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The New COADraft AgreementDraft Annexes |
The Great Lakes Basin ...... IS THE LARGEST FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEM ON EARTH, CONTAINING ONE-FIFTH OF THE FRESHWATER ON THE SURFACE OF THE PLANET ... IS HOME TO MORE THAN 9 MILLION CANADIANS, AND WILL ACCOUNT FOR ONE-HALF OF CANADA'S POPULATION GROWTH OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS ... SUPPORTS 25 PERCENT OF CANADA'S AGRICULTURE, 45 PERCENT OF CANADA'S INDUSTRY, AND A FISHERY WORTH ALMOST A HALF-BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR We've come a long wayThe pressures of a growing population can create serious pollution problems, destroy vital habitat and stress an ecosystem to the breaking point. Over the past 30 years, government action, improved sewage treatment and industrial pollution control, conservation programs and better farming practices have achieved dramatic improvements in environmental quality. The Osprey, the Bald Eagle and the Peregrine Falcon - once almost lost to toxic contaminants - have made a comeback throughout the lower Great Lakes. In Lake Superior, there has been a resurgence in wild, self-reproducing lake trout populations, and the Trumpeter Swan has been returned to the marshes of southern Lake Huron. The basin's rich fishing grounds support a vibrant sports and commercial fishery, while bird watchers and nature lovers stroll the basin's lakeside parks. Significant challenges remainEven with the gains made, ongoing and new issues must be addressed. Expanding urban centres continue to swallow up watersheds, wetlands and farms, threatening the health of the Great Lakes Basin. More people means the potential for more sewage, more air and water pollution, and more pressure on limited natural resources. And pockets of historic contamination still impair environmental quality. There are also global challenges to deal with. Tonnes of toxic air pollutants travel thousands of kilometres before settling in the basin. Invasions of non-native species, such as the zebra mussel, are displacing native plants and animals and jeopardizing the ecosystem's delicate biological balance. Scientists predict that a slowly warming climate could disrupt biological communities and lower lake levels. Left unattended, these challenges to environmental quality may affect the vitality of the Canadian economy and the well-being of all those who live, work and play in the basin. Our VisionTHE CANADA-ONTARIO AGREEMENT RESPECTING THE GREAT LAKES BASIN ECOSYSTEM (COA) IS GUIDED BY THE VISION OF A HEALTHY, PROSPEROUS AND SUSTAINABLE GREAT LAKES BASIN ECOSYSTEM FOR PRESENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS. Success depends on team workThe governments of Canada and Ontario share a responsibility for managing the Great Lakes Basin ecosystem. Turning the vision of COA into reality - in the face of the challenges that remain - will require more than government action. It will require the diligence and effort of all of us. COA provides a means to engage the ingenuity, energy and resources of all the people, the agencies and the organizations that share an interest in the Great Lakes. It enables us all to work together on a united vision for the ecosystem.
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