The SOLEC Process

The Commission's analysis of the three desired outcomes provides some insights into the Parties' overall indicator-based process. The Commission recognizes that the Parties, through the SOLEC process, continue to work on the development of new indicators. While the SOLEC 2001 report discussed 33 of the 80 indicators it has selected, many of those indicators were supported by very limited data, thereby reducing their utility. Despite this shortcoming, the SOLEC organizers are working to expand the list of indicators for the SOLEC 2002 conference with a focus on biological integrity. They are also emphasizing the development of indicators to measure society's response to environmental pressures, such as participation in recycling programs or reducing vehicle usage. The Commission applauds these initiatives but cautions that an expanded set of indicators will only be useful if supporting data and information are available. A balance must be struck between the resources to expand the number of indicators and the effort required to adequately monitor and compile information on those indicators already being used. Fishability, Swimmability and Drinkability should receive the highest priority. Monitoring is fundamental to the success of the indicator development and reporting process.

The SOLEC organizers are considering the development of indices that would combine related information to better communicate aspects of the state of the lakes. The smog index and the UV index, often reported in newspapers and in media weather forecasts, are examples of how this kind of tool can be used. However, the process of combining information to create overall indices results in the loss of detail. To ensure that detailed information is still accessible to the Commission and others, the Parties need to provide access to the data that support the indices. With today's technology, a database management system with improved inter-jurisdictional compatibility could go a long way toward providing access to such data.

In Canada there is a proposal under consideration to create a Canadian Information System for the Environment, which would be a coordinated, cooperative network or "distributed system."¹⁶ It would include all levels of government and numerous private sector and academic organizations. In a parallel initiative, the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, in cooperation with Statistics Canada, is creating and testing a set of sustainable development indicators. Linking these initiatives to the Parties' indicators work would benefit the SOLEC process as would the creation of linkages between databases in Canada and the U.S. for Great Lakes data.

The governments recognize that more effective and more efficient coordination of monitoring efforts among the various jurisdictions and agencies could be achieved. A dialogue about the development of a basin-wide monitoring inventory has begun in earnest. The purpose of this dialogue is to create the incentives to coordinate monitoring programs and to discuss ways of improving binational arrangements.

SOLEC organizers do not maintain original data, or copies of underlying supporting data. The data reside with the cooperating agency or organization. The indicator reports are prepared by the experts in the subject matter who have access to the underlying data. SOLEC organizers are encouraged to further investigate more satisfactory solutions to providing the underlying data to secondary users, including the public. We cannot overstate the enormous task of organizing a broad diversity of data and information from an array of organizations into a system that is accessible to and usable by a variety of audiences. Efforts must be made to provide adequate funds and staff for this critical activity.