The Great Lakes: Death by a Thousand Straws
Op Ed piece from Globe and Mail
Adèle M. Hurley, David Schindler, and Andrew Nikiforuk
September 09, 2004
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This month (September 2004), Americans and Canadians along the shores of the Great Lakes have a chance to participate in a series of public forums debating something called the Annex 2001 Implementing Agreement. Released two months ago, the annex is supposed to create "unprecedented protections" for the lakes. But the research conducted by Adèle Hurley, Dr. David Schindler and Andrew Nikiforuk indicates that the Annex could undermine the security of the region's water supplies for years to come.
The authors note that after three years of investigation and internal discussion, politicians have given Great Lakes residents just 90 days to comment on their handiwork. After sifting through the rhetoric, however, the 40 million people who drink Great Lakes water will discover that Annex 2001 is little more than a licence to take water. What should have been a simple mechanism to limit diversions of water, has become a way to say "yes" to water-challenged communities all along the edge of the basin.