An assessment of the effectiveness of Canada's bulk water export policy using British Columbia as a case study

A potential global water crisis is looming. While exporting Canada's water may appear to offer help to thirsty regions, water export could have serious negative consequences, including potential environmental impacts and the potential that Canada's sovereign management of its water could be compromised by its obligations under international trade agreements. In ths paper, I assess the effectiveness of Canada's current bulk water export policy, the Accord for the Prohibition of Bulk Water Removal From Drainage Basins (the Accord), using an in depth Multiple Streams analysis of British Columbia's policy making process and a comparison of water export policies across Canada. The results of this analysis show that a uniform and ongoing commitment to the prohibition of water export is lacking and that the Accord is not likely to achieve its goal of prohibiting the bulk removal of water fiom the Canadian portions of major drainage basins.