Water Resources Issues of the Laurentian Great Lakes
151
Lake Superior
Lake Michigan
Canada
Lake Hllron
St. Lawrence
Seaway
Buffalo
Chicago
Icvcland
Fig. 1. Laurentian Great Lakes of North America
2 Management History
The first international group formed to address management of the Great Lakes
was the International Waterways Commission, created in 1905 to provide advice
to the governments of the US and Canada regarding control of water levels and
flows, particularly in connection with hydroelectric power generation. At that time
the main concern was with the power plant at Niagara Falls, but hydropower is
now also generated along the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Waterways Commission
had no mandate or authority to look into pollution problems.
The next main step towards effective lake management occurred in 1909 with
the signing of the Boundary Waters Treaty, one of the consequences of which was
the creation of the International Joint Commission (IJC). The main role of this
commission is to oversee efforts by both governments with regard to water-management issues. Only a few years after it was formed, the IJC started looking
into the problem of water pollution, but it had no authority to establish or enforce
laws. By the 1940s, pollution was becoming sufficiently serious that the IJC
suggested that water quality objectives should be established for the Great Lakes.
Unfortunately, no agreement was reached, and such objectives were not
formulated at that time.
Although there were a number of problems, the most significant concerns
involved eutrophication, DDT contamination, and invasion of the sea lamprey and
151
Lake Superior
Lake Michigan
Canada
Lake Hllron
St. Lawrence
Seaway
Buffalo
Chicago
Icvcland
Fig. 1. Laurentian Great Lakes of North America
2 Management History
The first international group formed to address management of the Great Lakes
was the International Waterways Commission, created in 1905 to provide advice
to the governments of the US and Canada regarding control of water levels and
flows, particularly in connection with hydroelectric power generation. At that time
the main concern was with the power plant at Niagara Falls, but hydropower is
now also generated along the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Waterways Commission
had no mandate or authority to look into pollution problems.
The next main step towards effective lake management occurred in 1909 with
the signing of the Boundary Waters Treaty, one of the consequences of which was
the creation of the International Joint Commission (IJC). The main role of this
commission is to oversee efforts by both governments with regard to water-management issues. Only a few years after it was formed, the IJC started looking
into the problem of water pollution, but it had no authority to establish or enforce
laws. By the 1940s, pollution was becoming sufficiently serious that the IJC
suggested that water quality objectives should be established for the Great Lakes.
Unfortunately, no agreement was reached, and such objectives were not
formulated at that time.
Although there were a number of problems, the most significant concerns
involved eutrophication, DDT contamination, and invasion of the sea lamprey and