Page:Agreement Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America on Air Quality.pdf/1



The Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America, hereinafter referred in as "the Parties",

Convinced that transboundary air pollution can cause signiﬁcant harm to natural resources of vital environmental, cultural and economic importance, and to human health in both countries;

Desiring that emissions of air pollutants from sources within their countries not result in signiﬁcant transboundary air pollution;

Convinced that transboundary air pollution can effectively be reduced through cooperative or coordinated action providing for controlling emissions of air pollutants in both countries;

Recalling the efforts they have made to control air pollution and the improved air quality that has resulted hum such efforts in both countries;

Intending to address air-related issues at a global nature, such as climate change and stratospheric ozone depletion, in other fora;

Reaffirming Principle 21 of the Stockholm Declaration, which provides that "States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, the sovereign right to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own environmental policies, and the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction";

Noting their tradition of environmental cooperation as reﬂected in the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909, the Trail Smelter Arbitration of 1941, the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement of 1978, as amended, the Memorandum of Intent Concerning Transboundary Air Pollution of 1980, the 1986 Joint Report of the Special Envoys on Acid Rain, as well as the ECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution of 1979;

Convinced that a healthy environment is essential to assure the well-being of present and future generations in Canada and the United States, as well as of the global community;

Have agreed as follows:

For the purposes of this Agreement:

1. "Air pollution" means the introduction by man, directly or indirectly, of substances into the air resulting in deleterious effects at such a nature as to endanger human health, harm living resources and ecosystems and material property and impair or interfere with amenities and other legitimate uses of the environment, and "air pollutants" shall be construed accordingly;