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Created under the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty, the International Joint Commission (IJC) works to prevent and resolve boundary waters disputes between the United States and Canada. The IJC is required, under the 2012 revisions to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA), to release a status report on the water quality of the Great Lakes every three years. The first of these triennial reports was released in 2016. This second report covers action taken between 2016-2019.

The GLWQA’s report assessed the progress of each country in improving the water quality of the Great Lakes and gave recommendations on how to further its improvement. The report covered topics such as chemicals of mutual concern, nutrients, invasive species, groundwater, and climate change, among others.

The report outlined an impressive list of accomplishments including finalizing and implementing the Binational Phosphorus Reduction Strategy for Lake Erie; finalizing binational strategies for addressing Hexabromocyclododecane (HCBD), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), and Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs); and enhancing the knowledge of groundwater and climate change impacts to the Great Lakes.

According to EPA Administrator Wheeler, “EPA and the Trump Administration are committed to working with our Canadian partners on conservation and cleanup efforts in the Great Lakes region. We look forward to continued progress in preserving the Great Lakes and keeping our waters clean through our partnership under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.”