Bilateral Relations

Canada — France

In recent years, Canada-France relations have been cultivated by a series of visits by our respective heads of State and of Government. During Prime Minister Jospin's visit to Canada in December 1998, the two prime ministers signed an Action Program aimed at strengthening the bilateral relationship in a number of areas, notably in the field of environment. Canada and France also collaborate closely in multilateral organizations such as the UN, the G-8 Economic Summit, the OECD, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and La Francophonie.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Environmental Cooperation was signed by the two Environment Ministers in February 1991. While scientific and technological cooperation occurred for many years under the Canada/France Joint Scientific Commission, the purpose of the MOU was to strengthen the dialogue in the field of environmental policy. Key areas of collaboration include the management of large rivers and lakes, aquatic contamination, meteorology, wastewater treatment and remote sensing applied to the environment. Collaborative activities have consisted of joint laboratory studies, exchange of scientists and technology transfer. In addition, the Environmental Technology Centre has entered into a number of cooperative programs with France dealing with Environmental Emergencies and the Microwave-Assisted Process Programs.

Illustration of Work

In the early 1990s, the Wastewater Technology Centre in Burlington, has established successful collaborations with French institutes. Some of the initiatives have included the development, evaluation and demonstration of advanced oxidation technologies for the treatment and purification of aqueous and gaseous effluents from industrial activities; application of membrane technologies for the treatment of industrial wastewaters; virtual elimination of toxic contaminants in the pulp and paper industry using a combination of membrane technologies and biological treatment; demonstration of advanced technologies for the virtual elimination of toxic substances found in groundwaters and related effluent streams; and development of a solids and phosphorus removal study for municipal sewage treatment plants. For many years there have been exchanges of information and mutual visits between staff in the River Road Environmental Technology Centre and in CEDRE, the French oil and chemical spill research group. A couple of agreements are in place relating to the Microwave-Assisted Process (MAP) patented by the Crown. Specifically, we have licensed the French company PROLABO to market analytical chemistry sample preparation equipment using the MAP process. Also, we have a joint-project agreement with Sairem, a French company, to design and construct bench-scale equipment for using the MAP process to extract valuable chemicals from a wide variety of industrial feedstocks and wastes.

There has been collaboration between the Biosphere and a number of French institutes such as Oceanopolis and l'Office internationale de l'eau. In 1997, a French team from Oceanopolis visited the Biosphere in Montreal. An Internet website has been created by the Biosphere, which links young people from Brest, Montreal and Belgium. They form an observation network and share information related to water.