제  목 : U.S., Canada Agree on Great Lakes Cleanup
  일  자 : 1997년 08월
  제공처 : Safety ＆ health(EPA UPDATE)

     The United States and Canada agreed  in April to a plan designed to
   eliminate toxic substances from the Great Lakes by the year 2006. The plan
   is primarily based on voluntary pollution prevention activities and builds
   on existing Canadian and U.S. regulatory programs.

     The Great Lakes make up 18 percent of the world's fresh surface water.
   percent of the world's fresh surface water The Great Lakes region is home
   to 33 million people in the United States and Crnada, nearly half of whom
   obtain drinnking water from lakes.

     The environmental agencies of both countries will use a four-step process
   to work toward virtually eliminating toxic substances from the lake :
     1. Gather information that idetifies sources of toxic substances and
   determine how or why each substance.
     2. Analyze current regulations, initiatives and programs that manage or
   control releases to identify gaps.
     3. Identify cost-effectrive options to achieve further reductions.
     4. Work toward the goal of virtual eliminatron.
   The strategy sets milestones, or goals, for each country to achieve between
   19S7 and 2006. Among the U.S. milestones are a 50 percent reduction in
   mercury use nationwide, a 90 percent reduction in PCBs used in electrical
   equipment natronwide, and a 75 pertent reduction in total releases of
   dioxins and furans released by humans.

     The United States and Canada also signed two additional agreements to
   expand efforts to control transboundary air pollution, and to cooperate
   with research and development activities.

     EPA Administrator Caral Browner, who signed the agreements, praised the
   Great Lakes agreement and said, "Pollution knows no boundaries, and
   therefore, it is vital that our two countries jointly  identify the chall-
   enges, set common goals and work together to restore the water quality of
   these magnificent lakes we share."

      The Canadian Minister of the Environment. Sergio Marchi, also signed
   the agreements, saying, "Our citizens breathe the same air, drink the same
   water and share many species of wildlife. Under tht agreements reached
   today, Canada and the United States will work together to better protect
   our warer, air and wildlife."

       For more information about the Great Lakes agreement, contact Elizabeth
   LaPlante in the EPA's Region 5 Office in Chicago (312) 353-2694.
   The agreement is also available on the World Wide Web at
   http://www.epa.gov/glnpo.