The Columbia Treaty is basically an international catch and release agreement for water. Canada. as the upstream partner, build large reservoirs to hold the water back and agreed to release it in accordance with US needs for flood control, energy production, fish flushes and – very importantly – irrigation. The US paid for the construction of the Canadian dams and pays Canada for downstream benefits based on very low, hydroelectric generation rates, despite the fact that the use they put that water to often has considerably higher value. The irrigation of 500,000 acres of land in the Columbia Basin … Continue reading Columbia Treaty – 60 Years On
Canada’s discussion of Trump’s designs on our water has been focused – in the West – on the Columbia. But it is the Peace River that connects the dots to fulfill the long term dream of USACE engineers to bring northern water south to American communities east of the Rockies. Want a selfie of you with THE TAP? Go to Dunvegan, Alberta, just on the border of BC. Future site of the Amisk Dam, designed as the “elbow” that will siphon off water from the north-flowing Peace River and send it flowing south. Conveniently, all the upstream storage capacity is … Continue reading Want a selfie of you with Trump’s tap?
This page will follow key news reports on Trump’s battle to capture Canada’s water. As you read them, consider this: In the March 18th Tyee article, the author notes “water is exempt from the NAFTA”. NOT TRUE. John Crosbie is the one who first got away with this and it is shocking to see it still trotted out . Natural free flowing waters delivered at the whim of Mother Nature are of course not covered. BUT change in any way the timing or volume of Mother Nature’s delivery to meet the need of the market and water becomes a good. … Continue reading Whiskey is for drinking, water is for fighting about… Trump’s Interest in Canada’s Most Precious Resource
Following is a list of NAFTA articles that compromise Canadian sovereignty over our water resources and the proposed amendments that would fix the problem.
#1 Trade agreements apply to “goods”, “services”, “investments”
NAFTA Article 102 “eliminate barriers to trade in, and facilitate the cross border movement of, goods and services between the territories of the Parties, to increase substantially investment opportunities in the territories of the Parties, and to…expand and enhance…”.
#2 Goods are defined by the Harmonized Commodity Coding System”:
Continue reading Why Water is Covered by FTA/NAFTA/CUSMA
