1st Edition

Bilateral Ecopolitics Continuity and Change in Canadian-American Environmental Relations

By Philippe Le Prestre, Peter Stoett Copyright 2006

    The context in which environmental policy decision-making occurs has changed, resulting from widening environmental problems, increased demands from groups and citizens, continuing pressure on the continent's resources and normative shifts. The complexity of current issues is related to an even broader contextual shift: the globalization of environmental issues exacerbated by trade liberalization, especially on a regional level and the potential contradictions between trade and the environmental international agenda that this implies. This volume studies the new dimensions of resource conflict between Canada and the United States, accounting for the emergence of new bilateral environmental issues and detailing how trade liberalization has fostered both disputes and policy convergence. It also examines the recent shifts in America towards a unilateral foreign policy and how this affects active Canadian diplomacy Ideal as a resource tool for students and academics, this book will be a key resource in the areas of global governance, US-Canadian foreign policy and environmental policy.

    Contents: Preface; Introduction: from neglect to concern: the study of Canadian-American ecopolitics, Peter Stoett and Philippe Le Prestre; Managing Canada's US relations through NAFTA's trade-environment regime, John Kirton; Ground-level ozone: provincial-state cross-border regimes, Debora Van Nijnatten; Transboundary air, Don Munton; Canadian-US cooperation: regional climate change action in the Northeast, Henrik Selin and Stacy D. VanDeveer; Canada-US Arctic policies: sharing a Northern continent, Rob Huebert; The management of shared waters: watershed boards past and future, Al Schwartz; Can the great lakes of North America survive globalization?, Mary Durfee and Mirit Shamir; Extinction and invasion: transborder conservation efforts, John Nick Sanders and Peter J. Stoett; Multi-level environmental governance in North America: migratory birds and biodiversity, Robert Boardman; The Pacific salmon dispute and Canada-US environmental relations, Samuel Barkin; North American integration and ’Green’ electricity, Ian Rowlands; Uniquely positioned: global economic integration and Canada-US environmental relations, Robert Paehlke; References; About the contributors; Index.

    Biography

    Philippe Le Prestre is Professor at Université Laval in Canada. Peter Stoett is Associate Professor at Concordia University in Canada.

    'A first class review of a neglected subject. Canada and the United States share not only the longest border in the world, but the world's biggest volume of trade between two countries. Combine this with shared water and airsheds and you have a host of common environmental problems. This volume sheds new light on binational efforts to deal with these problems.' David Runnalls, President of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Canada 'Rarely before has such a wide-ranging study been conducted on Canada-US ecopolitics and their evolution...a fine volume about successes and failures, and even occasional reversals in joint policy-making over time. Sharing a continental land mass, which inevitable results in common concerns over air and water quality, toxic waste and the effects of climate change, the multifaceted environmental issues faced by two of the world’s largest and most advanced industrial states are rigorously examined. The lessons to be drawn from the studies in this thoughtful and carefully organized work could undoubtedly be of benefit to other members of the global community as they too attempt to coordinate efforts in their search for converging interests in the pursuit of the elusive goal of sustainable development.' Hon Charles Caccia 'The editors of this superb volume present not only their own thoughtful analysis of key issues associated with the US-Canadian environmental relationship, they have also brought together a number of thoughtful and thought provoking contributions to Bilateral Ecopolitics making it must reading on both sides of the border for those who are concerned about the environmental sustainability of North America.' William V. Kennedy, Executive Director, Commission for Environmental Cooperation of North America (CEC)