14e8b Reports and Publications
International Joint Commission (IJC)
More than a century of cooperation protecting shared waters

Reports and Publications

Publications 616 Results

Plan of Study: For the Review of the Operating Plan Contained in Annex A of the 1989 International Agreement Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America
International Joint Commission
2013/06/07

Unprecedented flooding of the Souris River in 2011 has caused concerns for those living within the basin, which lies in the provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba as well as the state of North Dakota.  Due to these concerns, the IJC asked the International Souris River Board, which oversees flood operation and the apportionment of river flows, to establish the Souris River Basin Task Force in February 2012 to develop a Plan of Study on flooding of the Souris River.  The Plan of Study evaluates alternative regulation methods to those listed in Annex A to the 1989 Canada-United States Agreement for Water Supply and Flood Control in the Souris River Basin. The Task Force identified three funding options for the study, from just over $1M for the most basic assessment to $2.14M for the most comprehensive analysis.  After receiving input from the International Souris River Board, stakeholders, and the public, the IJC supports the Task Force’s recommendation that the governments approve implementing the $2.14M plan.  This particular plan would examine both the 1989 International Agreement and its operating rules to allow for the new flood control provisions.  Two years would be needed to complete the proposed plan and the cost would be shared equally between the U.S. and Canadian governments.

Assessment of Progress Made Towards Restoring and Maintaining Great Lakes Water Quality Since 1987 - 16th Biennial Report on Great Lakes Water Quality
International Joint Commission
2013/05/14

The goal of this report is to present a scientifically sound yet broadly accessible picture of how the health of the Great Lakes has changed over the 25 years since the Agreement was last revised. The data presented show significant achievements; however, the evidence equally demands sustained investment and action to protect and restore the Great Lakes for today, tomorrow and for generations to come. The authors of this report selected 14 well-documented indicators of chemical, physical and biological integrity, and two indicators of performance. Only indicators with data that spanned all or most of the 25-year period were included in this report and most data were from the State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference (SOLEC).

International Joint Commission's Advice to Governments on the Recommendations of the International Upper Great Lakes Study
International Joint Commission
2013/04/26

This report contains the International Joint Commission’s advice to the Governments of Canada and United States on the recommendations put forth by the International Upper Great Lakes Study Board. The binational Study Board issued its final report in March 2012. The Study Board benefitted from the input of more than 200 science and policy experts, an external Independent Peer Review process and a Public Interest Advisory Group. The Commission and the Study Board consulted extensively with stakeholders and the public during the course of the five-year Study. In July 2012, the Commission held 13 public hearings regarding the final Study Board report at locations on lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, St. Clair and Erie. Members of the public also were provided opportunities to comment on the report via a public hearing teleconference, regular mail, telephone, e-mail and a web-based comment form. In preparing its advice to the Governments, the Commission thoroughly considered all the input received from these sources.

Air Quality Agreement Progress Report 2012
Air Quality Committee
2013/04/08

The 2012 Progress Report is the 11th biennial report completed under the 1991 Canada-U.S. Air Quality Agreement and summarizes key actions undertaken by both countries in the last two years to address transboundary air pollution within the context of the Agreement. The report presents progress made toward meeting the commitments established in the Acid Rain and Ozone Annexes of the Agreement and key scientific and technical trends related to air pollution.

Lake Superior Regulation: Addressing Uncertainty in Upper Great Lakes Water Levels
The International Upper Great Lakes Study
2012/03/30

The International Upper Great Lakes Study examines whether the regulation of outflows from Lake Superior through the compensating works and power dams on the St. Marys River at Sault Ste. Marie might be improved to take into consideration the evolving needs of users on Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie. The Study report also examines the potential future impacts of climate change, a management strategy to better anticipate and respond to future extreme water levels, the feasibility and implications of restoring water levels in Lake Michigan-Huron, and multi-lake regulation and its impacts throughout the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence system

Report on Bi-National Water Management of the Lake of the Woods – Rainy River Watershed
International Joint Commission
2012/01/02

The IJC recommends a governance model for a new International the Lake of the Woods and Rainy River Watershed Board basin. The governance model would apply cooperative research and decision making and enhance local participation and support mechanisms to address priority issues identified in its report such as nutrient enrichment, harmful algal blooms, aquatic invasive species, the contamination of ground and surface water, climate change indicators and the development of adaptation measures.

