OTTAWA – Today, The Council of Canadians warned the Parliamentary Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development of the dangers of the proposed Great Lakes Annex.

This is the first time Parliament has reviewed the Draft Annex 2001 Implementing Agreements. The Committee will make recommendations to Parliament on how the federal government should respond to this highly controversial issue.

The Council of Canadians has criticized the Annex for enabling diversions from the Great Lakes and posing a direct threat to Canada’s jurisdiction over these shared waters.

On behalf of the Council of Canadians, Steven Shrybman of Sack, Goldblatt, Mitchell prepared the first Canadian legal opinion on the implications of the Annex. Mr. Shrybman presented to the Committee today.

“The Annex is fundamentally flawed,” says Shrybman. “It puts further at risk the ecological integrity of Great Lakes waters and represents a significant challenge to Canadian sovereignty.”

The Council of Canadians has launched a national campaign demanding federal intervention to stop the current Agreement from passing.

Sara Ehrhardt, National Water Campaigner for the Council of Canadians also presented today on behalf of thousands of concerned Canadians.

"The Committee is reviewing the Annex in response to massive public outcry from citizens across the country,” says Ehrhardt. “Scientific, legal and public policy experts have all registered their concerns with the Committee. We can only hope that Paul Martin is taking notes.”

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