Wednesday February 1, 2023
Castlegar News —
The latest round of negotiations between Canada and the United States over the modernization of a decades-old water-management agreement have wrapped up following discussions in Vancouver this week.
The two countries are working to update the Columbia River Treaty, a flood management and power generation accord involving the Columbia and Kootenay river systems in the Columbia Basin region of British Columbia and the United States pacific northwest.
Katrine Conroy, the B.C. cabinet minister responsible for the treaty, noted the talks are positive as the 15th round of negotiations concluded.
“Although there are still outstanding issues to be resolved, there is cause for optimism as the negotiating teams move closer to a consensus on some of the main issues,” Conroy said, in a news release. “Canada and the U.S. are working together to reach an agreement-in-principle that will protect and support people in the Columbia River Basin and the region’s ecosystems.