Synthesis of Public Comment on the 2010 Progress Report under the Canada – United States Air Quality Agreement December 2011
International Joint Commission
2011/12/01

This report provides a synthesis of the comments received on the 2010 Progress Report for the years 2008-2010. Comments generally expressed support for the Agreement process and the progress that has been made. Nonetheless, most respondents said that more needs to be done in order to achieve better air quality.

15th Biennial Report on Great Lakes Water Quality
International Joint Commission
2011/03/01

The International Joint Commission (IJC/Commission)’s Fifteenth Biennial Report on Great Lakes Water Quality focuses on the nearshore zone, the critical ecological link between watersheds, tributaries, wetlands, groundwater, and offshore waters of the Great Lakes. Canada and the U.S. are currently negotiating to revise the 1978 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA); the IJC recommends explicit provisions be incorporated to address threats to nearshore water quality. Lakewide Management Plans (LaMPs) are the ideal geographic unit to coordinate and implement programs involving all governments and non-governmental organizations within hydrologic boundaries, using adaptive management. The reemergence of eutrophication – algal fouling caused by excessive nutrients such as phosphorus – is likely caused by inadequate municipal wastewater and residential septic systems, agricultural runoff, industrial livestock operations, tile drainage discharge, invasive mussel species, and climate change impacts. The report recommends new research and monitoring efforts similar to the Commission’s Pollution from Land Use Activities Reference Group (PLUARG) of the 1970s. In the interim there are several actions governments must take to reduce nonpoint and point pollution from agricultural and urban sources. Nonpoint source pollution impairs water quality at recreational beaches; the IJC recommends better public warning systems and a binational, standardized beach monitoring system. Federal support is needed for research to improve indicators of human health threats. With the Asian Carp threatening to invade the Great Lakes, the report recommends development and deployment of binational protocols for prevention and rapid response, and binational coordination to develop consistent fish consumption advisories. Groundwater faces a great range of threats, to be addressed by a basin-wide program involving research, monitoring, regulation, enforcement, and economic and tax incentives. The revised GLWQA must include provisions to deal with chemicals of emerging concern, such as pharmaceuticals and personal care products; the report calls for research, monitoring, and a data repository dedicated to these chemicals’ effects.

Groundwater in the Great Lakes Baisn A Report of the SAB to the IJC
Great Lakes Science Advisory Board
2010/02/01

Groundwater constitutes an immense unseen reservoir in the Great Lakes basin. It supports crucial ecosystem functions as well as being a source for drinking, agricultural, and industrial water. The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), the Council of Great Lakes Research Managers, and the Health Professionals Task Force collaborated to produce this priority Report that presents contemporary scientific understanding and research on Great Lakes basin groundwater. The Report scrutinizes threats to groundwater quality, issuing detailed Appendices for the most substantial of these: pathogens, chemical contaminants, on-site wastewater treatment systems, leaking underground storage tanks, hazardous waste sites, abandoned wells, de-icing compounds, confined animal feeding operations, and conveyance losses. Numerous case studies bear out the information, especially a concerted analysis of the Châteauguay aquifer system, the only international aquifer in the Great Lakes basin, located southwest of Montreal. Local industrial activity resulted in major contamination of the Mercier Esker in the early 1970s, forcing adjoining towns to abandon their municipal wells. Appendix L explores the patchwork of regulations, statutes, and common and civil law principles that currently constitutes groundwater law, primarily state and provincial but actually involving multiple levels of government. The regulatory regime is at present inconsistent, insufficient to protect groundwater quality and quantity and to prevent conflict over its use. The SAB advises the International Joint Commission (IJC) on how to emend Annex 16 of the GLWQA in order to grant due attention to groundwater. The IJC must oversee progress on groundwater issues and to designate a lead agency to report regularly to the Commission on relevant developments. Further recommendations to government include supporting research geared to comprehend groundwater and contamination sources; improving groundwater monitoring programs while developing comprehensive databases of incorporated information; adopting water source protection and conservation measures; regulating and otherwise acting upon identified groundwater threats.

