1.	INTRODUCTION

By letter dated April 15, 1999, the International Joint Commission (IJC) informed the governments of the United States and Canada of its establishment of a binational group to develop a Plan of Study to review the criteria which presently prescribe the way in which Lake Ontario levels are regulated. In May 1999, a binational Study Team was assembled by the IJC to transform the 1996 Scope of Work, which had been prepared by the International St. Lawrence Board of Control, into a detailed Plan of Study to review the operation of the structures controlling the flows and levels of the Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence system. Through such a review, a determination will be made as to whether or not changes to the operation of the regulatory works on the St. Lawrence River and to the criteria contained in the Orders of Approval of the IJC that govern this operation, are warranted.

In its Directive to the Plan of Study Team, the Commission also listed a number of studies or activities that would be required as a minimum. (Annex 4c)

It is proposed that to accomplish this work, study groups will be established to address each of the requirements of the Directive, as is described in detail herein. The agencies that should be involved in the study are suggested in Annex 1. In addition to consideration of possible new criteria to address areas not specifically covered in the original Orders of Approval, existing criteria will be evaluated to assess their present validity, and the manner in which the Commission's Orders and Regulation Plans have been applied historically will be reviewed.

The studies proposed include a review of the needs and preferences of all the various users or interest groups affected by water level and flow fluctuation in the Lake Ontario - St. Lawrence River system. Changes to Lake Ontario regulation will be investigated to identify and evaluate how these changes affect the various interests, and at the same time are consistent with the principles and objectives of the Treaties and other bilateral agreements between Canada and the United States.

While changes to Lake Ontario regulation will be investigated, this Plan of Study does not propose examining structural changes to the control works authorized in the IJC Orders of Approval that made Lake Ontario regulation possible. However, wherever applicable, other measures will be identified to alleviate the adverse impacts of water level and flow fluctuations.