Volume 23, Issue 2, 1998 July/August 1998

The International Joint Commission welcomes new members whom it recently appointed to its boards and thanks those who have completed their service for the time and talent they contributed. William (Bill) A. Appleby, Atlantic regional director of the Atmospheric Environment Branch of Environment Canada succeeds C.J. Power as Canadian co-chair of the St. Croix River Board of Control. John M. Hamilton, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, has been appointed to the Great Lakes Water Quality Board. Gail Krantzberg, Great Lakes strategic policy advisor to the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Energy, has been appointed to the Council of Great Lakes Research Managers as a member from the International Association for Great Lakes Research. Gregg Wiche has been appointed as a member of the U.S. Section of the International Souris-Red Rivers Engineering Board.

La Commission mixte internationale accueille de nouveaux membres qu'elle a récemment nommés à son conseil d'administration et remercie ceux qui ont achevé leur service pour le temps et le talent qu'ils lui ont consacrés. William (Bill) A. Appleby, directeur régional de la Direction de l'environnement atmosphérique d'Environnement Canada dans la région de l'Atlantique, succède à C.J. Power à titre de coprésident canadien du Conseil international de contrôle de la rivière Sainte-Croix. John M. Hamilton, commissaire du Department of Environmental Management de l'Indiana, a été nommé membre du Conseil de la qualité de l'eau des Grands Lacs. Gail Krantzberg, conseillère en politiques stratégiques concernant les Grands Lacs pour le ministère de l'Environnement et de l'Énergie de l'Ontario, a été nommée au Conseil des gestionnaires de la recherche des Grands Lacs à titre de représentante de l'Association internationale de recherche sur les Grands Lacs. Gregg Wiche a été nommé membre de la section américaine du Conseil technique international des rivières Souris et Rouge.

It is with great sadness that we mark the passing of Louise L. Cox, who died of a respiratory ailment on May 15 at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Fairfax, VA. Louise began as a secretary with the Interstate Commerce Commission in 1959 and came to work for IJC in 1960. She rose through the ranks to become the administrative officer of the Commission's U.S. Section, handling all personnel, fiscal and administrative matters, a position she held until her recent illness. Those who knew her remember Louise as an extremely effective professional with a great sense of humor. She was meticulous with details because she cared about the people she worked with. Things in the Washington office sure won't be the same, but Louise will always be with us in some way, and will always be remembered.

The Great Lakes Science Advisory Board's Workgroup on Emerging Issues is again seeking public input. The 1998 Survey on Great Lakes Emerging Issues can be found and completed on the IJC's website at www.ijc.org. For more information, or to complete the survey without accessing the internet, contact Peter Boyer, secretary, Science Advisory Board, International Joint Commission, Great Lakes Regional Office, 100 Ouellette Avenue, 8^th Floor, Windsor, ON N9A 6T3. (519)257-6735 in Canada. Or P.O. Box 32869, Detroit, MI 48232. (313)226-2170 in the United States.

The Lake Superior Binational Forum recently released recommendations on mining activity in the Lake Superior watershed. Recommendations include the following:

• Both Canada and the United States should agree upon a set of minimum standards for groundwater. These standards should be consistent with the goals of using the Lake Superior basin as a demonstration zone for zero discharge of chemicals of concern and for new approaches to environmental protection.
• These standards for groundwater should apply to mine water and to other human activities that discharge to the groundwater.
• Assessing the impacts of a new mining operation, or the expansion of an existing one, should include consideration of strategies to sustain the community and environment after the extractive uses have ended. This should become standard practice at the outset of new or expanded projects. Efforts to consider the sustainability of communities will contribute to the goals of the Binational Program for Lake Superior.

The Lake Superior Binational Forum consists of 24 volunteer citizens who advise the U.S. and Canadian governments about critical issues relating to Lake Superior, such as discharge of toxic substances, pollution prevention and restoration efforts. The Binational Forum was created by the Binational Program, an initiative that responded to the IJC's recommendation that Lake Superior be a demonstration area where no point source discharge of any persistent toxic substances will be permitted. For more information, contact Binational Forum U.S. Coordinator Jane Silberstein at (715)682-1489 or Canadian Coordinator Barb Nicol at (807)343-8811.

To date, 3,000 hectares (7,400 acres) of wetlands in the Canadian Great Lakes basin have been protected under the Great Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan since 1994. This was recently announced by Canadian Federal Environment Minister Christine Stewart. The Great Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan (GLWCAP) is a key program to attain the wetland goals set by the Canada-Ontario Agreement Respecting the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem. Under the agreement, Environment Canada is committed to protecting 6,000 hectares of wetland habitat by the year 2001. Wetlands are important reservoirs of biodiversity and play a critical role in ensuring the ecological, economic and social health of a region. They control and reduce flooding, improve water quality by filtering out sediments and provide areas for recreation. Their preservation contributes to the government's overall goal of ensuring a healthy environment. For more information, visit Environment Canada's Green Lane website at www.ec.gc.ca/ or contact Mark Colpitts, Office of the Minister, Environment Canada (819)997-1441, or Nancy Patterson, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada (416)739-5824.