Electronic Green Journal

The year 2007 marks the 35th Anniversary of the Canada-US Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). On April 15, 1972, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and President Richard Nixon signed the GLWQA. This Agreement expresses the commitment of Canada and the United States to restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the waters of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem. The GLWQA has had substantial influence on the cleanup and restoration of the region. The progress made since 1972 is evidenced by the documentation by scientists of the presence of spawning lake whitefish, the resurgence of cormorant population, the rediscovery of sturgeon populations, and the return of nesting and fledging bald eagles. Threats to the Great Lakes in the face of climate change, invasive species, habitat loss, and more, demand a renewal and revitalization of the GLWQA. The time is now to renovate the binational promises.