"Canada and the United States have updated a decades-old agreement to protect the Great Lakes, adding new commitments to protect aquatic habitats, curb invasive species and help coastal communities adapt to climate change."
"The changes were widely praised by environmental groups, who said they help provide a more relevant framework for bi-national protection and should improve governmental accountability. ...
The agreement calls for more work on reducing nutrients that can cause algae blooms – a particular problem in Lake Erie – and better clean-up efforts for heavily polluted areas.
But as officials met in Washington to sign off on the changes, environmentalists on both sides of the border expressed concern that the enhanced agreement could be toothless unless Canada and the U.S. are willing to spend the money that's needed to monitor and restore the Great Lakes."
Kim Mackrael reports for the Toronto Globe and Mail September 7, 2012.
Advertisement 
