The Boundary Waters Treaty governs the sharing of waters of international streams between Canada and the United States. The treaty also established the International Joint Commission to monitor compliance to the agreement and to resolve disputes, and the principles and mechanism to be used to resolve disputes concerning water quantity and water quality.

The International Joint Commission (IJC) held four public information sessions in July 2004 to gather information on issues surrounding the sharing of the Milk and St. Mary Rivers between Canada and the United States.

Alberta's position is that:

• The terms and conditions of the Treaty and the 1921 Order of the IJC that clarifies the Treaty have been met every year, as witnessed by the Accredited Officers of the IJC.
• Issues have been - and can continue to be - worked out within the framework of the Order. There is no need to review or reopen the Order.
• For over 80 years, Canada and the United States have co-operated to manage these waters wisely for the benefit of today's citizens and future generations. Let's move forward and co-operate on future developments. Opening the Order would only misdirect effort that could be more productively used to address future challenges.

In December 2004, following the conclusion of public consultations, the IJC established the International St. Mary / Milk Rivers Administrative Measures Task Force (Task Force) comprised of four members from Canada and four members from the United States to: "...examine and report... on measures for improvements to existing administrative procedures of the St. Mary and Milk Rivers apportionment to ensure more beneficial use and optimal receipt by each country of its apportioned waters - within the terms of the 1921 Order."

The Task Force released its draft report in April 2006 for public comment on its recommended potential improvements to the administrative procedures.

The Task Force report is available on the IJC website. Contact Mr. Dave McGee, Alberta's member on the Task Force, at (403) 382-4254, for a hard copy.

To view a summary of Alberta's perspective on the IJC Task Force report, please click here . To view the Government of Alberta's formal submission to the Task Force, please click here.

Background Material:

• Summary of the Text, History and Geography of the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty and the 1921 Order of the International Joint Commission..
• The Government of Alberta (July 2004) public presentation summary Sharing the Waters: Alberta’s perspective on the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty.
• Government of Alberta (August 2004) submission to the IJC consisted of an overall submission as well as submissions from Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development and the Water Management Operations Branch of Alberta Environment.