Impacts on Upper Great Lakes Water Levels: St. Clair River Final Report
Upper Great Lakes Study
2009/12/01

This is the first of two reports on the St. Clair River portion for the bi-national Upper Great Lakes Study. The Study Board concludes that conveyance, glacial isostatic adjustment, and climactic patterns have decreased Lake Michigan-Huron and Lake Erie water-level difference. Also, no erosion along the length of the St. Clair River bed has taken place since at least 2000; previous fluctuations measured (1971-2000) were erroneous. On this basis, the Study Board recommends that remedial measures (to address past damages or adverse effects) not be undertaken in the St. Clair River at this time, and that the need for mitigative measures (to address possible future changes that might result in adverse effects) in the St. Clair River be examined as part of the comprehensive assessment of the future effects of climate change on water supplies in the upper Great Lakes basin in Report 2 of the Study, on Lake Superior regulation, to be completed in 2012. The Study Board also recommends that: bathymetric surveys be conducted every five years to monitor any changes in the bed of the St. Clair River; the four new stream flow gauging stations and the two eddy co-variance (evaporation) gauging stations installed as part of the Study be maintained following the completion of the Study in 2012; and accountability and coordination in the collection and management of essential data on the Great Lakes be strengthened by formalizing the mandate of the bi-national Coordinating Committee on Great Lakes Basic Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data and having the Committee formally report to the International Joint Commission.

IJC Activities Map
International Joint Commission - Commission mixte internationale
2009/10/01

A large digital map with several insets depicts the Canada-United States transboundary drainage basins, using a GSC North American 1983 CSRS Coordinate System that shows land areas in true proportion. It includes statistics on boundary lengths. From west to east, the basins depicted in the insets are the Alaska-Yukon, Columbia River, Old Man River, Milk River, Souris River, Red River, Rainy River, the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River, Lake Champlain, and St. Croix River. The document summarizes historical events and political landmarks related to watershed management for each. They are also indexed to their respective Articles in the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty. There are four basins that are piloted in the International Watershed Initiative (Red River, Souris River, Rainy Lake and River, and St. Croix River). Additional captions reference activities of the International Air Quality Advisory Board and report on action regarding particulate matter and sulfur dioxides in the Detroit/Windsor/Sarnia/Port Huron region.

Synthesis of Public Coment on the 2008 Progress Report under the Canada-Unites States Air Quality Agreement
Air Quality Advisory Board
2009/09/01

The 1991 Canada-United States Air Quality Agreement Report (AQA) instituted a bilateral Air Quality Committee (AQC), led by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Environment Canada, to implement the AQA by organizing action to mitigate transboundary air pollution. This report provides a synthesis of the fifteen commentaries on the AQC’s 2008 biennial Progress Report received upon open invitation by the International Joint Commission (IJC). Response was on the whole positive. Government submissions were brief and tended to stress their own efforts to improve air quality. Submissions from non-governmental organizations were mixed, most offering detailed analysis on the content of the Progress Report, suggesting improvements and corrections. Respondents approved the AQA itself, applauding reduction in air pollution emissions and deposition levels achieved by work done under the Agreement’s auspices. Both Canada and the U.S. are meeting or surpassing their mutual obligation to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulphur dioxides (SO2), and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Respondents thought the Progress Report was clear and comprehensive, but some expressed concern that it failed to adequately address certain problems or regions, and lacked consistency. Detailed comment on the acid rain and ozone annexes, and progress made towards meeting contiguous commitments, ensues. In the Section on Scientific and Technical Collaboration and Research, respondents appreciated the foundational data on critical loads and exceedances. One pointed out that NOx emissions in the two countries are not comparable as presented; another that ammonia concentrations are sampled biweekly as part of a new initiative to implement a pilot network. Further technical emendations and other comments are duly recorded by the IJC for review and to benefit future work of the AQC.

