International Joint Commission Delivers Sixth Report to Canada and the United States on its International Watersheds Initiative

OTTAWA, ON and WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2025 /CNW/ -- The International Joint Commission (IJC) is pleased to release its Sixth Report to Governments on the International Watersheds Initiative (IWI) covering key achievements during the past five years (2020-2024). During the reporting period, 28 IWI projects were completed involving 57 partner organizations that provided support and collaborated with the project teams. IWI projects received more than $2.6M from the IJC and are estimated to have leveraged more than $5.1M from partnering agencies, organizations, and other partners.

The IWI has become an integral part of managing waters shared between Canada and the United States by undertaking a holistic approach to addressing water quantity, water quality and ecosystem health issues in shared watersheds.

The IJC has accomplished the following through the IWI in recent years:

• Enhanced collaboration between IJC boards and key watershed organizations, experts and Indigenous Nations.
• Supported IJC boards in planning for emerging challenges by applying adaptive management practices to their work.
• Established the International Red River Watershed Board and continues to explore expanding the watershed approach to boards in other transboundary basins.

Examples of specific IWI projects highlighted in the report include:

• In 2023, the International Kootenay Lake Board of Control completed a project to design and develop a user-friendly, interactive visualization tool that helps to communicate the drivers and seasonality of Kootenay Lake water levels, and the effects of regulation on water levels to the public and stakeholders.
• The International Red River Watershed Board completed a project in 2022 to assess if there is sufficient connectivity in the watershed to allow for the movement of key fish species and the completion of their life cycles.
• A two-part IWI project created a St. Croix River watershed stress index and enhanced water quality monitoring plan. Building on existing water quality sampling activities, the plan recommends new activities to better track nutrient levels in the watershed that can drive the potential for harmful algal blooms.

"The IWI has proven to be an effective tool for bringing governments, stakeholders and local communities together to address current and emerging issues in transboundary watersheds," said Canadian Co-Chair of the IJC Pierre Baril. "By leveraging support from a range of agencies and local organizations, IJC Boards have been able to build shared scientific understanding of local watershed issues, and develop tools that can help provide solutions to issues of water quality, quantity and ecosystem health."

"Cross-border collaboration to solve issues in shared lakes and rivers is essential to ensuring that these water bodies are protected for the benefit of all people and species that depend on them now and in the future," added US IJC Commissioner, Lance Yohe. "The IWI has over 25 years of experience in bringing experts to the table to find solutions to existing and emerging issues in transboundary watersheds."

Quick Facts

• The IJC is a binational and impartial advisor to the governments of Canada and the United States.
  
  
• The IJC was created by the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty between Canada and the United States to assist governments in the prevention and resolution of disputes regarding the use of boundary waters.    
  
  
• The IJC relies on the expertise of more than 15 binational boards and committees to carry out its mandate.
  
  
• IWI principles of local expertise, adaptive management, and international cooperation have laid the foundation for more collaborative and effective solutions to transboundary water issues now and in the future.
  
  
• The IJC's "watershed approach" accounts for the interrelationships among land, air, water, and all living things, including humans, and involves all interested groups in comprehensive management.

Links

The International Watersheds Initiative main page

The IWI Sixth Report to Governments

IWI Video

SOURCE International Joint Commission