (both in terms of water quality and quantity) between the 2 national governments of canada and the u. s. and the provinces and states that border them. Major treaties and agreements will be discussed and current programs will be described and analyzed. Having developed an understanding of the complexity of great lakes problems in the previous module, you are well prepared to gain an appreciation of the complexity of finding and implementing solutions and management strategies in the great lakes basin. At the end of the module you should be able to: List and describe the key organizations, treaties and agreements respecting the management of the great. Lakes: reflect on progress to date, and make predictions about future progress, develop suggestions to improve the management of the great lakes.