14th Biennial Report on Great Lakes Water Quality
International Joint Commission - Commission mixte internationale
2009/08/01

The International Joint Commission (IJC/Commission)’s 14th Biennial Report focuses on the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement’s (GLWQA) Article VI.1(a), which calls for programs to reduce, control, and prevent pollution from municipal sources entering the Great Lakes System. Municipal wastewater derives from household, commercial, and industrial sources as well as stormwater. In Canada and the U.S. it is managed by combined sewer systems (CSSs), separate sanitary sewer systems (SSSs), and municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s). The report explains how system malfunctions or overflows release high concentrations of contaminants into the environment. Wastewater treatment facilities reduce contaminant levels through advanced technologies, but even once treated, wastewater can contain harmful levels of microorganisms, such as viruses, parasites or protozoa. Effluent discharge from sewage treatment plants is described as point-source pollution because it comes from one place in a concentrated manner; considerable water pollution in the Great Lakes basin comes from point sources. The IJC Report draws on documentation from Environment Canada, Ontario’s Ministry of Environment, and the Environmental Protection Agency, including data on fecal coliform levels, the three levels of sewage treatment technology, and the National Pollutant Release Inventory. The report details public notification procedures and multi-level government oversight of wastewater treatment facilities in the U.S. and Canada. The IJC enacted a survey of dischargers on both sides of the border (see reports on the IJC website), a performance analysis of ten treatment facilities, and review of the environmental compliance of wastewater treatment plants in the five binational Areas of Concern (AOCs). Case studies highlight the success of wastewater management initiatives in Toronto and Milwaukee, but the performance analysis and compliance review reveal that suitable water quality protection in receiving waters still requires considerable work. Economic consequences of polluted wastewater discharge include increased costs for treating drinking water, decreases in property value, lost productivity from illness, increased health care costs and lost revenue from recreation. The IJC recommends that economic stimulus measures address wastewater system needs, that the permitting process for municipal and industrial dischargers take a watershed management approach, that third-party audits improve compliance with Great Lakes water quality standards, and that green infrastructure complement traditional infrastructure investments; cost estimates are provided.

IJC Annual Report 2008 (Boundary Water Treaty Centennial Edition)
International Joint Commission - Commission mixte internationale
2009/08/01

The 2008 Annual Report is expanded due to the centenary of the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty (BWT) that founded the International Joint Commission (IJC). The BWT’s purpose is to prevent and resolve disputes over the use of waters shared by Canada and the U.S. and to ameliorate transboundary problems involving pollution, diversions, water infrastructure, and environmental conditions. A celebration of the centenary occurred in June 2009 at Niagara Falls. Conferences and other activities are scheduled throughout the year to mark the occasion. The report outlines the IJC’s organizational structure, responsibilities, and key procedures, such as references. It maps transboundary drainage basins and draws examples from 100 years of projects to demonstrate the IJC’s multifarious scope and success: for instance, deflecting inundation in the Skagit River valley, postponing coal mine development on the Flathead River until parties agreed on mitigating risks, monitoring flood- and pollution-mitigation strategies on the Red River and Rainy River, initiating a study of phosphorus sources on water quality in Missisquoi Bay, and creating a variety of programs work groups to support ecosystem integrity in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence. In response to dam operations and diversions affecting cross-boundary water levels in numerous lakes and rivers, the IJC instituted binational rules for regulating water levels and flows, instituted a binational apportionment regime, issuing Orders where necessary, arranged to protect and indemnify affected interests, merged oversight groups, instigated investigations and scientific assessment, and convened discussion. The report describes the development and achievements of the International Watershed Initiative. The IJC’s strong track record on air quality advocacy continued in 2008. The IJC participates in exchanges with international organizations that seek to learn about international cooperation in managing multi-regional and cross-boundary water systems. One current exchange twins organizations from the great lakes regions of North America and Africa.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Eutrophication
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

