Great Lakes Water Quality

Undergraduate

An overview of the 1909 Boundary Water Treaty (BWT) and Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) governing the binational strategy for managing water diversions and water quality of the Laurentian Great Lakes. The course will provide an overview of the history of the agreement and its evolution over various amendments, evaluate major policies and environment programs adopted in Ontario and Canada developed to implement the agreement and demonstrate how the agreement has influenced environmental policy and programs outside of the Great Lakes Basin. The course will also examine the roles of public involvement through various environmental stakeholders and how science shaped the agreement. Case studies documenting historical and recent challenges to the BWT involving diversions of waters outside the Great Lakes, implementation of Remedial Action Plans, Lakewide Management Plans and indicator selection and evaluation will be discussed. (Open to Environmental Studies and Environmental Science students in Semester 5 and above) (Prerequisite: ESCI-1100 or ESTU- 1100 and Semester 3 or above standing, or permission of the instructor.)(3 lecture hours a week.)