Consultations on managing basins slated

Staff

The International Lake of the Woods and Rainy River Watershed Task Force has slated four more public consultations as a review of the binational management of regional water basins gets underway.
One of these meetings is scheduled for this Tuesday (Oct. 26) starting at 7 p.m. at the Rainy River Community College theatre over in International Falls.
The task force will explain its mandate, as well as welcome comments on its plans and issues in the Rainy River/Lake of the Woods basin it should address.
“The task force was established by the International Joint Commission to help it respond to a request from the governments of Canada and the United States for advice on how to address water quality, water quantity, and related issues in the Lake of the Woods and Rainy River watershed, both now and in the future,” stated a press release announcing the latest public meetings.
“The task force’s main tasks will be to review the ways that Canada and the United States work together to manage water quality, water quantity, and related issues in the watershed, to identify gaps in the current approach, to identify key existing or emerging issues that require attention, and to recommend any new or adjusted governance mechanisms that would help address the identified future needs,” the release added.
The first round of public meetings took place in late August and early September.
The three other public meetings are scheduled for Monday (Oct. 25) at the Vermilion Community College in Ely, M., on Wednesday (Oct. 27) at the Best Western Lakeside Inn in Kenora, and on Thursday (Oct. 28) at the Greenwood Inn in Winnipeg.
All of the meetings begin at 7 p.m.
A report, with recommendations by the task force, is scheduled to be completed by July 15, 2011.