The adverse environmental and economic impacts of eutrophication to water ecosystems are well established. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA), particularly Annex 3 on Control of Phosphorus (P), precipitated the bilateral work that helped abate eutrophication in the 1970s-80s. Since the early 1990s eutrophication has resurged in nearly all the Great Lakes, as indicated by excessive blue-green algae (Cyanobacteria) blooms, rotting masses of green macro-algae (Cladophora), unstable P-concentrations, dissolved oxygen depletion, botulism toxicity, and desertification. The IJC’s Work Group on Eutrophication organized workshops where Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (FCM) and weight-of-evidence (WOE) processes were utilized to evaluate eutrophication hypotheses and cause-effect relations. The third such workshop was completed by stakeholders associated with the Lake Erie Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP). FCMs are graphical representations of the perceived relationships connecting concepts in a system; the Report exhibits diagrams of the FCMs produced at the workshops. The attendant analyses demonstrate the complex conditions influencing eutrophication-related phenomena, for instance the environmental factors affecting Soluble Reactive Phosphorus (SRP) dynamics. The workshops identified evidence-based management targets including sewage treatment plants, urban stormwater, rural septic systems, and agricultural non-point sources. The 2009-2011 Priorities cycle must continue to analyze these findings and to undertake a review of contemporary literature. Although public perception of the eutrophication problem tends to disregard scientific uncertainty, it supports a range of “no regrets” actions that will improve eutrophic waters without further anthropomorphic nutrient increase; several innovative approaches to nutrient control are outlined. The IJC must educate the public and stakeholder communities on changes in lake hydrology and ecological structure that cause eutrophication. Research needs to include redirection of algal biomass to beneficial use (e.g., green energy), wastewater reuse for P-loss reduction, and enhanced monitoring programs such as monitoring of algal fouling to protect meso-and oligotrophic lakes. Solutions must be watershed-specific.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Beaches & Recreational Water Quality
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

Clean, healthy beaches are ecologically and economically important and enhance quality of life for recreational users. Besides those 822 actively monitored in the Great Lakes, many beaches remain inadequately assessed. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) identifies microbiological performance criteria as a specific objective and uses beach closures as an index of water quality, hence the IJC assigned a Work Group to engage this Priority. The concomitant report surveys investigations of various contaminant sources, both point (such as industrial and municipal effluents) and non-point (including faulty waste treatment systems and agricultural runoff). Severe weather caused by climate change can cause sewer overflow, beach erosion, and dissemination of unsafe materials into the watershed. Poor water quality generates negative socioeconomic effects. Water quality surveillance standards vary considerably within the Great Lakes region; the Report surveys inconsistencies in current practices regarding sample collection, laboratory analysis, beach advisory criteria, microbial source tracking, and consideration of Fecal Indicator Bacteria (FIB). It considers the forecasting implications of predictor variables such as bacteria fluctuation, precipitation, turbidity, water temperature, and wind, and weighs the emergent predictive models against persistence models. Rapid detection methods can prevent contamination. The report surveys epidemiological studies on the occurrence of human pathogens in Great Lakes beaches and resulting illnesses, such as occurred at a Lake Michigan beach in Wisconsin in July 2002. The Annapolis protocol adopted by the World Health Organization could serve as a model for Great Lakes beaches risk management, while the city of Racine is a role model in eliminating the need for beach advisories. Appendices present a beach activities matrix of current monitoring initiatives and recommendations on a Government Accountability Office Report. The IJC is encouraged to ensure the execution of specific strains of research, comparison of forecasting models, and development of binational monitoring protocols and criteria.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Chemicals of Emerging Concern
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

Chemicals of Emerging Concern (CECs) were identified as a Priority in the 2007-2009 Biennial cycle. The IJC assigned a Work Group to evaluate the effect of CECs in the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem (GLBE), and to use the results to advise the IJC on approaches that can be applied to the binational policy framework. CECs, as distinguished from legacy pollutants, encompass an array of previously insignificant, misunderstood, or non-existent chemicals now being discovered in increasing environmental concentrations. The Report defines and classes these compounds with a specific eye to their occurrence in the GLBE. It outlines their real and potential dangers. It reviews relevant, as yet fledgling scientific literature on CECs. Alongside industrial, municipal, and agricultural sources of CECs, consumer products and wastewater treatment plants are pinpointed as major, poorly controlled sources of CEC pollution. Solutions must begin in advance of the end-of-pipe stage, including stricter enforcement of wasteful and pollutive practices. Improved monitoring and research will require as yet undeveloped tools and technologies. A review of current binational, multi-level policies and programs is followed by an appraisal of gaps in the management framework, and recommendations to address problems with informed and coordinated strategies.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Binational Aquatic Invasive Species Rapid-Response Policy Framework
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

The Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) priority was assigned a Work Group in 2007. AIS pose a significant threat to the Great Lakes ecosystem in terms of habitat and water quality degradation, loss of native species biodiversity, disruption of food webs, and algal blooms. These species also create significant economic impacts. This report surveys scientific studies of these effects and assesses current conditions. It specifies particularly prolific and troublesome AIS among the 180 alien species detected in the Great Lakes basin. Of the varied pathways for AIS introduction, ballast is the largest culprit since the St. Lawrence Seaway opened in 1959. Other factors such as climate change exert further strain on efforts to manage AIS. The difficulty of eradicating AIS once established necessitates preventive measures or, failing that, early detection and rapid response. The report focuses and defines the latter approach. Rapid response protocols are shown to have been successful in AIS problem solving; therefore, a binational, legislated directive and funding mandate is needed for effective multi-agency response to be marshaled and for resources to be effectively allocated. The report outlines previous policy development, listing existing institutional arrangements, and proposes a policy framework where science, government, and industry are all key players. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are deemed the appropriate lead federal agencies; the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission is also asked to convene. The IJC is summoned to develop a rapid response plan tailored to the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence system, to assist in its implementation, and to amend the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement to address these developments.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Benefits & Risks of Great Lakes Fish Consumption
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

The Work Group was assigned to assess current knowledge on the risks and benefits of consumption of Great Lakes fish, and to determine a quantitative method of measuring these. Their report, extensively referenced, explains the biochemical components of fish and other foods and how they interact nutritionally with human organisms. Countering health benefits are associated risks, the most serious being chemical contamination of fish and their consumers by environmental exposure. The water pollutants most emphasized are polychlorinated biphenyls and methyl mercury, since they are prevalent in Great Lakes fish and are known toxins. The report describes the bioaccumulation process and its adverse effects to humans who imbibe contaminated fish. Although several ministries and agencies already monitor contamination levels and issue advisories, there is insufficient information on key topics such as the levels and benefits of omega-3 fatty acids in Great Lakes fish. The Work Group reviews studies specific to the Great Lakes. Funding is essential for further identified research topics. Examples of current programs to control inactive (existing, legacy) and active (emerging, expanding) sources of contamination are given. Policy and legislation must be strengthened to minimize external emissions and internal sources of contaminants. Public education and outreach campaigns must evolve to include communities that remain remote in today’s telecommunications world. It is not possible at present to determine net benefits versus risks of Great Lakes fish consumption; the public should follow advisories already being issued. It is suggested that the 2009-2011 priority cycle see building upon the foundation of technical knowledge compiled, to engage researchers, agency personnel, and representatives of sensitive populations to discuss approaches for risk/benefit analysis and remedial action.

GLWQA Priorities 2007-09 Series: Work Group Report on Nearshore Framework
Work Group Report
2009/08/01

The nearshore is the transition zone between the watershed and offshore waters, a vital ecological link for tributaries, wetlands, and groundwater as well as habitat for diverse organisms including humans._x000D_ Until recently nearshore waters were overlooked in favour of offshore waters, despite that perturbations often appear first in the former. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) implicates several nearshore issues in various of its annexes, but must be amended to address these explicitly and to elaborate their inclusion in Lakewide Management Plans. Five 2007-2009 Priority cycle Work Groups were designated to address specific symptoms of nearshore degradation. Since 2007, the IJC has been instrumental in educating government and the public on nearshore zones, organizing a series of meetings and consultations to survey nearshore issues and to propose policy-based alternatives. The water circulation inherent to water systems creates binational implications for nearshore water quality, hence demanding binational leadership and resource investment. The U.S. lacks regional arrangements similar to Ontario’s Conservation Authorities, which facilitate the ecosystem approach described in the report. Physical, hydrological, and biological disruptions are equal in significance to chemical alterations. Pollutant monitoring needs to be reinvigorated, loadings tabulated, and land use change inventoried. Institutional arrangements should be created to support restoration and scientific research. Activites must concentrate on legislative and programmatic coordination instead of fragmentation. Adaptive- management is the preferred approach to the nearshore priority due to the uncertainty of research data and the dynamic changeabiltiy of the Great Lakes. Adaptive-management involves continuous system monitoring, evaluation of effectiveness, and adjusting where necessary throughout the course of a project. Promising adaptive-management initiatives include the Great Lakes Environmental Indicators Project (GLEI) and the Canadian Aquatic Biomonitoring Network (CABIN). The Binational Executive Committee (BEC) is called upon to assume leadership for engaging Great Lakes agencies in protecting nearshore waters.

