October 8, 2010
Canada-U.S. Officials Encouraged by Productive Four-Party Talks
– – –Text of Statment from U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan and Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) --- U.S. and Canadian officials on Friday completed two days of productive, wide-ranging talks in Washington D.C. centered on ways to settle differencesover a number of water projects. Both sides hope that future discussions will lead to agreements that will find resolution to the issues on the table in a way that protects both countries’ interests.
The talks were attended by Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger, Senators Byron Dorgan and Kent Conrad, Congressman Earl Pomeroy, Governor John Hoeven from North Dakota, Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. Gary Doer, and U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Jacobson.
All parties agreed that an uncontrolled release of Devils Lake water through the Tolna Coulee would be catastrophic on both sides of the border and that the issue requires urgent attention.
There was unanimous agreement among participants to accelerate work on the quantity and quality of water released from the outlet, as well as to establish a basin-wide nutrient management plan in order to improve the water resource quality of both countries.
There was also general agreement to initiate a joint feasibility study to address mutual concerns related to border area water management in the Lower Pembina River Valley.
The participants of the four-party talks plan to schedule a follow-up meeting in November at a date to be determined to continue discussions aimed at ultimately resolving the water disputes.
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The Province of Manitoba is distributing this release on behalf of the Government of Manitoba and the United States Senator for North Dakota.