Ban of Bulk Removal from Great Lakes and other Boundary waters is a Positive Step Towards Sustainability.
... to study the effects of water consumption, diversion and removal; and establishing a Canada wide accord with all provinces to prohibit bulk water removal. The results of the federal strategy are less than promising. Bill C-15, the governments effort to prohibit bulk water exports died when the federal government got re-elected , and the replacement, Bill C-6 gives the Minister of Foreign Affairs the authority to license bulk water exports instead of the promised ban mentioned in the strategy. The Canada wide accord is also lacking as only half the provinces signed the accord, and since it is not legally binding, any change in political administration would free the province from any obligation that they agreed upon . The province of Quebec even issued a flat out “No” when asked to sign the accord. The above factors are important in the study of the strength of Canada’s prohibition because under the North American Free Trade Agreement, a joint statement made in 1993 by U.S. and Canada states; Unless water, in any form, has entered into commerce and becomes a good or product, it is not covered by the provisions of any trade agreement, including the NAFTA. And nothing in the NAFTA would oblige any NAFTA Party to either exploit its water for commercial use, or to begin exporting water in any form. Water in its natural state, in lakes, reservoirs, aquifers, water basins and the like is not a good or product, is not traded, and therefore is not and never has been subject to the terms of any trade agreement . This means that if one province agrees to export bulk amounts of water, under NAFTA, every province would then be obligated to. Hardly comforting considering the future conservation of Canadian waters hinges on the cooperation of all the provinces to resist the lures of economic gain. The Great Lakes –St. Lawrence Basins: Importance, Current Conditions, and the Financial Aspects The waters of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence basins are very important to the social and economic fabric of the inhabitants around it. The water is used for hydroelectric power, thermoelectric power, industry, commercial, domestic, agriculture, and general public use. The Great Lakes are also a source of sport fishing, and recreational boating. Effects of lowered levels of water in the Great Lakes would be a reduction in fish available for sport, and reductions in freshwater discharges into the St. Lawrence which affects their fish population. Hydroelectric generation would also be affected because of the lowered levels and flows. In the 1960’s a low level of flow caused between 19-26% reduction in hydropower alone, if lowered levels become a permanent factor, then there would be adverse impacts on the availability of hydropower. Great Lake shipping costs would increase because of reduced drafts in shipping channels, increasing dredging costs. The above uses, coupled with lack of regulation and other factors such as climate change have had cumulative effects on the Great Lakes. The consumptive uses alone have lowered the water levels of the Great lakes from less than 1cm to 6 cm. Other activities such as dredging and mining of gravel in Lake Michigan and Huron have lowered their water levels by 40cm. These measurements may seem miniscule compared to the vast volume of the lakes, but it has to be kept in mind that freshwaters are a slow renewable resource. Climate changes also have an effect on the Lakes. Studies on Global warming effects indicate that it will lower lake levels by up to a meter by the middle of the 21st century. If these factors were combined with bulk exports of water, the effects would be even more detrimental. According to Sarah Miller, the spokesperson for the Canadian Environmental Law Association, “Allowing water to be traded away is certain to harm the environment since it will inevitably place growing numbers of lakes and rivers beyond the reach of governments and the rule of law .” In an earlier report she stated, “ The Great Lakes are experiencing the lowest water levels in 34 years thanks to growing impact of climate change. Big businesses are banking on water becoming the oil of the next century and Canadians need to say no ” Of course it is always important to understand the financial side of exporting water. The costs of shipping large amounts of water from the Great Lakes to far distances are very high. Water is usually transported in large marine tanks but since the St. Lawrence Seaway cannot handle such large vessels, it would have to be transported in small marine tanks adding to the cost. Fabric bags are another way of transport but they are only feasible for short distances, and have a limited capacity in long ocean journeys. Shipping could also be accomplished through large pipelines, but it is costly and inefficient and has a higher chance of impacting the Great Lakes. Potential e...