WASHINGTON and OTTAWA, ON, May 13, 2024
/CNW/ -- The International Joint Commission (IJC) recently
conducted meetings with senior officials from the Governments
of Canada, the United States, the Ktunaxa Nation,
British Columbia, Idaho, and Montana to gather initial perspectives on the
Reference to Address Transboundary Water Pollution in the
Elk-Kootenai/y Watershed.
These meetings represented a first step to assist the six
governments in the development of Terms of Reference in the
establishment of a Governance Body, consistent with the proposal
dated 8 March 2024 developed by the
Governments of Canada and
the United States in partnership
with the Ktunaxa Nation.
The Governance Body will serve as the governments' collaborative
forum intended to, among other elements, develop and report on an
action plan to reduce and mitigate the impacts of water pollution
in the Kootenai/y watershed to
protect this vital river system.
Separately the IJC is also working on another aspect of the
March 8 reference: the establishment
of an IJC study board. The study board will be established during
the summer of 2024, with a mandate to conduct transparent and
coordinated transboundary data and knowledge sharing, conduct and
synthesize data on the topic of water pollution in the watershed,
and report and make recommendations on a number of issues
identified in the proposal.
The IJC intends to host a virtual information session for all
interested parties in the Elk-Kootenai/y basin in the coming weeks. The
purpose of this meeting will be to provide a brief description of
the IJC and to facilitate interested organizations and members of
the public to provide input and perspectives on the topic of
transboundary water pollution in the basin. Further details to
follow; in the meantime we welcome you to sign up for updates.
We also encourage interested parties to follow us on social
media and to visit to visit this website, www.ijc.org/elk to
gather the latest information and locate resources related to this
study. Questions and comments can be submitted to
elk@ijc.org.
Quick Facts
- The Elk River rises in the
Canadian Rockies and flows into the
United States at Lake Koocanusa (also known as Koocanusa
Reservoir), an impoundment of the Kootenay/Kootenai River. It then
flows through the states of Montana and Idaho, and through transboundary Ktunaxa
lands, on its way back to the province of British Columbia, where it empties into the
Columbia River.
- The Commission received the Reference regarding
transboundary water pollution in the Elk-Kootenai/y watershed from the governments in
March 2024.
Contacts
Edward Virden
|
Washington
|
202-372-7990
|
Edward.Virden@ijc.org
|
Paul Allen
|
Ottawa
|
613-222-1475
|
Paul.Allen@ijc.org
|
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SOURCE International Joint Commission