How Are We Living With The Red? A Report by R. Halliday & Associates to the IRRB
R. Halliday & Associates
2009/06/15

In Living with the Red (2000) the IJC made 28 recommendations and endorsed another thirty aimed at reducing and preventing harm from future flooding in the Red River basin. The IJC’s International Red River Board (IRRB) monitors government progress in implementing these recommendations, and encourages integrated watershed management approaches. Since the 1997 flood of the Red River, governments have spent over $1 billion towards improved flood preparedness and mitigation. The resilience afforded by measures undertaken so far significantly reduced damage caused by the 2006 and 2009 floods to the people and communities of the Red River Valley. Halliday & Associates’ report reviews achievements and continuing deficiencies at all levels of government in the areas of policy, legislation, and institutions; preparedness; mitigation; response/recovery; and environment. Achievements include a national mitigation strategy, improved data policies, designated flood area regulation, emergency management legislation, Red River Floodway expansion, state building codes, formation of international institutions, coordinated flood forecasting, and a national map modernization program. Several agencies are collaborating with the Red River Basin Commission to develop hydraulic models for the basin. Cities have upgraded emergency response plans. Many high-risk structures have been removed, high risk areas in the U.S. identified, and major levees completed. Fargo-Moorhead, Drayton, Grafton, Neche, and other tributary communities need additional permanent protection. The report reviews the current status of all IJC and Task Force recommendations one by one. Those that have achieved the most success are structural measures, followed by those aimed at a specific agency. Less successful are those that imply a degree of collective management and accountability, particularly when binational approaches are necessary. More needs to be done on biota transfer, groundwater contamination, hazardous goods storage, and riparian zones. Research is needed on tributary flooding, ice jam flooding, and summer floods. Databases and models must improve as new information and technologies arise. Lawsuits among jurisdictions, such as that relating to the lower Pembina River, impede progress. The IJC and IRRB should focus on matters pertaining to the transboundary area, the nature and effects of flooding, the development basin resiliency indicators, and flood governance.

Impacts on Upper great Lakes Water Levels: St. Clair River, Draft Report of the International Upper Great Lakes Study, Summary Report
Bi-national International Upper great Lakes Study Board
2009/05/01

This is a draft of the summary report of the first of two reports on the St. Clair River portion for the bi-national Upper Great Lakes Study. The Study Board concludes that conveyance, glacial isostatic adjustment, and climactic patterns have decreased Lake Michigan-Huron and Lake Erie water-level difference. Also, no erosion along the length of the St. Clair River bed has taken place since at least 2000; previous fluctuations measured (1971-2000) were erroneous. On this basis, the Study Board recommends that remedial measures (to address past damages or adverse effects) not be undertaken in the St. Clair River at this time, and that the need for mitigative measures (to address possible future changes that might result in adverse effects) in the St. Clair River be examined as part of the comprehensive assessment of the future effects of climate change on water supplies in the upper Great Lakes basin in Report 2 of the Study, on Lake Superior regulation, to be completed in 2012. The Study Board also recommends that: bathymetric surveys be conducted every five years to monitor any changes in the bed of the St. Clair River; the four new stream flow gauging stations and the two eddy co-variance (evaporation) gauging stations installed as part of the Study be maintained following the completion of the Study in 2012; and accountability and coordination in the collection and management of essential data on the Great Lakes be strengthened by formalizing the mandate of the bi-national Coordinating Committee on Great Lakes Basic Hydraulic and Hydrologic Data and having the Committee formally report to the International Joint Commission.

The Impact of Urban Areas on Great Lakes Water Quality
Science Advisory Board & Great Lakes Water Quality Board & HPTF
2009/01/10

Since the 1990s it has become clear that expanding urbanization has over the past two centuries degraded the ecological integrity of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem (GLBE) waters, which lie in the industrial heartland of North America. Pollution is conveyed more effectively by the impervious, denaturalized surfaces of urbanized land. The report identifies major associated stressors such as urban sprawl, automobiles, increased energy and water consumption, inadequate storm and wastewater infrastructure, decentralization of services and employment, poor urban planning, and imbalanced investment. These have resulted in substantial point and non-point phosphorus loads, loss of biodiversity, nearshore degradation, air deposition of contaminants, and negative health effects from pathogen exposure, among other problems. The economic viability of the ten urban areas highlighted in the report risks being compromised due to oil dependence. Although certain conditions may have improved from the mid-20th century, awareness has not yet reversed adverse land use. The 1972 Greaty Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) was a landmark in addressing these impacts. The IJC’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) has studied urbanization and presented findings and proposed solutions in successive Biennial Priority Reports since the mid-1990s. In the 2005-2007 cycle, the findings of a multi-Board collaboration on the Urbanization Priority indicated preferred courses of action, including more efficient public transit, compact urban design, sustainable building, mixed land uses, protection of agricultural and natural lands, and enhanced energy and water conservation. Because the impacts are Basin-wide, solutions must be region-wide, hence binational. The report delineates the integrated responsibilities specific to local, provincial and state, and federal governments, as well as the IJC. The challenge of cooperation has been facilitated by renewed strategies such as the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration. Work on the Urbanization Priority continues.

The International Watersheds Initiative: Implementing a New Paradigm for Transboundary Basins – Third Report to Governments on the International Watersheds Initiative
International Joint Commission - Commission mixte internationale
2009/01/01

The International Joint Commission (IJC) has developed the International Watersheds Initiative (IWI) over the past decade on the premise that water resource problems can be anticipated, prevented or resolved locally before developing into international issues. The IJC established pilot watershed boards in the St. Croix, Rainy, Red, and Souris River basins. Achievements include contributing impartial research on the potential transfer of fish pathogens and parasites caused by the contentious Devils Lake outlet; informing legislation regarding fish migration around dams in the St. Croix River; coordinating an agreement that limits Rainy River water flow fluctuations, driven by hydroelectric demand, that endangered fish spawning; and developing flood mitigation strategies in the Red River basin. The IJC intends to progressively expand the “ecosystem approach” along the entire border, using models contextual to the local environment. The report broadly delineates IWI operating principles and organizational structure of the international watershed boards. It emphasizes the priority to harmonize hydrographic data, among other activities to improve understanding of transboundary watersheds. Climate change and the interaction between water quality and human health are emerging issues of primary importance. The IJC proposes that an annual $1 million be endowed to the IWI equally by the Canadian and U.S. governments, in addition to the resources already pledged, as a base level of funding. The report provides examples of IWI projects, noting the cost of each, and announces a new strategic approach to evaluating proposals and tracking project progress. The report states actions required by the watershed boards, the IJC, and the federal governments to strengthen the boards’ capacity.

Viral Haemorrhagic Septicaemia In the Great Lakes Region – Management and Science Needs Workshop Proceedings
Council of Great Lakes Research Managers
2008/09/18

The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR), the Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC), and the IJC’s Council of Great Lakes Research Managers held a workshop (participants listed) on March 12-13, 2008 in Toronto, to determine scientific research needs to enable sound management of Viral Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (VHS). The workshop was facilitated by ESSA Technologies Ltd., who prepared this report. VHS is a highly contagious pathogen of fresh- and saltwater fish. Since it first appeared in Lake Ontario in 2005, VHS has caused many large-scale exterminations of wild fish in the Great Lakes Basin. Other impacts include reduced spawning and recruitment, altered energy flow and food web dynamics, disruption of wild egg and forage collection by hatcheries, loss of fish culture and fish transfer, and damage to commercial and recreational fisheries. The only acceptable test for VHS is cell culture, which takes 28 days to detect viable (infective) virus; comparably, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test can be done in one day and is 10,000 times more sensitive, but only indicates that the fish was exposed to VHS, not that is infected. Until quantitative PCR testing is validated as a primary diagnostic tool, it can be used to rapidly screen large numbers of samples, those testing positive sent for cell culture testing. More laboratories are needed to conduct diagnostic testing, as is the ability to diagnose infections by a wider range of pathogens (i.e., more diagnostic tests). Biological studies are needed to understand transmission vectors/pathways for VHS and other aquatic diseases, and to determine the best disinfection methods. Decision analysis, ideally conducted as a universal and coordinated procedure, is essential to clarify risks associated with specific pathogens, and to prioritize timely responses. Current sampling is inadequate and sometimes unmethodical; surveillance protocols based on clear management goals, coupled with increased monitoring activities, will enable more statistical certainty. Expanded research and monitoring requires increased funding.




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